'Jungle Cruise' Review: An Entertaining But Formulaic & Overly Hyped Disney Film

While Jungle Cruise is fun to watch because of the entertaining duo of Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt, it largely suffers from the formulaic elements that many have come to expect from a typical Disney film.

Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Jungle Cruise sees Dr. Lily Houghton (Blunt) and her brother MacGregor Houghton (Jack Whitehall) employ the services of Captain Frank Wolff (Johnson) to take them to the mythical Tears of the Moon, a tree whose petals can cure any illness.

Lily, MacGregor, and Frank are pursued by the nefarious Prince Joachim (Jesse Plemons) who wants the fabled item for his own selfish reasons.

While on their expedition, the trio also tries to live amicably; a seemingly monumental feat due to Frank and Lily always being at odds with each other.

The film works best when the charismatic Johnson and the charming Blunt are onscreen; their chemistry is undeniable and they effectively keep the viewer's attention.

For a movie that comes with a lot of hype, Jungle Cruise doesn't actually live up to expectations. I found the action below par, the CGI underwhelming (the effects used for the leopard are terrible and even a child can see that it's not real), and the supporting characters uninteresting.

The setting of the movie is the rich Amazon rainforest but for the most part, I didn't get to see that. Some of the scenes are rendered via green screen technology and CGI, reducing the film's overall aesthetic appeal.

There are two villains in this film and both of them are easily forgettable. While the first is a special-effects-laden monster full of snakes, the other is a rich a**hole who wants to rule the world. Neither of them proves to be worthy of note.

Since Johnson started his Hollywood career, the dude has kept audiences enthralled with his charisma and charm, stealing every scene he appears in. This time, however, Blunt proves to be his onscreen match. Together, they make magic happen.

Apart from the two lead stars, Jungle Cruise is another generic movie that leaves no imprint in the mind of the viewer. The cinematography toes the line between great and average.

In terms of the acting, Johnson and Blunt deliver, Plemons even though he is a great actor, leaves a lot to be desired, and Edgar Ramirez as Aguirre is disappointing.

The visuals are not as top-notch as one would expect from a Disney film and some of the sequences are as unrealistic as they are absurd.

Conclusively, Jungle Cruise is a fun family movie but beyond that, it brings nothing spectacular to the table.

Rating: 6/10.