Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle

I was a big fan of Disney’s cartoon version of this story. Said so, as soon as I watched the trailer on Netflix, I decided to watch the movie. It is a very different version, but I liked it. It’s intense, violent, dark and makes you sit in front of the screen for 2 hours without even think of it. Also, prepare yourself to hold your breath many times.

The protagonist is a good actor. Acting and counter scene with something that is not really there, it’s never easy. I imagine that for a kid, it is an even more significant challenge. Nevertheless, Rohan Chand was flawless in his role.

The special effects bothered me a little bit, though. The fact that the animals don’t look real takes out a bit of the magic of this movie. However, due to the quality of the story and characters, it ends up not being so important after all.

The story is complex, more than in early versions. We have a fierce fight for power, with alliances and games that put Mowgli on the human side of the story. Characters deal with a variety of moral contradictions in their journey. Above all, the animals face the atemporal dilemma about the individual wellbeing, versus the group wellbeing in times of danger and sacrifices.

As I said before, the whole movie is quite dark and violent. Undoubtedly, it reaches what I believe should be the first goal of this story - it makes you question what makes us human after all, and the value of true humanity.

The sense of belonging, an aspect highly explored in most previous versions, is here slightly left to the background, but not ignored. Mowgli doesn’t belong, and he is bullied for that. He is not a wolf, but somehow, he’s not a human either. In the end, this was probably the most beautiful message the movie left us: Mowgli is different, and he learns to accept that.

A piece of advice:

Don’t be fooled by the Disney version you might know from your childhood - this movie is
NOT for small children. They will be scared.

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