Jumanji
1995  PG  FANTASY  1h 44min
CAST— Robin Williams, Kirsten Dunst, David Alan Grier, Bonnie Hunt, Jonathan Hyde, Bebe Neuwirth
MUSIC— James Horner  DIRECTOR— Joe Johnston  BASED ON— Jumanji (book), by Chris Van Allsburg

     Highly imaginative, tremendously entertaining family film with thrills, chills and laughs aplenty. In the 1800s two brothers, under the cover of night, bury Jumanji, a mysterious board game for reasons unknown. During a construction project in 1969 a young boy uncovers said game and begins to play it with a neighborhood girl. Things go squiffy when the boy is sucked into the game and the girl is left a pariah in town due to her wild claims. Fast forward 26 years. The house the boy lived in is now occupied by an aunt and her young niece and nephew. Said niece and nephew eventually find the ill-fated game and innocently begin a round. Big mistake. Those unfortunate enough to play Jumanji soon inexplicably release vicious jungle creatures into their idyllic suburban neighborhood. Their only hope comes when a grizzled Robin Williams is also released (he happens to be the boy drawn into the game in '69). Since the madness of the game will not end until someone wins a round, they must all play to the finish. Easier said than done. Each roll of the dice unleashes dangerous, often deadly consequences, from carnivorous lions to mischievous monkeys to crocodile-infested monsoons, things that Milton Bradley never could have foreseen. Williams, as that jungle-raised manboy is in absolute top form, as is the rest of the cast in this adventure suitable for all age demographics. The special effects also deserve praise, nothing hokey in the mix. A '90s classic. Later developed into an animated series.
OUR RATING— ***
FOLLOWED BY— Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)