In Memory of Robin Williams: Jumanji

It’s hard to believe that the late great legend Robin Williams hasn’t been with us since 2014. The legendary comedian has always been one of my all time favorites and always knows how to keep audiences entertained, even in some of his more dramatic roles.

So, for the next few editions, I will be taking a look at a few of his films for my little “In Memory of Robin Williams” series. For this review, I wanted to take a look at one of his movies that I watched a lot during my childhood that is also celebrating its 30th anniversary this year - “Jumanji.”

A magical board game unleashes a world of adventure on siblings Peter and Judy Shepherd. While exploring an old mansion, the youngsters find a curious, jungle-themed game called Jumanji in the attic.

When they start playing, they free Alan Parrish, who’s been stuck in the game’s inner world for decades. If they win Jumanji, the kids can free Alan for good - but that means braving giant bugs, ill-mannered monkeys and even stampeding rhinos!

While “Jumanji” may not be the best movie, it’s still fairly entertaining and can easily give you a nostalgic feeling since this was a popular movie throughout the second half of the 90s and I’m sure a lot of us have watched this movie a lot when we were younger. “Jumanji” is one of those movies that I had on VHS that I watched a lot when I was little - a long time ago!

Even with the dated visual effects scattered throughout, this 1995 movie is definitely still as entertaining as it was when I was younger. The moment where the Jumanji game begins and seeing the chaos that ensues, the excitement is surely still there and some of the younger ones today will likely enjoy this movie.

The stampede of animals sequence that goes through the entire house (practically destroying it) and throughout town is one of the many stand out sequences that is really exciting. Even with the okay-looking early CGI, the sequence still looks good. The lion attack that occurs in the house (and the return of Alan Parrish) is also one of the better parts of the movie.

The 1995 movie can also get slightly emotional as the movie prominently features the

theme of loss, particularly the loss of childhood, innocence and even loved ones. Throughout the movie, we see the brother and sister (Peter and Judy) slowly trying to deal with the loss of their parents, while Alan has to deal with the loss of not only his childhood but also the loss of his parents and his state of fear of not wanting to go back to the world of Jumanji.

In between some of those emotional moments and the world of Jumanji spilling out into the small town, Robin Williams can still make us laugh during a few scenes especially when he’s on screen with Bonnie Hunt (who I forgot was also in this movie before I re-watched it).

Overall, “Jumanji” is still a good watch for the entire family. Even though there are a couple small parts here and there that may be a little dark for the younger ones, it’s still good family entertainment!

Trivia: Robin Williams was beloved by Keen, New Hampshire (main filming location) townsfolk during filming. He was even presented with the keys to the city by the town’s mayor in 1994. After his death in 2014, Keen residents crafted a makeshift memorial of flowers and candles below the Parrish Shoes sign, and even organized a public screening of the movie.

MPA: Rated PG for menacing fantasy action and some mild language   (runtime 104 minutes)

You can find this 1995 Robin Williams modern classic on various PVOD rental platforms.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTjDsENDZ6s

• Robin Williams was beloved by Keene, New Hampshire townsfolk during filming. He was even presented with the keys to the city by Keene's mayor in 1994. After his death in 2014, Keene residents crafted a makeshift memorial of flowers and candles below the Parrish Shoes sign, and even organized a public screening of the film.

• According to author Chris Van Allsburg, the word "jumanji" is Zulu for "many effects," which alludes to "the exciting consequences of the game" as mentioned in the film.

• Joe Johnston had reservations over casting Robin Williams because of the actor's reputation for improvisation, fearing that he wouldn't adhere to the script. However, Williams understood that it was "a tightly structured story" and generally filmed the scenes as outlined in the script, but where he was allowed to improvise (usually in scenes with Bonnie Hunt) he would often film duplicate scenes.

• The Rhino that was lagging behind the stampede in one scene was actually an animation error, a different frame rate that was left in, but enhanced with wheezing sounds to give the Rhino some personality.

• Though the movie's plot differs greatly from that of the book on which it is based, the ending of the film is very similar. In the book, the two children who find the game at the end are named Walter and Danny, the main characters from Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005). However, the Zathura movie is a stand-alone film, divorced from the Jumanji cinematic universe.

• Robin Williams said acting alongside CGI effects was like "taking LSD" because you had to "hallucinate everything." Special effects and graphics are inserted into the film in post-production, so actors must "interact" with animals and objects that aren't really there.

• The dual casting of Jonathan Hyde as both Alan's father and the antagonistic hunter Van Pelt is similar to the theatrical custom of Peter Pan, with George Darling and Captain Hook being played by the same actor. Robin Williams played a grown-up Peter Pan in Hook (1991).