CHENNAI: If you’re wondering what to make of the censor board’s U/A certification to The Jungle Book— here’s the verdict from kids who got a first look on Friday.
“It was not scary at all,” said four-year-old Ashwin Mahadevan. Though the 3D effects did ramp up tiger Shere Khan’s menacing air, most of the little ones in the theatre seemed not to mind whatsoever. The element of surprise got a few to jump, but for the most part, it was nostalgic and fun all the way.
A U/A certificate, for those unaware, means parental guidance is required for children under the age of 12 watching the movie.
Large groups of children dominated the packed shows for ‘The Jungle Book’ across the city. It was no surprise that most came accompanied by a parent or elder sibling (whether they had heard of the U/A certification or not).
Interestingly, for parents who rushed to book tickets the night before, the question of ‘scary’ never came up. “My little one just wanted to know why Mowgli wasn’t wearing clothes,” laughed Laya Mahadevan, who spent the interval explaining there is no dress code in jungle.
“Honestly I think most of our present day Tamil films with all the guns and the violence should get a U/A rating if you look at it that way,” she added in retrospect.
Director Jon Favreau’s photo realistic CGI animals are certainly not flat animated characters, as anyone who has watched the film would agree. The emotions were real. The visuals were brilliant. And be it the hypnotic eyes of python Kaa (Scarlett Johansson) or bonding time with Baloo the bear (Bill Murray)—both adults and kids felt a tinge of fear and a wave of fondness as the scenes came to life.
“But that doesn’t mean we’ll have nightmares,” said 9-year-old Sreeja. “Okay, when Shere Khan was chasing Mowgli through the fields I got a little worried,” she admits sheepishly. But a minute later, her smile returns.