It has been decades since then-Disney head honcho Michael Eisner came up with the idea of turning some of the most storied attractions at Disneyland into movies. The results were decidedly mixed. P…
a few days ago in advance of the film’s debut, erasing long dated racist and colonialist depictions of Indigenous peoples from Africa.
That kind of thing, plus all the creatures popping up, gave the vintage, then-E Ticket ride its goofy charm and helps the film version as well. Plot-wise it gets convoluted but starts out simply. Scientist and explorer Lily Houghton , accompanied by her brother MacGregor , who is a proper but somewhat bumbling Englishman, enlists Frank to take her upstream into possibly treacherous territory so that she can discover the origins of an ancient tribal artifact she possesses.
With Kauai standing in for the Amazon, the movie looks great, and has a terrific signature James Newton Howard score that helps matters. Mostly it is up to Johnson and Blunt to make it work as they battle forces against them, as well as the overly busy special effects. The kids will eat it up. Producers are John Davis, John Fox, Beau Flynn, Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia, and Johnson. Disney opens it Friday in theaters and for $30 on Disney+.