Based on Rudyard Kipling’s timeless stories, “The Jungle Book” is inspired by Disney’s classic animated film, with an approach all its own. Film Director Jon Favreau said they embrace the mythic qualities of Kipling in the more intense tonal aspects of the film, but we left room for what they remember from the ’67 film, and sought to maintain those charming Disneyesque aspects.

All-Star Cast

According to Favreau, story is king. “I think films have to offer an emotional experience for the audience,” says the director. “The spectacle won’t mean anything if they’re not engaged emotionally with the characters. Every story needs humanity, emotion and character development, as well as humor—presented in a way that doesn’t betray the stakes of the film. There are white-knuckle moments in the movie when you wonder, ‘What’s going to happen to this kid?’”

The all-star cast includes Bill Murray (“Lost in Translation”) as the voice of Baloo, Ben Kingsley (“Learning to Drive,” “The Walk”) as Bagheera, Idris Elba (“Star Trek Beyond”) as Shere Khan, and Lupita Nyong’o (“12 Years a Slave,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”) as the voice of mother wolf Raksha. Scarlett Johansson (“Avengers: Age of Ultron”) gives life to Kaa, Giancarlo Esposito (“Breaking Bad”) provides the voice of alpha-male wolf Akela, and Christopher Walken (“The Deer Hunter”) lends his iconic voice to King Louie. Newcomer Neel Sethi stars as the film’s only human character, Mowgli. Sethi, 12, was selected from thousands of hopefuls who auditioned as part of an extensive worldwide search.

Latest Filmmaking Technology

To honor Disney’s dedication to technology, filmmakers explored the best way to immerse audiences in the world they’d imagined in their version of the story. Says Favreau asked ourselves, how can we create a world? How can they use this technology, these storytelling tools to their fullest potential?’ Ideally, they wanted the audience to forget that it’s technology—they’ll just get transported.

The film features a cast of captivating characters—all but one are CG creations — amidst a stunning backdrop that blends minimal live-action sets with digitally built environments. Filmmakers assembled a team of experts with movies like “Life of Pi,” “Gravity,” “Avatar” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” under their belts, who did extensive research to achieve the authenticity Favreau envisioned, while enhancing reality to give audiences a real adventure.

Old-school Talents Solve High-Tech Challenges

Newcomer Neel Sethi’s personality and natural abilities helped him win the role of Mowgli, opposite a roster of A-list performers. But as the only live-action actor in the film, Sethi faced a unique challenge: he would be unable to play off his co-stars’ performances, which were being assembled digitally. They knew that they needed realistic emotional depth to Neel’s performance, producer Brigham Taylor said. They can’t get kind of acting against something inanimate, so film director came up with the idea of always having some performers, ones who will never be seen in the final film, on the stage with Neel. It was either Jon himself and or one of five puppeteers. Neel was always reacting and interacting with someone live so he knew where to focus.

Visual effects supervisor Robert Legato adds, sometimes a puppeteer would have little eyeballs on his hand and sometimes a huge life-size puppet. We’d change it up from take to take to keep it fresh for this young kid who wasn’t a seasoned actor. It helped him give a really great performance.

Synopsis

The story is about Mowgli (newcomer Neel Sethi), a man-cub who’s been raised by a family of wolves. But Mowgli finds he is no longer welcome in the jungle when fearsome tiger Shere Khan (voice of Idris Elba), who bears the scars of Man, promises to eliminate what he sees as a threat. Urged to abandon the only home he’s ever known, Mowgli embarks on a captivating journey of self-discovery, guided by panther-turned-stern mentor Bagheera (voice of Ben Kingsley), and the free-spirited bear Baloo (voice of Bill Murray). Along the way, Mowgli encounters jungle creatures who don’t exactly have his best interests at heart, including Kaa (voice of Scarlett Johansson), a python whose seductive voice and gaze hypnotizes the man-cub, and the smooth-talking King Louie (voice of Christopher Walken), who tries to coerce Mowgli into giving up the secret to the elusive and deadly red flower: fire.

Jungle Book

Producer: Jon Favreau

Director: Jon Favreau, Brigham Taylor

Screenplay: Justin Marks

Cast: Ben Kingsley, Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Christopher Walken, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o

Genre: Adventure

Running Time: 106 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGcSDgsyhvM&list=PLwpnlZc8u84Yot9GUT67J7DjWh1b8vY2x