The Jungle Book (1967 film)

The Jungle Book
A movie that knows about the bare necessities of life.
Genre: Animation Musical Comedy Directed by: Wolfgang Reitherman Produced by: Walt Disney Written by: Larry Clemmons Ralph Wright Ken Anderson Vance Gerry Based on: The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling Starring: Bruce Reitherman Phil Harris Sebastian Cabot Louis Prima George Sanders Sterling Holloway J. Pat O’Malley Editing: Tom Acosta Norman Carlisle Music by: George Bruns Production company: Walt Disney Productions Distributed by: Buena Vista Distribution Release date: October 18, 1967 Runtime: 78 minutes Country: United States Language: English Budget: $4 million Box office: $378 million Franchise: The Jungle Book Sequel: The Jungle Book 2

Not to be confused with the 1994 and 2016 live action remakes of the same name.

The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated musical comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions. Inspired by Rudyard Kipling's 1894 book of the same name, it is the 19th Disney animated feature film. Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, it was the last film to be produced by Walt Disney, who died during its production. The plot follows Mowgli, a feral child raised in the Indian jungle by wolves, as his friends Bagheera the panther and Baloo the bear try to convince him to leave the jungle before the evil tiger Shere Khan arrives.

Plot

In this classic Walt Disney animation based on Rudyard Kipling's book, Mowgli, an abandoned child raised by wolves, has his peaceful existence threatened by the return of the man-eating tiger Shere Khan (George Sanders). Facing certain death, Mowgli must overcome his reluctance to leave his wolf family and return to the "man village." But he is not alone on his quest: Aided by Bagheera the panther, and later by the carefree bear Balloo (Phil Harris), he braves the jungle's many perils.

Cast

• Bruce Reitherman as Mowgli
• Phil Harris as Baloo
• Sebastian Cabot as Bagheera
• Louis Prima as King Louie
• George Sanders as Shere Khan
• Sterling Halloway as Kaa
• J. Pat O'Malley as Colonel Hathi, Buzzie
• Verna Felton as Winifred
• Clint Howard as Junior
• Chad Stuart as Flaps
• Lord Tim Hudson as Dizzy
• John Abbott as Akela
• Ben Wright as Rama
• Darleen Carr as The Girl

Uncredited

• Digby Wolfe as Ziggy
• Hal Smith as the Slob Elephant, Monkeys
• Ralph Wright as the Gloomy Elephant
• Leo De Lyon as Flunkey
• Bill Skiles and Pete Henderson as Monkeys
• The Mellomen as Colonel Hathi's crew

Why It Makes You Wan'na Be Like Mowgli

1. Brilliant animation that’s pretty impressive for the 1960s.
2. Likable and memorable characters, especially Baloo, King Louie and Mowgli.
3. Amazing musical numbers, such as Bare Necessities and I Wanna Be Like You.
4. Shere Khan is an unforgettable antagonist and George Sanders does an outstanding job voicing him.
5. Many memorable moments, such as the scene where Kaa hypnotizes Mowgli.
6. Very nice grasp to the source material with some of its own creative adjustments, mainly to appeal more to Disney fans.
7. Baloo and Mowgli share a very heartwarming relationship with each other.
8. The ending is incredible as Mowgli finally accepts to be a part of the Man-Village but still has a close relationship with the animals in the jungle.
9. Fantastic score of George Bruns.
10. The storyline is pretty well written.
11. The comedy is very on point.

Bad Qualities

1. The dreaded reused animation that was common for Disney in the 60s and 70s in some scenes.
2. While inspired by Kipling's book, the film is somewhat unfaithful to it.
3. There has been criticism of the portrayal of King Louie, who some have viewed as a racist caricature of African Americans which is a racist 1940s reference.

Reception

The Jungle Book received an outpouring of positive reviews upon release, undoubtedly influenced by a nostalgic reaction to the passing of Disney. Time noted that the film strayed far from the Kipling stories, but "the result is thoroughly delightful...it is the happiest possible way to remember Walt Disney." The New York Times called it "a perfectly dandy cartoon feature," and Life magazine referred to it as "the best thing of its kind since Dumbo, another short, bright, unscary, and blessedly uncultivated cartoon." Some negative reviews came from Judith Crist, who said the film was "devoid of mood or atmosphere." Variety's review was generally positive, but they stated that "the story development is restrained" and that younger audiences "may squirm at times."

Retrospective reviews were also positive, with the film's animation, characters and music receiving much praise throughout the years. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film received an approval rating of 88% based on 40 reviews, with an average rating of 7.19/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "With expressive animation, fun characters, and catchy songs, The Jungle Book endures as a crowd-pleasing Disney classic.". In 1990, when the film had its last theatrical re-release, Entertainment Weekly considered that The Jungle Book "isn't a classic Walt Disney film on the order of, say, Cinderella or Pinocchio, but it's one of Disney's liveliest and funniest", while the Los Angeles Times thought the film's crew was "near the height of their talents" and the resulting film "remains a high-spirited romp that will delight children--and parents weary of action films with body counts that exceed their box-office grosses." In 2010, Empire described the film as one that "gets pretty much everything right", regarding that the vibrant animation and catchy songs overcame the plot deficiencies.

Controversy

There has been criticism of the portrayal of King Louie, who some have viewed as a racist caricature of African Americans. However, this was not the filmmakers' intention as the character and mannerisms of King Louie were largely based on his voice actor, Louis Prima, a well-known Italian American jazz musician and performer, who would have been instantly recognizable to audiences during the late 1960s. While Louis Armstrong was briefly considered for the part, the filmmakers quickly steered away from that direction upon realizing the racist implications.

In 2019, Disney added disclaimers warning of "outdated cultural depictions" at the start of the film on Disney+. In January 2021, Disney removed access to the film for child profiles in Disney+, and strengthened the warning message to read: "This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together."

Trivia

• After Walt Disney's death, the studio would go in hell, but it later got slightly improved with The Rescuers and The Great Mouse Detective. However, the studio wouldn't achieve the same successful acclaim this film enjoyed until The Little Mermaid.

External Links

• The Jungle Book (1967 film) at the Internet Movie Database
• The Jungle Book (1967 film) on Rotten Tomatoes

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