The Jungle Book 2

Reviewer: Alyice Edrich

The Cartoon

The Plot

Mowgli’s life with the man-village is full of wonderful friendships and security, but he longs for his old life and his old friends. Determined to return to the jungle and catch up on old times, Mowgli leaves the man-village and ventures out on his own.

Starring

John Goodman, Haley Joel Osment, Mae Whitman, Connor Funk, Bob Joels, Tony Jay, John Ryes-Davies, and more.

The Review

Disney’s The Jungle Book 2 offers the same plot as the first: protect Mowgli from Shere Khan. When word gets out that Shere Khan is still seeking to destroy Mowgli, Bagheera warns Baloo to keep his distance. Baloo, longing for his old pal, walks right into the man-village with Shere Khan secretly—and frightfully—close behind. Upon seeing Baloo, Mowgli can no longer contain himself and agrees to return to the jungle.

There’s only one small problem: When Mowgli decides to leave the man-village, his adoptive family, and his new best friend without as much as a goodbye, his little brother and his best friend set out to find him—alone!

The rest of the story consists of the kids attempting to stay safe in the jungle with Mowgli trying to figure out why when he’s in the man-village he wishes he were in the jungle and why when he’s in the jungle, he wishes he were in the man-village.

In the end, the adults from the man-village find the kids and bring them back home safely—where Mowgli is given a small talk by his adoptive father that says two things: we love you and we understand your need to see your fury family.

If there was one drawback, I would have to say that I was disappointed that there were no new musical numbers. While I really do love the song, Bare Necessities, I honestly believe it was a poor choice for the sequel—as was the closing song, which also appeared in the original—I Wanna Be Like You.

If there were two drawbacks, I’d have to say that the plot is far too similar to the original. While the introduction of the new characters were fun, to-say-the-least, that wasn’t enough to put together a sequel.

That being said, the kids are going to love The Jungle Book 2. And why not? It’s got the same fun and entertaining formula as the original!

Your Task

After you watch The Jungle Book 2, stop and ask your kids if they’ve ever felt conflicted about a decision they’ve made. Then talk about that decision and help them resolve any lingering issues.