Some films presented by Disney at its big D23 event this weekend are still at a very early stage in terms of their effects and had little to show for themselves. But despite still being “deep in the trenches” according to the director, Jon Favreau and some of his Jungle Book cast managed to deliver an impressive sizzle reel from the film that wowed the audience.
Taking its cue from both Rudyard Kipling’s original story and the 1967 Disney animated favourite, this new Jungle Book blends cutting edge performance-capture technology with realistic and CG backgrounds to offer something that looks both life-like and stylised.
Favreau talked up the challenges of channelling the original while making something new, and the high-tech artistry going on behind the scenes. He brought out stars Ben Kingsley, Lupita Nyong’o (who seemed to be in every film presented today) and Neel Sethi, the young relative newcomer who plays Mowgli. Sethi commented that it was his first chance to meet his co-stars, as most of his work was completed live action, with the rest performance captured to give the animals life.
The footage they’d brought was fairly spectacular, especially given its early stage. Dark forests, lush vistas and some fantastic CG animals, all voiced by the likes of Nyong’o, Kingsley, Idris Elba, Scarlett Johansson, Christopher Walken and Bill Murray. It was moody, atmospheric stuff, a lot darker than most of the ‘toon version, but still with room for warmth and humour, particularly when Baloo breaks out a gentle, humming version of The Bear Necessities.
With just one reel, The Jungle Book marked itself as one to watch out for. We’d expect at least a teaser trailer soon, with the film headed into cinemas next April.