Jumanji [UMD for PSP] Reviews

• The Perfect Adventure Film for Older Kids and Adults

  
  By A2I6MHMAZZDCRX on 2002-06-04
  When Alan Parrish finds an old board game in a construction site, he has no clue what awaits him. When he and friend Sarah Whittle start to play, he is pulled into the game and she is chased from the house by bats. Fast-forward 26 years to when brother and sister Peter and Judy Shepherd start to play. They free a now grown Alan from the game, but in the process release monkeys, mosquitoes, and a lion. They realize they must finish the game to make everything return to normal. Reuniting with the adult Sarah, they attempt to stay alive long enough to do just that.

  This movie is a fantastic fantasy/action movie. It starts out well, and the suspense continues to build until the climax. At the same time, it's got some great one-liners and funny scenes to break the tension. The entire cast does well with the material, including all the special effects. The special effects show their age today and are a bit more stylized then realistic, but they serve the movie well.

  A word of warning to parents. This is a very intense movie. Even though it was marketed as a family movie, many small kids will be frightened by it. Keeping that in mind, you might want to preview it before you show it to them.

  This DVD is a perfect showcase for the movie. The picture is sharp, and the surround sound puts you right in the middle of the action. There is a commentary and two documentaries from the special effects team that give you insight into how they brought the animals in the film to life. If you're looking to purchase this film, this is the version to get.

  Jumanji is an action movie that gets it right. It has the perfect mix of character and story supported by special effects. Pick it up today and be prepared to leave your world behind.
  
  

• This is Horror and Not Fantasy Comedy

  
  By A3GKPMHV4U64IY on 2004-10-05
  During one of my late nights I watched Jumanji again. This is a film starring Robin Williams and is based on a children's book (if by based one can mean it shares the title and a few illustrations). The film was released as a special effects extravaganza but failed to live up to the advertising.
  
  Jumanji is a mysterious board game. Once you start to play you have to end the game. Each roll of the dice unleashes some new nasty obstacle that must be overcome. This can be giant mosquitos and spiders, monkeys and lions, earthquakes, stampedes, quicksand and carnivorous vines, or something even nastier. When Robin Williams was a young boy he found the game buried at a construction site. The opening moves resulted in Williams being banished to the game until someone rolls a five or an eight. Unfortunately no one believes the young girl who had been playing the game with him.
  
  The scene jumps ahead twenty-six years to the present and the new residents of the house find the old game and begin to play. Williams is returned, now twenty-six years older and very jungle-wise. The first things out of the game were destructive enough that the kids decide to finish the game so that everything will be back to normal. Unfortunately the game thinks there are now four players. Williams must find his childhood friend and convince her to continue the game.
  
  As more and more destructive forces are released we learn that Williams's disappearance caused the town to go into a tailspin. The new horrors just speed up the decay. The four players face frustrating and deadly things as they finally finish the game. In the end all is returned to normal. The normal of when the game was started twenty-six years previously. Williams is now a kid again. The scene jumps to the present again and the town is prosperous while Williams tracks down the kids he finished the game with.
  
  This is a very intense film and was probably not suited for the young target audience. This was marketed as a fun fantasy cor children, but what this film is in fact is juvenile horror. Not bad horror, but horror aimed at kids. Taken in that light it is a very well done film with tense moments, humor and subtleties and is worth checking out. But if you are looking for a fun-filled farce you would do better to look elsewhere.
  
  
  

• "Any last words?" . . . "Jumanji!"

