Jumanji: The Next Level

One year after the events in the first movie, most of the main characters (Martha the shy girl, Fridge the jock, and Beverly the popular girl) are happy now that they're back in the real world after finding themselves in the world of Jumanji. However, Spencer, the nerd, wishes he was back in Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson)'s body and fixes the cartridge that was destroyed so he can re-enter the game. When his friends realize this, Fridge and Martha are sucked back into the world while Beverly is behind. While Martha is back as Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan), Fridge is in Professor Shelley Oberon (Jack Black)'s body. Joining them are Spencer's grumpy grandpa Eddie as Smolder Bravestone, along with Eddie's "friend" Milo as Mouse Finbar (Kevin Hart). The gang must go through different challenges in Jumanji if they want to find Spencer and leave the game for good.

I'm going to commit 90's kid heresy and admit having never grown up with the original Jumanji movie with Robin Williams. But I don't necessarily need to because of the new reboot series which barely have any connections with that film. 2017's Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a huge surprise for me; a fun, clever romp that made great use of its settings, characters, and scenarios.

Because Welcome to the Jungle was such a huge success at the box office, I knew that a sequel was going to be made but was skeptical about how they would recapture that lightning in a bottle. Then I found out The Rock was playing Danny Devito and my ticket was already bought before it was even on sale. Fortunately, I wasn't disappointed; it's every bit as hilarious as it sounds. The same goes for notoriously fast-talking Kevin Hart playing Danny Glover and chubby Jack Black playing an athletic African-American guy. Awkwafina joins the fray as an avatar who goes through certain body switches herself.

The directions that the movie goes in are so unpredictable that every time I thought I was ahead of the story, I was thrown in for a loop. Whether it was a body switch or a genuinely heartfelt moment between the characters, I was never expecting it. Even things from the first Jumanji they revisit are delivered in a fun and clever way. Like Knives Out, this is a film that I want to describe as little as possible to give away anything that would ruin the fun of discovering for the reader.

Jumanji: The Next Level is insanely fun both in how it shakes things up and how to brings back elements from the first movie and a great alternative if the next Star Wars just doesn't entice you. A mid-credits scene reveals what the third film will be about, and I'm looking forward to it if it will be half as fun as these past two flicks have been.