What this does is make Jumanji feel more real - the sets are fantastic (the grand old house in various stages of jungle), and the atmosphere nicely sinister for the most part. And even if the spiders look unconvincing and the crocodile is laughable, that's perhaps part of the fun.
What stands out now is how surprisingly good the performances are - of course the presence of a young Kirsten Dunst makes it all the more watchable because she's just a mini version of herself now - sounds silly, but there it is. She gets a good balance between scared/brave and isn't annoying - in fact she epitomizes the 90s child-hero, in that she's playing along with the grown-ups and manages to reduce all the vulnerable soul-searching to its bare minimum. One can't help feeling that if the film were made now there'd be an entire scene of the Kunst breaking down and mourning her parents, or flying off the handle, or screaming, or something. Instead we get her lies, her "I'm so tough oh wait" act, and some real fear/bravery. Similarly with Bradley Pierce. What's nice about Jumanji (and what makes it appealing) is that it is surprisingly un-mawkish and un-sentimental. It's a fantasy, and it has a happy ending, but it isn't too laden with the usual drivel. It usually manages not to take itself too seriously and is often just funny.
Bonnie Hunt is brilliant, and has most of the best lines ("take no notice of him honey, he's a Libra"), and it is only when she arrives that Robin Williams begins to perk up a bit too, after spending a few minutes being far too earnest (although I suppose that is what the part demands) - some of their exchanges are really very well-written, a light, sparky comedy which feels old-fashioned perhaps nowadays but makes the film all the more watchable.
Not only that, but the fashions! You just forget that the 90s happened sometimes, so concerned are we now with the pristine nature of things and our current 80s fix. Hunt is so slapdash it's wonderful (I'd forgotten that quasi romantic/goth trend of black tights and very short patterned skirts and the victoriana boots and the white top/patterned waistcoat combo), clearly dressed from a thrift store rather than a stylist, Aunt Nora's beret is a delight from start to finish and as for Kunst, in her dungarees and plaits and sensible shirt, well, girl power all the way.
So really it's still good fun, and stands up as what it is, a kid's film. What I liked about it was how it seems to have become (as these things often do) a microcosm of the time, and a snapshot of the way kids films could have gone. It's hard to imagine a film made for children now that has such unexplained terrors - there is no "reason" behind the game, it just exists, it just is. I think my generation were exposed to more of this kind of weird unexplainable fantastical stuff (even Jurassic Park, whilst explained, is terrifying none the less). And the children in the films (and Kunst is a good example) were perhaps more interesting - less knowing, less fashionable perhaps, but also less annoying. If you think of the current crop of films for children they are all (and this is perhaps part of the Harry Potter phenomenon) are quest-driven. The children are usually faced with explainable terrors, and have to fight, conquer, do battle. It seems, in a funny way, more manageable. And whilst Jumanji isn't exactly hide-behind-the-sofa terror, it shows children plunged into a bewildering scenario for which there are no skills, except perhaps survival. There is no grand plan, no quest-narrative, no special powers or effects - just get through, just finish the game. The children themselves are unremarkable, they are just children who find themselves plunged into things beyond their control. In some ways a more egalitarian approach, battling chaos rather than evil perhaps. Or, as in The Neverending Story, nothing itself.
One could argue it leads for a more interesting cinematic experience, maybe we could do with some more like this?
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