  
  By on 1999-10-05
  The movie "Jumanji" is one of the best action/adventure movies you can find on the market. It takes place in a small town in New Hampshire. Alan Parrish is a boy growing up in 1969. His father is cold towards him, his classmates bully him . . . he tries to please his father and always seems to fail. Stumbling onto a digging site where a construction crew is building, he comes across a buried chest. Inside he finds a . . . board game? Yes, a board game! Called "Jumanji", it looks interesting, and he takes it home. Later, Alan and his neighbor Sarah begin to play the game. But when Sarah rolls the dice, words appear in the middle of the board . . . "At night they fly, you better run, these winged things are not much fun." Alan then drops the dice in alarm, and sees on the board "In the jungle you must wait, until the dice read five or eight." After Alan disappears into the board before Sarah's eyes, she is chased out of the house by a mob of bats that appear in the chimney. ---------- Fast-forward to 26 years later, when a woman and her niece and nephew (Judy and Peter) move into the house where Alan used to live. The two kids find the game and begin to play. They find out too late that once you start, you can't stop. The only way to make everything that seems to be coming from the game (like mosquitos and a lion) disappear is to finish the game, with the person who rolls the winning number to end yelling out "Jumanji!" ---------- This movie does not try to "Wow" you with special effects (although the special effects are good). Instead, the acting takes precedent. The younger actors and actresses (who play Judy, Peter, and a young Alan and Sarah) are really good. Bonnie Hunt, as Sarah 26 years later, is wonderful; as is Robin Williams as Alan Parrish. There IS an overlying message in this story (contrary to the viewpoints of other review-writers): Stand up to what you are afraid of. It's okay to be scared, but stand up to it. And unlike some adventure movies, there is enough comedy to keep things interesting ("Sarah and I would like to get OUT of the floor, so . . . "). With great music and a moving plot, this is a great movie. Any last comments? "Jumanji . . . "
  
  

• Shocking Inducing Adventure for the Whole Family...

  
  By A6ADO7B6FUVN on 2005-11-13
  The rhythmical thumping of exotic drums awakens innocent curiosity and a desire for adventure. As the drumming intensifies in both volume and beat, inquisitiveness strengthens together with a slowly escalating heartbeat. The combination gives a heightened level of attentiveness and physical alertness presents an opportunity of tense anticipation within the individual. However, the personal eagerness for suspense could reaches a point beyond personal safety and comfort where fear begins to affect the individual. Jumanji's rhythmical pounding helps tap on the idea of adventure, suspense, and fear through the naïve consciousness of children, which delivers a fantastic adventure that enters a magical realm of the perilous mystery.
  
  A twirling green glowing fog shapes the letters Jumanji while a swooshing sound slashes through a distant howling opens the film. Consequently, the camera fades into a dark forest somewhere in the New England region where an adolescent and his younger brother swiftly move with purpose through the foggy night. The year is 1869 and the brothers are about to bury a padlocked strongbox in a remote location with the intention of securing the world from its content. In the dark hours of the secretive burial, horses twitchingly move while remote cries of wolves amplify the horror of the moment. Yet, the two children persist to submerge the chest within the earth, as a frightful hammering on drums seems to be coming from within the box. At the final stage of the entombment of the chest, the younger brother wonders what would happen if someone would find it. Fearfully the older brother utters the words, "May God have mercy on his soul." The suspense can undoubtedly escape the audience's attention in this brief opening.
  
  One hundred years later, in the idyllic town of Brantford the young Alan Parrish (Adam Hann-Byrd) finds himself in a fearful situation with a group of bullying kids. His father too busy to listen, as he runs a successful shoe factory, demands that Alan faces his fears. Without the fatherly safety, Alan finds himself alone and abandoned, and thuggish kids are outside waiting for him. He has no other choice than face the beating. Afterwards, anger and sadness drift through him, but something catches his attention. A distant rhythmical drumming is coming from a construction site close by his father's factory where he unearths the strongbox that the two boys buried a hundred years earlier. Inside the box, Alan finds another box with the inscription Jumanji, which turns out to be a board game. After additional arguments with his father, Alan opens the game with his friend Sarah, but to their dismay they realize that the game has a very real and dangerous secret. Again, suspenseful anticipation seems to grow within the audience.
  
  Twenty-six years later, Judy (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (Bradley Pierce) move into the mansion where Alan once lived with their aunt Nora (Bebe Neuwirth), as they have recently lost their parents in an accident. Both Judy and Peter struggle with several issues at the same time such as their bereavement of their parents, the relocation, and having to live with their aunt. Yet, they have no idea what other struggles are awaiting for them when they too begin to hear the outlandish drumming coming from the attic. Nonetheless, Judy and Peter open Jumanji and unlock its secret by a simple roll of the dies. Here the film truly begins its rapid fall, after a slow climb on the roller coaster, which will swiftly throw the audience around in an amusing and suspenseful adventure.
  
  Now the question is whether Jumanji upholds the quality after the initial twenty minutes. However, asking this in the review for Jumanji automatically suggests that the film falters, and Robin Williams has not even entered the story yet. Not that Williams' performance is bad. On the contrary, his acting actually elevates the quality of the film, as it makes use of a heavy dose of CGI graphics and special effects. The storyline is a little thin and the film feels too much like a video game where the heroes try to avoid monsters and creatures in order to stay alive. At times, the film sends out vibes similar to the cheat mode of invincibility turned on in a video game, which ultimately reveals the notion of a successful conclusion. Despite the flaws of the film, it offers a remarkable swift roller coaster that undoubtedly will keep many viewers attention through its flashy special effects and thrilling amusement.
  
