The Jungle Book (Live-Action Version)

The Jungle Book is a remake of the 1967 Disney film.

Plot
Mowgli (Rohan Chand) is found in a basket as a baby in the deep jungles of Madhya Pradesh, India by Bagheera (Ralph Fiennes), the black panther. He promptly takes him to an Indian Wolf who has just had cubs. She raises him along with her own cubs and Mowgli soon becomes well acquainted with jungle life. Ten years later, Mowgli visits the wolves and gets his face licked eagerly when he arrives. One night, when the wolf pack learns that Shere Khan (Charles Dance), a man-eating Bengal tiger, has returned to the jungle, they realize that Mowgli must be taken to the "man village" to protect him and those around him. Bagheera volunteers to escort him back.

They leave that very night, but Mowgli is determined to stay in the jungle. They spend the night on a large tree, where they encounter Kaa (Steve Buscemi), a python who hypnotizes Mowgli and tries to eat him. Bagheera stops him, and he and Mowgli go to sleep.

The next morning, Mowgli tries to join the Indian elephant patrol led by Colonel Hathi (Malcolm McDowell). Bagheera finds Mowgli and they argue; Mowgli runs away from Bagheera. The boy soon meets up with the fun-loving bear Baloo (Jeff Bridges), who shows Mowgli the fun of having a care-free life and promises not to take him to the man village.

Mowgli now wants to stay in the jungle more than ever. Before long, Mowgli is caught by a gang of monkeys and taken to their leader, King Louie (Christopher Walken) the orangutan, who makes a deal with Mowgli that if he tells him the secret of making fire like a human, then he will make it so he can stay in the jungle ("I Wanna Be Like You"). However, since he was not raised by humans, Mowgli doesn't know how to make fire. Bagheera and Baloo arrive at the palace, unseen and try to plan a way to rescue Mowgli, but the catchy beat of the song distracts Baloo and he wanders off dancing. Soon, however, he appears dressed in banana skins and coconut shells posing as a female orangutan which fools the King. But soon, Baloo's disguise is revealed and there begins a mad chase between the monkeys and Baloo and Bagheera over Mowgli. The King accidentally knocks down a pillar and holds up the temple the best he can until he struggles when Baloo begins to tickle him frantically under the arms. The monkeys manage to stop Baloo's tickling, but end up bouncing the king onto the other pillar instead, causing the temple to collapse in rumble. Mowgli is rescued from King Louie by Bagheera and Baloo. Bagheera explains to Baloo that the jungle isn't safe when Shere Khan is around. As morning arrives, Baloo explains to Mowgli that the Man Village is best for him, but Mowgli accuses him for breaking his promise and runs away in the deepest part of the jungle. Bagheera (after Baloo explains to him) then finds the Elephant Patrol and tells Hathi of Mowgli running away with Shere Khan himself overhearing. Hathi then organizes a special search mission for all his herd. Later, Kaa hypnotizes Mowgli into a deep and peaceful sleep, and tries to eat him (after tricking him that Mowgli can trust him), but thanks to the intervention of Shere Khan, Mowgli escapes.

He encounters a group of solemn vultures (The Fab Four), who closely resemble The Beatles, and they say they'll be his friend. The vultures argue and continually sidetrack Mowgli with their pointless arguments. Shere Khan appears shortly after and challenges Mowgli to a fight, but Baloo rushes to the rescue. Baloo is knocked unconscious and Mowgli ties a flaming branch onto Shere Khan's tail in order to get rid of the ruthless tiger. Baloo then wakes up and he and Bagheera take Mowgli to the edge of a man-village, but Mowgli is still hesitant to go in. His mind soon changes when a young girl from the village comes down by the riverside to fetch water. After noticing the boy, she "accidentally" drops her water pot, and Mowgli retrieves it for her and follows her into the man village. After Mowgli chooses to stay in the man village, Baloo and Bagheera decide to head home, never to see Mowgli again.

Cast

 * Jeff Bridges as Baloo
 * Rohan Chand as Mowgli
 * Ralph Fiennes as Bagheera
 * Charles Dance as Shere Khan
 * Steve Buscemi as Kaa
 * Gerard Butler as Akela
 * Lupita Nyong'o as Raksha
 * Christopher Walken as King Louie
 * Malcolm McDowell as Colonel Hathi
 * Helen Mirren as Winifred
 * Joshua Rush as Hathi Jr.
 * The Fab Four as Vultures

Songs

 * "Colonel Hathi's March"
 * "The Bare Necessities"
 * "I Wanna Be Like You"
 * "Colonel Hathi's March (Respire)"
 * "Trust in Me"
 * "That's What Friends Are For"
 * "My Own Home"
 * "The Bare Necessities (Respire)"

Rating
Rated G.