JUNGLE BOOK

1967, Walt Disney Productions

Animated

Rating: G

Approx. 78 mins.

THE STORY:

Mogwli is a young Indian orphan raised from baby-hood by wolves. He grows up happily in the jungle alongside his animal friends, until Shere Khan, the Bengal tiger, makes an appearance. The animals realise that with Mowgli among them, both they and he are at risk for attack. They concoct a plan to return Mowgli to the human village under the escort of the black panther Bagheera. 
Along their journey, they encounter Baloo the bear, whose carefree, lackadaisical attitude to life is matched only by Bagheera's seriousness. He and Mowgli form an instant bond, and Baloo promises to raise Mowgli, who has no desire to be returned to the man-village. Bagheera, nonetheless, manages to convince Baloo that the jungle is not safe for Mowgli, and the two continue to lead the boy to the village. Along their journey they run into a variety of animals, friendly and malevolent, before Mowgli rejoins his tribe.   

QUESTIONABLE LANGUAGE:

• none

VIOLENCE:

• nothing notable

TEACHING POINTS:

• Sometimes we have to give up our own wants for the benefit of others.

THE UPSHOT:

Compared to a lot of other classic Disney films, Jungle Book stands up quite well. The music is catchy and clever, and the story-- thank you, Rudyard Kipling-- is a classic. There are no overtly uncomfortable colonial overtones to the story, and there are no Disney-typical female characters to make me wince. Everyone in the room enjoyed it, and there was even some dancing.

4/5