by Marilla Mulwane

Created on: December 06, 2011   Last Updated: December 11, 2011

"Jumanji" is a family adventure movie that turns a simple board game into a fight for survival. When young Alan and Sarah find a weird game, they decide to play it, but the game is not what it seems. A player roles the dice, moves their token that many spaces and reads the outcome of the roll. It is just like any other board game, except the outcome really happens, and the game likes wild animals. Reviewing the movie really depends on if the viewer is an adult or a child.

How children see "Jumanji":

To a kid, "Jumanji" is a feast for the eyes. It has everything that a sugared up child could possibly love. First, there is Robin Williams. No matter how many adults think he is annoying, kids will always laugh at everything he does. When an adult is not afraid to make funny noises, dance like a fool and laugh like a monkey, kids love it. Second, "Jumanji's" release was before video games became extremely popular, and kids played board games for entertainment. The movie turned board games into something as exciting as a video game. After watching "Jumanji," it became a lot more exciting, and scary, to roll a die. Third, "Jumanji" had great special effects for its day. Kids watch the film with wide eyes as elephants stampede down the street, and bats fly through the house. "Jumanji" is pure entertainment for kids with every roll of the dice.

How adults see "Jumanji":

Adult watch films with a critical eye. While watching "Jumanji" as an adult, many questions pop up that were never thought of when a child. Adults wonder about the games' origin, since all viewers know is that Alan found it in the construction site. Everything that comes out of the game seems to belong in a jungle, including the hunter, but why the jungle? All of those questions could be answered with a prequel, but, unfortunately, that has yet to happen. Adults also wonder about the hunter and why he is so determined to kill Alan and no one else. Viewers know that Alan spent most of his life in the jungle, but what happened there viewers never learn. Again, a prequel would solve that problem. Adults do know that the hunter looks a lot like Alan's dad for a reason, something children rarely catch. It adds a bit of philosophy to the story, and certainly gives adults a little something more in the film than the action and adventure the kids love.

If an adult has watched "Jumanji" as a kid and then later as an adult, the review becomes a mix of the two. The adult realizes the graphics are now outdated, and might laugh at them a little, and the adult catches the flaws throughout the movie. By the end of the movie, though, an adult who loved the movie as a kid still smiles from the exciting adventure. "Jumanji," although outdated, will always be a fun family adventure.

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