We have uncovered some real hidden gem family movies that were genuinely enjoyable for both me and my eight-year old son. Video / Sony Pictures
Twenty years after the original Jumanji film, its sequel Welcome to the Jungle ups the ante and breaks all the rules, says Des Sampson
"What I loved about the first Jumanji film was that it was so scary. As a five-year-old, watching it, I really freaked out," recalls Nick Jonas, who stars as Alex Vreeke, in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
"In the same way, the dangers are very real in this sequel: you feel as if things could go horribly wrong, at any moment. That's what's excited me about this version and why I was so drawn to it."
For Jack Black, getting the chance to emulate his childhood hero Robin Williams, who starred in the original film, was too good an opportunity to pass up.
"I loved Robin Williams playing this kid who gets sucked into the game and is trapped there for 25 years," nods Black, animatedly. "But what was frustrating was you never got to see where he was trapped all that time - in the jungle. So, with this movie, we went to the jungles of Jumanji and most of the action takes place there. That made it a lot more exciting for me."
There's another reason Black was so excited to take on the Jumanji challenge: it meant he finally got to realise a lifelong ambition, by playing a teenage girl.
"Yes, it's true. I've always wanted to be a girl," admits Black, sheepishly. "It's not like I'm weird or anything, but when I was at university, as a theatre major, I created a few characters and one was this really fun, flirtatious, teenage girl... This opportunity came along and I thought; 'Holy shit, I know exactly how I'm going to play this...' and I based my character, Bethany, completely on her."
Black's not the only character to undergo a complete metamorphosis from their real-life self to alter-ego avatar in Jumanji 2, with his co-star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson transformed from a geek into a beefcake and Karen Gilligan morphing from an inept, awkward bookworm into an athletic goddess.
"I like the fact that all the characters are playing against type," enthuses Jonas. "All the comedy is in that, with Dwayne playing a geek and Jack a girl. Even with my character, everything's not as it seems: he may look like a traditional hero but there's a real sense of underlying fear for him."
Nick Jonas, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart star in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
Another challenge, concedes Jonas, was filming in the Hawaiian jungle without being preyed upon – an experience he found more frightening than most.
"Some of the conditions were pretty difficult, because we were in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by centipedes, mosquitoes and other creepy crawlies. I'm a Type I diabetic, so have sweet blood, apparently, and they were really attracted to me."
A scene from Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
In contrast, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is a delightful, frivolous frolic packed with stunts, special effects and slapstick - just as you'd imagine.
"It's fun; it's exciting; it's a page-turner. That's why I loved doing it," grins Black. "Ever since I was a kid, I've loved getting up on stage and putting on a show because when other people laugh at me it's the most delicious drug imaginable. Doing this film, which has all those elements, was perfect."
LOWDOWN: Who: Jack Black and Nick Jonas What: Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle When: In cinemas Boxing Day
