Thirty-six years after The Jungle Book was released, along came this missable sequel. It picks up some time after boy Mowgli returned to life in a human village, but he’s missing his old pals, so when Baloo the bear arrives he heads back into the jungle, unaware that nasty tiger Shere Khan is on the prowl.
It’s almost a remake, rather than a sequel, as old characters crop up and a few new ones are added (including Phil Collins voicing Lucky the buzzard), but nothing much happens. Goodman makes a good substitute for Phil Harris as the voice of Baloo, and the film-makers must agree, as they have him singing ‘The Bare Necessities’ not once, but at least three times. It’s all inoffensive stuff, perhaps, but pretty dull, too.
Is The Jungle Book 2 suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
As with the original movie, Shere Khan may scare very young viewers.
If you like this, why not try: The Jungle Book, The Wild, Ice Age, Madagascar, Tarzan,