  

• Great Movie - Williams at his best.

  
  By A1TWRSW3DZF7L8 on 2000-01-15
  Definitely a great movie worth the watching. The opening scene is a couple of 19th century boys who bury a box. They are obvioulsy scared - it's a dark night and they can hear wolves. Despite their fear, they agree they must bury it. One nearly panics as steady drumbeats begins from the board. They bury it when one boy asks the other, "But what if somebody finds it?"

  There is a deadly pause before the reply: "Then God have mercy on his soul..."

  1969, a small town. Alan Parrish discovers the board and invites his friend to play the game. Yet they unknowingly unleash powerful forces and Alan is sucked into the game "until the dice read five or eight". His friend is chased screaming out of the house by bats.

  1995 - Two young kids discover the board in their new home and begin playing, bringing about the arrival of giant mosquitoes and a lion, and bringing Alan back. Yet there is no way out of the game except to finish it. During the course of the movie, everything from stampeding rhinos, to floods, to a crazed hunter with a machine gun appear all attempting to kill the players.

  They succeed in ending the game and the board is eventually sent downriver, till it enters the sea. There is a quick epilogue of the characters and how their lives end.

  The closing scene is the best. The board is lying on a beach. Two out-of-focus characters are seen as the drumbeats begins. One of them says "Qu'est-ce que c'est ce bruit?" The writing underneath translates - "What's that noise?"

  The movie incorporates the best parts of movies to create a really good movie - comedy, drama and plenty of thriller/action with lots of good acting AND special effects. Worthwhile seeing, but not really worth buying in my opinion. It lacks something I can't quite put my finger on...

  One thing I can say for it - the sound effects for the movie are really really good in a house of horrors (trust me, I tried it!)
  
  

• Great, fun, computerized special effects entertainment.
  By A1LDIMQISH07WK on 2001-04-18
  JUMANJI is one of the best computerized special effects movies out there. It's a Family Classic and based on the childrens' storybook JUMANJI. Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, and Kirsten Dunst are awesome.

  JUMANJI is basically about a boy, Alan, and a girl, Sarah, who start playing this mysterious, enchanting old board game Alan found at a construction site during the late 60s. When Alan rolls the dice, he gets sucked into the board game's jungle and has to stay there until somebody rolls a five or an eight. The girl Sarah gets chased away by a bunch of bats who appeared when she rolled the dice.

  Now, twenty-six years late, another boy, Peter (Bradley Pierce), and his sister, Judy (Kirsten Dunst), move into the same house that the boy Alan Parish lived in. They find the board game one morning in the house and begin to play it. To make all the animals and jungle plants go away, they have to finish the board game. At one point, Peter rolls the dice and out pops Alan Parish - who is all grown up (Robin Williams), as well as a lion! In order to continue the game, the three go out on a "search" to find Sarah, who is too grown up (Bonnie Hunt). Everytime they roll the dice something bad happens to them: There's once a stampeed, a monsoon (the monsoon is my favorite sceen), and even a hunter who tries to kill Alan!

  This movie is hilarious as well as charming and heartwarming. It is a divine film and a great movie for all ages. It's full of adventure and action, too. And even some romance. It has something for everybody. The acting is flawless, too. JUMANJI is definitely a must own to your Family Classics collection!
  
  

• STICK TO MONOPOLY
  By A3LZGLA88K0LA0 on 2005-04-23
  Wow, can you imagine waking up on Christmas morning and finding JUMANJI under your tree? Talk about a game that would literally bring down the house! JUMANJI was critically bashed upon its release, but viewing it now, one has to wonder why. It has some pretty inventive special effects, and its premise is neat in that you never know what you get with the roll of the dice. Giant mosquitos? Spiders? Mad monkeys? A stampede of African animals? A crazed hunter? Floods, etc., etc. While the movie sometimes drifts off on unnecessary tangents, it's still a whirlwind of fantastical adventures. Robin Williams, the king of playing grown men who act like children, is remarkably restrained as Alan Parrish, a young boy who was sucked into the game back in 1969 and is released in 1995 by a young Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce. In order to stop all the horrendous things happening, they must finish the game Alan started in 1969, which includes his now adult girlfriend, lovingly played by Bonnie Hunt. Of course, the demented hunter (Jonathan Hyde in a dual role as the hunter and Alan's rather loutish father) doesn't want the game finished. Smaller children may find themselves frightened by some of the catastrophies that plague our heroes, but for older children and even us adult children, JUMANJI delivers.
  
