Deal: Get Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle + The Next Level in 4K for $15.99

Right now you can get the surprisingly good Jumanji reboot, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and the entertaining but less bright follow up, Jumanji: The Next Level in 4K for $15.99 via Microsoft.  These movies are Movies Anywhere compatible so will transfer to your linked accounts (VUDU, iTunes, Google Play, FandangoNOW) if you have them associated, and will be available in 4K on those accounts if those services have the movies in 4K.

To get this deal, follow this link.  Make sure to click UHD before purchasing to get them in 4K!

Thanks to Slickdeals for the original deal info!

What to Watch This Weekend: December 13, 2019

In Theaters: Jumanji:The Next Level

Jumanji: The Next Level returns with a new adventure featuring the same great cast, additional characters to meet along the journey, and a commitment to video game tropes that is entertaining and hilarious.   For more information, check out our review!

At Redbox: Once Upon a Time In Hollywood

Once Upon a Time In Hollywood is a visual treat that captures a golden time in Hollywood perfectly, but the long run time and lack of action hampered this Tarantino epic.  However, you can easily deal with this long run time by watching it from the comfort of your own home!  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (HBO): Unfriended: The Dark Web

It's Friday the 13th so we figured we should give you all a horror option.  An interesting film told through an online video call and other computer-based venues, Unfriended: The Dark Web is a little creepy, has a fun cast, and a little intrigue.   

Streaming (HBO): The Long Shot

A very well reviewed box office bomb, the Long Shot is available on HBO streaming.  The movie had a fun story and fantastic chemistry between the two leads Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen.  Go ahead and give it a shot this weekend. 

Streaming (Amazon): The Report

A movie that is already getting some award buzz, the report is a cold, factual movie with a great performance by Adam Driver.  The film is not going to thrill you, but if you want a strong, factual film that delves into important recent historical events, then check this out this weekend.

Review: Jumanji: The Next Level

Release date: December 13, 2019
Running time: 123 minutes
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan

They're back in the game!  A year after their original jungle trek, Spencer begins to lose some of the confidence he had gained from the first adventure.  Hoping to recapture some of that and get out of his rut, he reassembles Jumanji to take one more trip into the jungle.  After they find out, his old friends come to his rescue, but unwittingly take a few additional people with them: Spencer's grandfather and his old friend / enemy Milo.  How this newly assembled team deals with the dangers of Jumanji will determine whether they make it out alive!  

One of the most refreshing aspects of the Jumanji reboot is that it took many standard video game conventions--multiple lives, bad dialog options, magical bags of holding--and converted them hilariously onto the big screen.  Thankfully, the Next Level keeps this alive with many of the same quirks that Jumanji highligted—like poor, looping NPC dialog—and additional video game staples to that will keep the inner gamer in you laughing.   Another enjoyable aspect of the first Jumanji was the diverse cast that fit together perfectly, both the in game heroes and their real life child counterparts.  The Next Level keeps this as well with the same cast of characters returning with a few additional characters and tweaks to the old formula.  Overall, it is a welcome return to form for this series and it is wonderful to see these again on the big screen.  However, as detailed below, the new additions are funny at times but often hurt the original films magic.

The Next Level strays from the original movie's formula by setting the film in pretty much every locale but a jungle.  You'll encounter a dessert, an oasis town, and snow covered mountains, none of which have the same appeal as the original jungle setting.  Additionally, the film mixes up the characters a little—presumably to keep the audience guessing and to keep the characters fresh—but some of the changes got old quick.  It was funny the first time, but unfortunately they kept going back to that well and it became tiresome by the end of the film.  And this tiresome aspect of the film causes it to slow down tremendously at the start and consistently impedes the pace of the film.  Unfortunately, this is a case where the additions hurt the simple magic that made the first film so enjoyable. The Next Level keeps a lot of that, and it is still a fun movie, but that original light is just a little dimmer because of what was added.  As odd as it sounds, I wish they would have just stuck to the old formula but in a new quest.  

Jumanji: The Next Level returns with a new adventure featuring the same great cast, additional characters to meet along the journey, and a commitment to video game tropes that is entertaining and hilarious.  

Rent It

Screening: JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

 

In Theaters December 13^th

Sony Columbia Pictures

Rating: PG-13

Run Time: 123 Min

Website:  www.jumanjimovie.com

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBxcF-r9Ibs&feature=emb_logo

Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Awkwafina, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman,with Danny Glover and Danny DeVito

Directed by: Jake Kasdan

In Jumanji: The Next Level, the gang is back but the game has changed. As they return to Jumanji to rescue one of their own, they discover that nothing is as they expect. The players will have to brave parts unknown and unexplored, from the arid deserts to the snowy mountains, in order to escape the world’s most dangerous game. 

Screening Details:
Tuesday, December 10^th
7:00PM
AMC Mazza
5300 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Washington, DC  

Screening Link: http://www.sonyscreenings.com/MSyeF38598

Be sure to Like and Follow Watch or Pass on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and share with your friends!

As always, screenings are first-come, first-served so please arrive early to ensure you get a seat.