The Jungle Book, loosely based off of the 1967 animated feature (which in turn is loosely based off of Rudyard Kipling’s works) is the latest in a series of classic Disney movies to be adapted into live-action films. In fact, Disney has set aside an entire branch of their movie company to do just that and for one simple reason: it’s profitable. I was originally turned off by the “cash-grab” nature of the film but decided to give it a watch because of its stellar cast voicing the animals (Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Scarlett Johansson just to name a few) as well as having one of the most eclectic directors at its helm: Jon Favreau, known for movies like Chef, Iron Man and Elf. While I may not be as enamored as other critics, the CGI was certainly impressive and the story was tweaked just enough to make it a worthwhile watch for someone who has already seen the animated classic in their childhood.

This version of The Jungle Book starts with the setting that everybody is familiar with. Mowgli (Neel Sethi), a “man-cub,” was found as a child in the jungle by the panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley) who takes him to a wolf-pack to be raised by the she-wolf Raksha (Lupita Nyong’o). When a drought brings all of the animals of the jungle to the last remaining reservoir, the fierce and uncompromising Shere Khan (Idris Elba) promises to kill Mowgli because of his hate for man. Mowgli is forced to leave the wolf-pack for the man-village and on the way meets a series of different jungle animals, most notably the lazy and wily sloth bear Baloo (Bill Murray).

The first thing to talk about in this movie is that it is hardly a “live-action” remake of The Jungle Book since at any given time Sethi may be the only “real” thing on screen. The CGI used was impressive, though maybe not as impressive as some people have made it out to be. Certainly the animals look realistic but it takes you a while to get immersed in the universe and it is clear that almost everything in the scenes was made on a computer. That being said, Sethi, starring in his first feature length film does an excellent job with acting in front of a green screen, not an easy job for even seasoned actors.

Speaking of Sethi, he is a great testament to why movies should not “whitewash” (or just miscast based on ethnicity in general, it’s not just replacing other ethnicities with white actors). It is one of my pet peeves when movies lose their authenticity in favor of casting an “established actor,” in order to supposedly draw in an audience. This year has been a great demonstration though that well-made movies like The Jungle Book, even with an unknown lead, can be successful (it is already the highest-grossing film in India this year).

If you enjoyed The Jungle Book, this is certainly a solid remake, just don’t expect to be dazzled too much.