When Disney fans think "Jungle Cruise," they think riding around in boats, fascinating animals, and
punny dad-jokes galore. All that can be found in Disney's new film based on the ride, but there's
also so much more. Here's everything only adults are likely to notice in Disney's "Jungle Cruise."
Adults who remember the music of the early 1990s will be surprised when they
immediately recognize the first few notes of the ballad that opens "Jungle Cruise." No,
that song wasn't composed specifically for the film,
it's the instrumental to power ballad "Nothing Else Matters," which was released by Metallica in
1991 and has since become a staple of the band's live shows and one of its most recognizable songs.
According to the credits of "Jungle Cruise," Metallica reimagined "Nothing
Else Matters" with the film's composer James Newton Howard,
and the four current members of the band - James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett,
and Robert Trujillo - are listed as featured performers on the movie's version of the song.
The ballad's haunting, melancholy quality makes it especially recognizable,
and while the melody is lovely, it's not clear why Howard decided
to feature an orchestral version of a hit from the '90s in the film. In fact,
for those in the know, the inclusion of "Nothing Else Matters" may be downright distracting,
especially given the movie takes place in 1916 and otherwise features an entirely original
score. On the other hand, it could also serve as a good excuse to introduce kids to Metallica.
From a bus full of soldiers to German U-Boats, historical references abound in "Jungle Cruise."
However, unless they're exceptionally young history buffs, kids are unlikely to be familiar
with the film's numerous nods to World War I. After all, while World War II's Nazis remain
popular film and TV villains, it's much rarer for Germans from World War I to be a story's
antagonist, as is the case with Jesse Plemons' villainous Prince Joachim in "Jungle Cruise."
Part of Lily and MacGregor Houghton's argument for going after the Tears of the Moon is that it
could revolutionize medicine by healing British and other Allied soldiers, who were even more
likely to die of disease in the trenches than they were to be killed by the Germans.
The film also references Kaiser Wilhelm II, the last emperor of Germany,
who abdicated his throne upon losing the war in 1918. However, even adults may not
know that Wilhelm's youngest son really was named Joachim. As far as we know, though,
the real-life Prince Joachim never took a U-Boat up the Amazon to search for a legendary tree.
Throughout the movie, Lily encounters more than her fair share of overt sexism.
She's first introduced in the balcony of a theater where her brother is presenting a speech
she clearly wrote to an academic guild made up entirely of men. And even though she has a Ph.D.,
her knowledge and abilities are often questioned, as is her resolve to go after the Tears of the Moon.
Even her brother worries about who would take care of her if she went to the Amazon alone,
although she's clearly more than capable of taking care of herself.
In addition, her choice to wear pants, a rarity in 1916, is called out repeatedly.
Frank finds her choice to be so exceptional that he even gives her the nickname "Pants."
Kids these days may be surprised by the treatment the obviously smart and determined Lily endures.
Adults, however, will know quite well that blatant discrimination against women was
more or less the global standard, making her the story's underdog just by being a woman.
Soon after Frank and Lily first meet, Frank is revealed to have lied to her
about his true identity. However, he regains her confidence when he goes up
against a jaguar who menaces the patrons at the restaurant where they're dining.
After all, if Frank can take on a jaguar, he's certainly capable of taking her up the Amazon.
"Careful. They can smell fear."
However, Lily missed one thing: Jaguars and other animals are unlikely to attack
humans unless they've been directly threatened, which this jaguar clearly was not. As a result,
many adults in the audience may realize that since the jaguar wasn't acting in self-defense,
it's unclear why it came into the restaurant, much less attacked the large gathering of people there.
Given the fear and adrenaline Lily might have felt in that moment,
she seems to have failed to notice that given those variables, while Frank's
ability to wrestle the jaguar seemed impressive, something else was clearly going on. And indeed,
the movie soon reveals that Frank and the jaguar, who's named Proxima, are in cahoots,
with Proxima attacking Frank in order to secure him the job as Lily's skipper.
Early in their trip down the Amazon, Frank's boat La Quila sails past a pod of long-peaked
dolphins that all bear little resemblance to the bottlenose dolphins many people are most
familiar with. However, adults may be aware that there are numerous dolphin species,
and one of them is the Amazon river dolphin shown in the movie. This freshwater dolphin
is native to the Amazon and is also sometimes referred to as the pink river dolphin,
or in Brazil, the boto cor de rosa due to its pinkish hue.
In the movie, Lily refers to the dolphins by their scientific name,
inia geoffrensis. Meanwhile, Frank's identification
of them as "encantado" evokes a myth about Amazon river dolphins being shape-shifters,
and more broadly refers to the many other legends surrounding the species, including the one Frank
relates: that looking into a pink river dolphins' eyes will lead to a lifetime of nightmares.
Almost 20 years ago, another movie inspired by a boat-based Disney theme park ride premiered:
"Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl." You may have heard of it.
"Savvy?"
While many younger children are unlikely to have seen that 2003 film,
adults may get a sense of deja vu when watching "Jungle Cruise" due to the fact that the film's
supernatural storyline largely overlaps with that of the earlier movie. Much like
the pirates who were cursed with eternal life after they took the wrong treasure,
the conquistadors who went after the Tears of the Moon in "Jungle Cruise" were cursed
with eternal life for attempting to take that treasure. Inevitably, just like Captain Barbossa
and his crew in "Pirates," Aguirre and his allies wish to break their immortal bonds.
