It’s finally here! Disney’s second live-action film adaptation of a classic animated film, The Jungle Book, debut in theaters on April 15 and is being met with great praise. Directed by Jon Favreau (Iron Man) the film follows the story of Mowgli (Neel Sethi), a young man-cub that is raised by wolves in the jungle. When the dry season arrives and Shere Khan (Idris Elba) discovers Mowgli living among the wolves, Mowgli must leave the pack to survive. But his journey doesn’t stop there and the story line for this live-action remake follows close to the animated film.

Let’s get the biggest subject out of the way first, when it comes to The Jungle Book. The visuals for this film are absolutely stunning. It’s clear they took heart in making this film, for when you watch the film, especially in 3-D or IMAX it feels like your getting lost in the jungle along with Mowgli. To say that we got the urge once to reach out and touch the screen would be a huge understatement since it happened more than once. The film is eye candy, literally, candy for your eyes that just keeps giving. But it doesn’t stop there, the story itself keeps you engaged and on the edge of your seat. Even though it’s a remake, the fresh feeling of the film is refreshing as you get to take another look at a classic story.

With a great cast full of astounding actors, it’s nice to see the fresh face of Sethi as the lead character. He has a long way to go, but as a young actor he does exceptionally well for the film. But what they did do that could be questioned, is the music. In the film, they add in a few of the classic song seamlessly, but they aren’t all out there like a musical. Some are saying that this is taking away the classic feel of the songs from the animated film, but looking at the film as something new, you have to wonder if having full musical numbers would have sounded right. It would have felt corny or cheesy. But instead, the music mixes in with what is happening perfectly and then they give you a big musical number at the end.

We recommend you go see this film, it’s a beautiful film that you won’t want to miss. With a lot of heart, The Jungle Book gives a beautiful tribute to the classic animated Disney film, while bringing a new era to Disney classics.

Photo Credit: Walt Disney Studios