  
• Very Good
  By A1D2ZN57YG2NMH on 2005-04-05
  Robin Williams does a great job playing Alan Parish. He is one of the best adult "kid" actors there is. He plays a similar role in the film Jack.
  
  The action is stunning, and the visual effects are awesome! The two kid actors did an awesome job playing Judy and Peter, and Bonnie Hunt does a great job portraying the ditsy palm reader-"Alan's girlfriend."
  
  A very good film. A must see in this world of steriotypical trash.
  
  
• Finally!
  By A145LB8M4TR1WX on 2005-09-27
  This is one of my favorite movies! The effects were ok for it's time, but they look kind of cheezy now..Thats why I gave it 4 stars. But if you havent seen this movie, BUY IT!!
  
  
• My Son's FAvorite
  By on 1999-11-29
  I did not see this movie in the theatre, but we rented it last year on video and really enjoyed it. Surprisingly, however, my 5-year-old son was wild about it! I had heard it was too scary for young kids, but he loved it. In fact, it has become one of his all time favorite movies, and we have rented it so many times (at his request) that we're going to buy the video for him for Christmas. The special effects in this movie are great, and (unlike the professional reviewers), I think the character development is fine. I think reviewers forget that sometimes people watch movies just for entertainment and fun!
  
  
• Jumanjified
  By AVKNUQRS9D04M on 2005-06-19
  Robin Williams has some funny movies but my top two favorite are Mrs. Doubtfire and Jumanji. Jumanji is funnier and better. Bonnie Hunt really played her part well and was funny. A young Kirsten Dunst I think did a better performance in this one then in the firtst Spiderman movie. Bradley Pierce did good for an actor that I had never heard of before. Joe Johnston made some great special effects. The cop was funny and I think it was cool how Robin Williams hand cuffed him because he was os shocked to see Robin alive. The weird guy from a long time ago with the gun made this film really entertaining. Great family fun so buy it. Also may I add this had titanical sourround sound. God bless you and have the greatest day in your entire life and God bless America.
  
  
  
• "In the Jungle you must wait, 'til the dice read 5 or 8"
  By A31RM5QU797HPJ on 2006-06-10
  
  
  Robin Williams stars in this delightful movie about a game called "Jumanji", a game that must be finished. If the game is not finished, then the game will wait however long you stop playing the game--even for 26 years.
  The special effects are execellent, even by today's standards. This is a much better movie than Zathura
  
  
• Robin Williams At His Best
  By A1Q15TP2FXYYMF on 2006-06-26
  Just about every film you will ever watch (with a few acceptions) will have been influenced by another film, and may seem very similar to that film in more ways than one. However, Jumanji is a complete acception to this rule. It is a completely original and fantstic idea for a film, which has become unsuprisingly succesful.
  When Alan Parish finds an old game in a building site and begins playing it with Sarah, a girl on his street, he dissappears and she is chased out of the house by a swarm of bats. Twenty Six years later, Judy and Peter find it in the attic of there new house, (the old Parish house) and they also begin to play. They release Alan, along with a hoard of unimaginable nightmares, their only hope being to finish the game, if they live that long!
  
  The special effects in this movie, in there day were excelent, however they do look a little bit dated now, especially the lion. It still works well though. The acting is also pretty ok, especially from Robin Williams, who in my mind is on top form here.
  
  Although this film was promoted as a family movie, some parts are pretty intense and scary, especially the beginning where the previous two children are burying the game. Therefore you may want to watch it before you show it to very young children. Having said this, it really is an excelent film and most of the family can enjoy the solid entertainment.
  
  If you buy this film then i guarentee that you will be gripping your seat,and will be thinking of nothing else until the end. Well worth buying.
  
  
• Rumble from the Jungle
  By A1G9FX1KV45N41 on 2003-12-14
  Alan Parrish (Robin Williams) discovers a strange and exciting looking game, at a construction site, and takes it home to play, he unleashes a storm of wild animals and other weird and wonderful creatures form the jungle, and disappears.
  30 years later, two children (Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce) who have just lost their parents move with their aunt, to the same old house, where Alan Parrish lived.

