Jungle 2 Jungle (1997) starring Tim Allen, Sam Huntington, Martin Short, JoBeth Williams, Lolita Davidovich, David Ogden Stiers, Leelee Sobieski directed by John Pasquin Movie Review

Jungle 2 Jungle (1997)   2/52/52/52/52/5


Tim Allen as Michael Cromwell in Jungle 2 Jungle (1997)

Jungle Boy & Father Bungle

I could tell you that "Jungle 2 Jungle" was a remake of "An Indian in Paris", I could tell you that it saw Tim Allen reunite with director John Pasquin but to be honest I don't suppose you will be interested because when it comes down to it "Jungle 2 Jungle" is really just a kids film. But what I will say is that if you are just looking for something fun to distract youngsters then it will probably work, but if you are looking for something which is fun for all the family and will feed your kid's minds then this is not the movie. To put it simply "Jungle 2 Jungle" is unoriginal, daft and really quite stupid with little imagination used when it comes to either the story or the humour, basically visual humour for children.

Having headed to the Amazon to track down his estranged wife to get a divorce, New York City trader Michael Cromwell (Tim Allen - Toy Story) is shocked to learn that he has a son called Mimi-Siku (Sam Huntington). And he finds himself forced to take his son back to the city with him after he made a hasty promise to take him to see the Statue of Liberty. With Mimi-Siku having been raised in a jungle experiencing the jungle which is New York is a whole new experience and a stressful one for Michael as Mimi ventures out alone, shooting birds with arrows and terrorizing people with his pet spider.

Sam Huntington and Leelee Sobieski in Jungle 2 Jungle (1997)

Because "Jungle 2 Jungle" is really just a visual movie full of simple gags for young children the storyline is pretty slim and unoriginal. It is basically a combination of a father and son bonding tale with the comedy of a boy brought up in the jungle taken to the big city jungle. And that is it with no surprises and a rather daft subplot about Russian Mafia buying coffee futures.

But then "Jungle 2 Jungle" is really just about the comedy such as the humour of Michael going to the jungle and finding the uncivilized ways disgusting as he sleeps in a room with men who fart. Or when we get to the city and Mimi-Siku gets stuck in to a bowl of cat food after being told he can't eat the cat. It is not clever; in fact it is often the lowest form of humour going with maybe one or two clever moments in the entire movie. But if you don't mind letting your children watch this simple humour then it is going to amuse although it has nothing to offer anyone else who ends up watching it with them.

And that is really it because performance wise it is for the most uninspiring with Tim Allen delivering various facial expressions and grunting noises he has used before in other movies and TV shows. I suppose Sam Huntington is quite good as Mimi-Siku but that maybe more to do with the fact that at least he is a pleasant difference to Allen's grunting noises. In a way the best performance comes from Martin Short whose panic attack comedy is a rare high point which will make young and old laugh.

What this all boils down to is that "Jungle 2 Jungle" is the sort of simple comedy you could chuck on for your kids if all you want to is entertain them. But it's not imaginative or clever as it often trades on the lowest form of humour.


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