JUNGLE
Staring Daniel Radcliffe, Alex Russell
Director: Greg McLean
Writers: Justin Monjo (Screenplay),
Based on a True Story
Action / Adventure
115 Minutes
2017
It is the early 1980s. Yossi Ghninsberg (portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe) meets Karl Rupretcher (Thomas Kretschmann). Karl convinces Yossi that there is greater adventure than the normal tourist traps.He claims he can lead Yossi through the Amazon rain forest where they will encounter rare Indigenous tribes no other tourists ever see, but that he is friends with. Karl also promises that the stream beds are filled with gold.
Yossi convinces his "friends," guys he recently met, to join him. Kevin Gale (Alex Russell) is a professional hiker and photographer, and Marcus Stamm (Joel Jackson) is a school teacher. They are mildly reluctant, but agree.
Despite Karl being a total stranger, they Yossi knows this will be the adventure of a lifetime. Yossi has dreamed of this kind of journey all of his life. A chance to do something different. His father never understood his free-spirited lifestyle. Something like this would change things. And he so wants to believe Karl is on the up and up.
The school teacher is struggling. The days of hiking takes a toll. His feet are covered in blisters. The jungle is an unforgiving place for those not prepared for several rounds with nature, poisonous insects, and deadly beasts.
Quickly the three friends discover hidden truths about their guide, and their chance for survival in the jungle is cut in half. Tension. Suspense.
The acting is very good (although I am not a fan of Radcliffe's Israeli accent). The dialogue is crisp. You grow to like the three friends, and you just are never sure about Karl. For a nearly two-hour movie, the time goes be fast. There is a lot happening, even when it doesn't seem like a lot is going on.
Radcliffe carries the movie. When his character, Yossi, is separated from the others, he wanders through the jungle looking for a way out. Plagued by delusional visions, faced with harsh weather, and tasked with surviving in the wild. Pretty intense!
I did some research on the actual adventure. Yossi has been through a lot. I am glad they made this journey into a film. I liked it very much, unsettling as it was.
TRAILER for JUNGLE
Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Amazon Best-Selling adventure novel, BLOOD RIVER
I did some research on the actual adventure. Yossi has been through a lot. I am glad they made this journey into a film. I liked it very much, unsettling as it was.
TRAILER for JUNGLE
Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Amazon Best-Selling adventure novel, BLOOD RIVER