  They find this strange game in the attic, and begin to play it, unleashing, lions, zebras, monkeys, crocodiles, floods, giant insects, killer plants, bats and an insane hunter-adventurer from the 19th century, as well as all sorts of other dangers from the jungle.
  They only start to find a solution to the Pandora's box of dangers they have released, when they release Alan Parrish himself, now grown up and a wild jungle man, from the jungle.
  David Alan Grier plays the police man who is roped into the wild adventure, against his own wishes, (and not sure if he hasn't gone insane). Kirsten Dunst shines in her role , showing what a lovely, talented young actress she is.
  
  

• Interactive Excitement
  By A3W4D8XOGLWUN5 on 2006-01-21
  I often seem to wonder why movies out there can be just outrageous at times. Nevertheless, I also know that there just aren't that many good movies out there right now which is shallow. That also goes with the same for great actors like Tom Hanks, Billy Crystal, and the legendary Robin Williams. In the 1990's he was just everywhere as one of the funniest performers in comedy, and a fantastic actor to the bone. He was just great in films like Mrs. Doubtfire, The Birdcage, and arguably one of the most outrageous and the most exciting films of the time, Jumanji.
  
  Jumanji with Robin Williams, is about a young boy who feels his life is full of doubts and heartbreak finds a outrageous game, which turns fully interactive. When he comes back in the future, he has no idea of what life leads from the death of his parents, to finding a childhood friend, Sara Wittle played by Helen Hunt. Then, they have to finish the game they started in the years earlier. The movie is absolutely amazing with beautiful graphics from the wicked floods, to the calming lion sleeping in the bed of the house, and even the shocking thrill of the hunt as a British hunter also comes into play with the dice. The effects in the movie are absolutely unique and amazing from each details of the rhinos stampedeing, to the unique mutation of young Peter. The film also remains very unique and fun for all ages.
  
  All in all with the recently released film Zathura in theaters, many may want to still consider that film. However, you may still want to see its competition, Jumanji first. I really loved this film the first time I saw it in the theaters about a decade ago, and if you've enjoyed it you know you have too. If you haven't seen Jumanji yet, you don't know what you're missing with the roll of the dice.
  
  Mastering: B+
  
  Price: B+
  
  Story: A-
  
  Fun & Enjoyemnt: B+
  
  Overall: B 1/2+
  
  
• Jumanji
  By A28KKV9FE7GBC8 on 2000-01-27
  Movie is fine BUT DVD says Dolby 5.1 there is no rear channel information... May be great on VHS but not worth it for a good home theather setup.
  
  
• A waste of resources
  By A3BXS0A7CMJ1CJ on 2000-07-30
  Chris Van Allsburg's brisk, haunting storybook is turned into yet another Robin Williams vehicle about getting in touch with your feelings. Williams stars as Alan, a guy trapped for 26 years in the magical board game Jumanji. When orphans Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce find the game and roll the dice, they release Alan as well as various marauding beasts that flatten the sleepy suburbs. The movie gives Alan a cold father who comes back to haunt him in the form of a psychotic game hunter (both are played by Jonathan Hyde). The hunter, one can't help noticing, has a big gun. Freudians should have a field day with the movie: It's crammed with phallic/vaginal threats, plus constant images of cathartic violation. The animals, demolishing suburban propriety, are primal therapists.

  Bonnie Hunt turns up as Alan's now-grown-up childhood sweetheart, who must spell out the movie's subtext: The stampeding beasts, and Jumanji itself, are manifestations of Alan's repressed anger at Dad. Why spend $65 million and thousands of hours sweating over computers to make a banal fable about the hazards of bottling up your anger? The animals do put on a show, but some of them -- particularly the lion and the monkeys, the ones with the most articulation in their features -- look jerky and plasticized. In format, "Jumanji" is a mild retread of "Jurassic Park" (the director, Joe Johnston, is supposed to direct the third "JP"), complete with the nuclear family of the guy, the woman, and the two parentless kids who all come together while fighting or fleeing from computer-generated critters. It was said to be too scary for kids, but the scariest thing about it is that it took three guys to write a screenplay this repetitive and psychologically glib.
  
  

• POOR ANIMATION...
  By A1B350OHYHQTGX on 2001-04-21
  I can never believe that an adult would like this crap!!! Robin Williams is a good actor and he did a good job in acting but... this movie is very poor and cheap!