If that weren't enough, the mid-movie revelation that Frank himself is also cursed with unending
life because 400 years ago he was Aguirre's map maker parallels the eventual revelation in
"Pirates" that Jack Sparrow is undead because he was the captain of the Black Pearl before Barbossa
and his crew mutinied. The resemblance between the "Jungle Cruise" and "Pirates" mythology may
raise some adults' eyebrows, not to mention make them wonder why the powers that be at Disney
felt the need to include a supernatural plotline in a film based on a ride that,
unlike "Pirates," never included anything that could be interpreted as supernatural.
"Jungle Cruise" nods to several well-known films that only adults are likely to notice.
In addition to "Pirates of the Caribbean," there are hat tips to 1999's "The Mummy,"
the "Indiana Jones" films, and "Romancing the Stone." However,
if there's one classic that especially influenced the new film, it's 1951's "The African Queen."
Theme park buffs will know the "Jungle Cruise" homage to the Humphrey Bogart
and Katharine Hepburn-led classic is no accident; Walt Disney was partially inspired
to create the Jungle Cruise attraction in Disneyland by "The African Queen."
Given that connection, it's not surprising that the new movie bears a noticeable
resemblance to the older film. Both have a plot that revolves around a skipper becoming
involved with a brother and sister who require passage down a waterway during World War I.
"My brother and I are looking for passage upriver."
"Please go away."
"I have a lot of money."
"The African Queen" influence can also be seen in the dynamic between Frank and Lily,
who constantly butt heads only to come to respect and then fall for one another,
just like Bogart and Hepburn's characters. Adults who notice the connection between the
two films may use it as an opportunity to introduce their kids to the 1951 classic.
While Disney has attempted to be more inclusive by incorporating more openly gay characters in
films like the live-action remakes of "Beauty and the Beast" and "Cruella,"
it's done so in such a subtle way that plenty of people wouldn't even notice.
Unfortunately, "Jungle Cruise" has the same issue. The film includes perhaps
the most overtly "out" character yet in the form of Lily's clothes-obsessed brother,
MacGregor. However, it tiptoes lightly around the issue of his sexuality.
Toward the middle of the film, MacGregor confesses to Frank that although he doesn't
share his sister's belief in the legend of the Tears of the Moon,
he sticks by Lily because unlike everyone else in his life, she didn't abandon him
when she learned about his sexuality. However, the whole story is told through implication;
while adults will likely pick up on what MacGregor's saying, his wording
is vague enough that many kids are unlikely to realize what exactly he's even talking about.
In the film's third act, Lily is forced to swim for the first time after Frank finds an
underwater chamber with a lever in it that will lead them to the Tears of the Moon.
What kids and even some adults may not realize is that when Frank kisses Lily for the first
time while she's trapped underwater, it's not for any romantic reason. After all,
given the pair's will-they-or-won't-they dynamic throughout the story, the kiss can
easily be interpreted as the characters finally admitting their feelings for one another.
However, that's not Frank's intention. As he pantomimes, he's simply trying to provide
Lily with air so she can stay underwater long enough to pull the chamber's lever.
Of course, even adults would be justified in interpreting Frank as having something
of an ulterior motive here, especially since the exchange of oxygen between the characters
looks more like a smooch than mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Kids who've been lucky enough to visit a Disney park may pick up on some of the film's direct
references to the Jungle Cruise ride. When Frank goes under a makeshift waterfall early
in the film and triumphantly introduces "the backside of water" with a declaration that
it's "the eighth wonder of the world," everyone familiar with the ride will smile knowingly.
However, there are some less obvious nods to the attraction that kids may miss,
including a shocking number of ridiculous new puns and an early reference to Dr. Albert Falls,
the man the ride's waterfall is supposedly named after.
"The rocks you see here in the river are sandstone, but
some people just take them for granite."
Plus, when Frank is first introduced guiding a jungle cruise of tourists down the Amazon,
he essentially functions as a skipper in the theme park ride. As his boat continues along the water,
it's revealed that Frank has rigged up his own makeshift Jungle Cruise attraction,
complete with a fake hippo, in order to provide the same
thrilling -- and silly -- experience as the ride Disney Parks fans adore.
"It's one of my boulder attractions."
Interestingly, after delays due to the coronavirus pandemic, "Jungle Cruise"
is hitting theaters just as Disneyland opens an updated version of the ride,
and the revised experience no longer includes characters that are featured in the film.
After years of complaints over the attraction's depictions of native people,
Disneyland removed some of the audio-animatronic characters that appear toward the end of the ride,
including Trader Sam, who is willing to exchange "two of his shrunken heads for one of yours."
The updated ride also excised a group of headhunters who are characterized
as savages and throw spears at the ride vehicle.
Yet "Jungle Cruise" features both a gender-swapped Trader Sam and a group
of supposedly threatening Indigenous people. While the story avoids shading into racism
by revealing that the natives' behavior is all just part of a scheme cooked up with
Frank to make his jungle cruises more exciting, adults who keep up on Disney
parks news will know that these references to the ride are now things of the past.
"Well, I look forward to disappointing you."
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