The unofficial sequel to Jumanji,
Zathura follows the same pattern that made Robin Williams' jungle
adventure so charming.
Danny (Jonah Bobo) and Walter (Josh
Hutcherson) are bickering brothers who are bored as anything when
they are left under the 'supervision' of their sister Lisa (Kristen
Stewart). Danny finds a board game called 'Zathura' and convinces
Walter to play it with him. When they discover that their house has
been transported to outer space, things start to get weird. Walter
decides that the only way home is to finish the game, so they
continue playing amidst the distractions the game throws at them.
Along the way, they meet 'the stranded astronaut' (Dax Shepard), who
helps them fend off against the lizard-like Zorgons.
I'm not going to say anything mean
about this film. Sure there were bits that didn't make sense, but
it's a kids movie, and what matters is that it is enjoyable to watch,
not how factually correct it is. So Just like Jumanji, once the boys
start to play the game, they encounter certain phenomena, mostly
dangerous and have to overcome or outlive it to proceed. These events
are exactly what I thought space travel would be like when I was a
kid, meteors, robots, lizard aliens, so I kind of reverted back to a
child whilst watching. Whilst being 12 again, I thoroughly enjoyed
the movie for what it was – a fun space adventure with nothing
pressuring me to criticize it.
Even though it was a fine waste of 2
hours, it suffered the fate of being released in the same year as Toy
Story, and also 4 years after Monsters Inc. This meant it had to
compete against the already dominating Disney/Pixar combo who have
grasped a firm handle on being the most predominant childrens/family
movie makers. Even so, Zathura manages to keep you entertained all
the way through with it's child-like charm and quirky story. Even
Kristen Stewart was on form when she gets frozen and has to be
replaced with a life-size model. Some of her best work there!
All in all, a pleasant journey back to
my childhood. - 3 spaceships out of 5
