At the end of “The Jungle Book,” we saw Mowgli lured into the Man Village by a beautiful girl with large brown eyes. As we begin “The Jungle Book 2,” we find that her name was Shanti, and she and her family have taken Mowgli in and given him a home. Shanti’s parents have done everything they can to make him feel more comfortable and welcome, and her little brother Ranjan practically worships him, but despite all this, Mowgli still misses his jungle life. It doesn’t make it any easier that he’s forbidden to cross the river – his new family believes the jungle is nothing but dangerous, and no amount of talking on Mowgli’s part will change their minds.
He tries to flirt with Shanti, but she is contemptuous of his wild ways and his uncouth behavior. When he tries to tell the village children how wonderful the jungle is, he’s punished for leading them to danger.
As Mowgli thinks about the life he had before vs. the life he has now, he realizes that he wants to leave the village and return to the jungle. Baloo, meanwhile, has been missing the man cub and decides to sneak into the village for a visit. Neither of them realize that Sher Khan has also made his way to the village, bent on getting his revenge on Mowgli. As Baloo and Mowgli escape to the jungle, Sher Khan makes a menace of himself with the townsfolk, finally getting chased off with fire.
As Mowgli returns to his life with Baloo, he realizes that the village has gotten under his skin a little more than he thought it had. He feels stuck between two places, not sure where he really belongs anymore. All he does know is that he must find a way to conquer Sher Khan once and for all.
This was pretty enjoyable, as Disney sequels go. There are some good musical numbers and the new voice casting was great – John Goodman makes an excellent Baloo, and Haley Joel Osment stars as Mowgli. I think this one is well worth your time.
This film was rated G.
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