Friday, February 27, 2015

The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book
Released 1967
Directed By Wolfgang Reitherman
Music By George Bruns, with songs by Richard and Robert Sherman

Happy February Disney Movie Addicts and Fans!!  Normally this is a spot where I beg your forgiveness for being away for the month of January.  While January was a busy month with performing and work, in reality it was a time of self-reflection.  With all the additional shows and tasks at work, February came and I decided it was a time for self-reflection.  I made a conscious decision to stay out of the spotlight for a month and make some decision for the future.  Part of that reflection revolved around where I would like to go with my performance life; part of it is where I’d like to see this blog go and what “extras” for a little extra fun.  The bulk of my reflection however has been reading and immersing myself in books written on business management with Disney as the central case study.  I forget if I have mentioned it in previous posts but I have a dream to eventually go to work for the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.  Part of my plan to get there is to receive an MBA with an emphasis in hospitality management.  It’s been a pipe dream of mine ever since I was in college (unfortunately going to Disney to study in my college years didn’t line up with my musical goals at the time).  These past few weeks of self-reflection have spurred in me a new passion and a new desire to finally make that dream come true.   In the coming years I’ll be setting goals for myself and seeing them through and with luck by the time I hit 35 I’ll be in Florida working for Disney full time!!

One chilly, snowy night in February I had just come home from a very long day at work.  As is my normal routine, I put on some water to start boiling for pasta, change out of my work clothes into jeans and a t-shirt and proceed make dinner (when I’ve had a rough day, chopping up vegetables and putting together a tasty meal out of various ingredients helps me re-focus and re-center).  When dinner was served I surveyed the movie collection and decided on this month’s movie, The Jungle Book, based on the writing of Rudyard Kipling.  As I watched I began to find the travels of Mowgli back to the human village not unlike many journeys we all take in life towards our goals or destinations.

Released in 1967, we follow the story of Mowgli, found by the panther Bagheera and taken to a wolf pack to be raised until the age of 10, when it’s found out the tiger Shere Khan has returned to that part of the jungle.  With Shere Khan’s hatred toward men, the wolf pack has decided Mowgli must return to the man-village for his own safety as well as the safety of the pack.  Along the way Bagheera and Mowgli run into the easy-going Baloo the bear, the happy-go-lucky King Louis the orangutan, Col. Hathi and his elephant brigade, the hypnotic Kaa the snake, a grab of singing vultures and a run in with Shere Khan himself.  After all the adventures and fighting to stay in the jungle, the trio of bear, panther, and man-cub stumble upon the man-village and a young girl singing a tune attracts Mowgli to the village and what can be assumed a life among man and woman.

Many thoughts hit me as I watched Jungle Book that cold night.  As I watched and listened to the movie that chilly night while eating dinner, it struck me that much like Mowgli traveling (reluctantly) towards the man-village, I too am traveling on a path much different than what I thought I wanted; but ultimately a path leading towards ultimate happiness.  Jungle Book was the last film Walt Disney had a hand in before his death of lung cancer in December of 1966.  In a way … the journey towards Walt Disney Studios also had to go through its own jungle and come out on top to survive as well.  Taking a look at the central characters of the movie, Mowgli is faced with a challenge of staying in the jungle vs. rejoining the human world.  On the one side of him is the voice of concern and reason in Bagheera, oftentimes to his own comedic detriment.  On the other side is the voice of frivolity in Baloo, that even though all’s well that ends well, his laidback and lax attention causes some of the trouble they get into.  Along the ride in the film are troubles meeting Mowgli from the slippery serpent of Kaa, able to lull you into a false security of words before devouring his prey, to Shere Khan the dangerous and tyrannical ruler of the jungle.  And even the temptation of frivolity and falling into the false truths from King Louie (I think it could even be argued King Louie is the danger of fair-weathered friend that makes promises only to get what they want, his “kingdom” being built on ruins of an ancient civilization but easily shattered).  And yet throughout the story, Baloo and Bagheera come to agreement about the ultimately safety and happiness of Mowgli, which leads up to the final confrontation with Shere Khan and meeting of unlikely allies in the vultures.  In the end, nature takes its course and Mowgli hears the lull of a young girl singing about her future as she is fetching water from a nearby stream.  Mowgli finally faced with what the Man-village holds goes in of his own accord (growing up and out of childhood one could say), while Baloo and Bagheera march off back into the jungle (the imagination and fantasy stewards of childhood always there but not in the forefront of the mind as they once were). 

Jungle Book holds many wonderful memories for me.  Being one of the first Disney movies I saw in theaters (My hometown movie theater did children’s films for the summer time), opening my eyes to the magic of Disney.  And even now as an adult and learning the history behind the movie, you can see how it has influenced future animated films as well as spurred Walt Disney Studios forward after the death of Walt Disney.  Jungle Book is truly a masterpiece of storytelling and animation that made Disney the force it is today. 

Title: Jungle Book

Perfect For: Any Disney fan

Most likely character you’ll see in the parks: This is a difficult one as many characters have been moved into the vault.  However, from my experience you’ll most likely catch Baloo (and sometimes Mowgli) at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Well everyone … We’ll see what the future holds for all of us.  I will be working on bringing something new to the blog very soon.  It could be a book recommendation or maybe a recipe or history and pictures of parks.  But whatever it may be … I hope you will continue to enjoy this blog.

Make it a magical day – Patrick A