the jungle book
Jon Favreau on why his live-action take will wow.
As the last animated feature produced by Walt Disney himself before his death, 1967’s The Jungle Book holds a place of honour in the studio’s pantheon.
But if you think its lighthearted humour and catchy songs make it an easier tale to adapt to live action than the likes of Sleeping Beauty or
Cinderella, consider the vast amount of CGI required to bring an almost all-animal cast to life...
Indeed, it was the film’s many technical challenges that captured the interest of director Jon Favreau ( Iron Man, Cowboys & Aliens). “The first question I had to ask was, ‘Is there something I can do to add to the legacy of this, or am I just redoing, rebooting?’” Favreau tells
Buzz. “The technology was what opened up the door for us to consider doing this. You have to take a few things into consideration. You gotta look at it as a film that will stand on its own, for kids who’ve never seen it or people from other places who didn’t grow up around it. But for people like me, you want to honour the moments, the imagery, the legacy of what the original film was. In combining those two things, we found what I hope is a tone that Disney fans will like, but also that will stand on its own. Even out of the context of the animated feature.”
Aiding Favreau is an all-star roster of voice talent, including Bill Murray as Baloo, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, Christopher Walken as King Louie, Lupita Nyong’o as Raksha, and Sir Ben Kingsley as Bagheera, mentor to man-cub Mowgli, played (in live action) by 10-year-old newcomer Neel Sethi. “On screen I was thrilled to discover that I do look like a talking animal,” laughs Kingsley. “There’s a very fine line they’ve devised, whereby you completely believe it’s an animal, and yet at the same time you believe it’s talking.”
ETA | 15 APRIL 2016 The Jungle Book opens next spring.