  The animation is extremely poor and any viewer eye could see how poor it is plus the story events are very childish!

  Maybe the story is not that bad but the way it has been put together makes it no better than its poor animation.

  I recommend this movie to little kids but absolutely NOT FOR ADULTS!
  
  

• One of Robin Williams' worst movies.
  By A1GOI8745FGIDN on 2002-07-07
  I'd say this is one of Williams' worst movies. He's not funny at all here, although the movie does have some mild humor here and there. Unlike his other movies, there is really no moral to story, meaning that the plot is ultimately pointless.

  The movie begins in the 1860's when two kids bury some locked chest. Then, a boy discovers it on a construction site and pulls it out, discovering a board game inside called Jumanji. He gets a girl to play with him and he is sucked into the board, reappearing like 20 years later, saying and looking like he had been living in a jungle most of his life. Unfortunately, with him also came undesirable things from Jumanji, such as monkeys taking over the town, stampeding elephants, disease, spiders the size of basketballs, and the like. To end it all, they must finish the game, which means it's going to get worse before it gets better. They end up finishing it alive (barely) and then they are back in time as kids right before he got sucked into the board. So the two keep the secret to themselves since no one is aware anything happened and they'd never believe them anyway. They also get married. Awww, how cute. So they rid themselves of the damned game of course but stupidly just set it in a creek to float away, instead of burning it (duh!). So then in Japan or somewhere on the beach, two kids hear the African drumming coming out of the board ahead and they rush towards it in curiosity and delight at their finding. Oh boy! Maybe this means there will be sequel! Then, we can learn where this game came from and how and why it does what it does.
  
  

• Jumanji Excitement
  By A1M7N5V6W0Z0H7 on 2002-12-22
  Based on the children's book by Chris Van Allsburg, Jumanji stars Robin Williams as a man who escapes his confinement within a devilish board game, only to be followed by all kinds of exotic problems: elephants, lions, zebras, monkeys, floods, giant insects, killer plants, and a big-game hunter. The computer-generated effects all wreak havoc through quiet streets, and while most of this is pretty fun, relationship conflicts and character development are weak and forgettable. The high point, in comic terms, is probably David Alan Grier's hilarious performance as a cop catching the worst of these various plagues--one at a time.
  
  
• The Good Old Days
  By A7Y6AVS576M03 on 2003-04-28
  In 1989 Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID initiated a significant renaissance of family films of both the animated and live action variety. There were actually quite a few live action family films produced up through the mid 90s that combined outrageous situations, sentimental plotting and good doses of visual mayhem to entertain most audiences. Some of these films such as HOME ALONE (1990), BEETHOVEN (1992), HOMEWARD BOUND: THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY (1993) and DENNIS THE MENACE (1993) were the staples of this renaissance. By the mid 90s the appeal of such films seemed to be waning. 1995's JUMANJI seemed to be one of the last of the films to gain recognition and prominence at least to the audiences that went to see it. Many of the noted critics at that time were not exactly enthralled with this film. I sat in the theatre thinking that this was one of the most innovative films to come along for some time. It not only contained those elements that characterized the aforementioned family films but also combined convincing digital effects, real drama, danger and concluded with an important message the parents and children should take the time to notice one another and not create impenetrable boundaries around themselves. A boy most grow into manhood before he understands that perhaps his father does not know how to approach him. JUMANJI is filled with action and many special effects that really are elements of the catharsis that Alan Parrish (Robin Williams) must endure before he can ever possibly go home again. Watching this film again recently I was touched by the scene where Robin Williams visits the old family shoe business to find the factory empty and closed down now a home for a transient who barely remembers the fate of Williams' dad. That scene counterbalanced with the score that James Horner had composed of the earlier New England setting was bittersweet. Watching that scene I also drifted back to the time when this film was first released. They really don't make films like this any more. Those were the good old days. And it's really not that long ago. For a while the studios were making intelligent films for the whole family that weren't afraid to make you feel for the characters as well as laugh with them. I have fond memories of JUMANJI.
  
  
• My kids went Ape over it!
  By ANMB89ON8576X on 2004-11-16
  My wife and I first saw Jumanji on the day we were due to deliver our first daughter. Last weekend I showed it to that daughter, now eight, and her six-year old sister. I have never seen kids so engaged in a movie as they were with Jumanji. They shouted warnings to the characters, jumped back when animals charged and instinctively raised their feet when floodwaters filled the house during the movie. The youngest has since begged me to let her take it to school to show her class.
  
  Personally, I thought it was cute and entertaining. As to buying it, I wouldn't if it was just for me but having seen the way my kids behaved while watching it, I'll be getting it in a heartbeat.
  
  
  
• For The Whole Family!
  By A3AEYDNYCWH2IZ on 2005-08-26
  We have this movie on VHS and ALWAYS loved it so when I seen it at Wal-Mart on DVD for $5.50 I HAD to buy it. This movie is a great adventure for the WHOLE family. I recommend it to everyone (even if you don't have kids).
  
  
• Time to revisit this great classic.
  By A3D6OI36USYOU1 on 2006-08-13
  Watching Jumanji with kids under the age of 10 will really put this movie into persective for you. I know its Robin Williams and I know its Jumanji, but its good family entertainment, and on that nobody disagrees.
  
  Special effects are a little light by today's standards, but thats really limited to the scenes with the lion and the ubiquitous monkeys, everything else comes off in fairly realistic manner even on a large format digital display. This movie is just great fun, with a terrific twist at the end.
  
  This edition of the DVD has been completely remastered over the original issue, and the quality is in the amazingly clear images and awesome 5.1 audio. A nice "making of" documentary to go along with an FX team commentary and storyboards if you're all that interested in this flick. All in all a high quality release. 5 Skeeters
  
  
• Unique ...
  By A25XGZX0YRTJKN on 2007-01-28
  ... is, I think, the best word for this film. As stated in an earlier review, most films are take-offs on dog-earred, thumb-smudged plots and tend only to restate what has been done before. This is especially true of many of today's productions where the film is an out-and-out remake of the earlier film. Often the title is not even changed.
  
  But this story is different. I can't remember any film which has the same idea -- of a boy finding a board game and playing it with his friend only to unleash dire results.
  
  The tale has been recounted in other reviews, so no need for me to restate it. Let's just say that this is a refreshing breath of air in an industry which has become stale in it's repeatition. Visuals are nice, but one can tell they are computer generated.
  
  Older kids and adults will enjoy the story, I think, though I would be cautious about very young children watching. The movie could easily inspire dark dreams for those under age 8 (or so).
  
  The film flows and has a really nice, unexpected twist at the end. Well worth the build up. I think most who watch the movie will like it. And of course it features Robin Williams.
  
  *** Recommended ***
  ~P~
  
  
• What was that all about?
  By A34PUCLNFN62D3 on 2000-03-04
  Robin Williams' recent pictures tend to bore me to death but this one didn't. Somewhere along the movie there's a redneck gunnut playing... the Mexican National Anthem! How come? How weird!

  (Besides, there's no mention of it in the credits. Should Mexico sue?)
  
  

• OK story, but the effects are atrocious
  By A2JS2OU5SBH1XQ on 1998-12-05
  Plot is ok, in this surprisingly adult film. Not really for kids, far too serious and intense at certain points. Actors do a good job, but the producers should have pumped a little more cash into the special effects. And by the way, just what is the moral of this story????
  
  
• i didnt like it much
  By on 1999-08-20
  take some advice from a 10 year old the movie wasnt that good and one part didnt make sence so dont get the movie
  
  
• The greatest movie of all time!
  By on 1999-09-25
  I loved this movie so much when I saw it in the theater, I went back to see it two more times. When it finally came out on video, I bought it and since then have watched it over 100 times. In my opinion, Jumanji is the greatest movie of all time.
  
  
• Wild animals are not pets
  By AEF8X4ECM4Q3S on 1999-12-19
  A little boy and his friend discover a board game that brings the wild jungle right in his house and takes him prisoner. So many years later, another boy and girl (who move into the boy's house) release him from the game and have to finish the original in order to send all the jungle creatures back from wence they came. Excellent special effects keep this entertaining amid William's usual emmotional style of humor that gets tiring after 2 or 3 viewings of MRS. DOUBTFIRE. Suspenseful and action packed with chills if you watch in the theatre. Grier is funny as the cop and Byrd is pre H20.
  
  

• PSP I.Sound Theatre With Wireless Remote
• PSP Powered Audio Case
• PSP Headset
• PSP Game & UMD Case

• Zathura (Special Edition)
• Hook
• Men in Black (Collector's Series)
• Ghostbusters (Widescreen Edition)
• Disney's Flubber