Jungle (I) (2017) User Reviews

The wilderness shows us who we really are

[kluseba · 8/10 · 28 March 2018]

I have been familiar with and fascinated by Yossi Ghinsberg's dramatic survival story for many years and have even occasionally given classes about it at school. When I heard that there was a movie about this intriguing journey, it wasn't even a question whether I would purchase the film or not. The blandly titled Jungle fulfils my expectations on many levels.

If you haven't heard about Ghinsberg's true story yet, here is a very brief summary. The young Israelian adventurer traveled to South America after his mandatory military service and met an American photographer, Austrian geologist and Swiss teacher. The geologist convinced the three aquaintances to travel into the heart of the Bolivian jungle to discover unknown tribes and gold. Once they were deep inside the jungle, it became obvious that there was neither gold nor tribes to be discovered and that the geologist was actually a wanted criminal with shady objectives. When the Swiss teacher got injured, the group split up into two teams. The geologist and the teacher walked upstream towards the next village which was supposedly about three days away. The Israelian adventurer and the American photographer moved downstream with a raft but got separated in a canyon. Yossi Ghinsberg fought for survival as he tried to find his partner, travel downstream and make it to the next town while the American photographer got rescued by a tribe and tried to convince skeptic local authorities that Ghinsberg was still alive.

The movie is quite faithful to the true story even though a few anecdotes had to be cut and details had to be shortened. This was a good choice because the movie is quite fluid and neither too short nor too long. It takes about twenty minutes to introduce the four main characters and about another twenty minutes for them to start their journey. The last eighty minutes are dedicated to an intense and solitary survival story.

The locations are gorgeous yet terrifying as they show the thin line between beauty and horror. What looks like a peaceful river can turn into a deadly canyon within seconds. The seemingly solid ground becomes a treacherous bog. The scary animal becomes a tasty meal that helps you survive. Jungle is an intense experience for all your senses.

One element that needs to be pointed out is the superb acting. Daniel Radcliffe was obviously very dedicated to his role. He was guided by Yossi Ghinsberg himself and obviously very familiar with the source material as well. You can see a young and naive adventurer from a severe and traditional family who wants to break free but soon realizes that freedom can come with a price as he has to face impossible challenges that will exhaust him mentally and physically. Daniel Radcliffe's progressive transformation is absolutely stunning. When a human being finds itself in the middle of nature, there aren't many human features that remain. Survival knows no rules.

When the movie came to its conclusion, I was shivering all over my body. This is how bleak, dramatic and intense this film was. You could put me on an isolated arctic island for a year but not in such a jungle for even just a week.

If you like adventurous survival stories, you can't get around this movie. Jungle is an intense journey to the essence of humanity and nature. The wilderness shows us who we really are.

Friendship, Survival, Faith Become a movie

[eilseNfx · 7/10 · 6 June 2020]

This is not by far a great movie. But it is great worth watching movie. Based from real event movie. i don't understand why 'based from true event' gets low rate. Like what i want in any of survival movie, this movie makes you appreciate your daily 'goodnight' bed. The characters in this film were great, as if you see your own character in one of the characters. You will be able to experience my title in this movie.

p/s : I never watch below 7.0 rating unless if its 'True Story' movie. In this case i watch this movie (now rated 6.7) and found this movie should at least rated 7.1 or above. if you are my 'kind' then you should watch this movie.

Daniel Radcliffe turns in a fantastic performance

[AverageJoesDriveInPodcast · 8/10 · 13 February 2018]

I knew nothing about this one, even the synopsis wasn't anything really eye-catching. I don't think I'd even heard anyone talk about this one yet. But, I noticed it was new on Amazon Prime, so I figured what the hell, might be worth checking out.

I'm happy to say I enjoyed the hell out of this. It's a very slow moving story, but very well shot, the acting is fantastic and it sucks you right in. Come to find out this is based on a true story, which makes it that much more interesting. Love it when you find something like this that you have zero expectations about and end up enjoying it. Daniel Radcliffe turns in a fantastic performance as Yossi. His performance really takes you through the emotions the character's going through. It was one of the biggest things that stood out to me in this film.

While the film does have some issues, it takes a bit to get going and I feel like some time could have been cut out of the last half of the film, it's damn solid overall. I'm glad I gave this one a chance. While this movie certainly won't be for everyone, if you're in the mood for a good story, give this one a chance and check it out.

Survival movie

[whollycow · 7/10 · 5 March 2018]

Young guys seeking adventure trek into South American jungle as if it were a tourist destination. They are clueless and have no survival skills. You can fill in the blanks from there. Still, if you like survival movies -- as I do -- this is worth a look. High production values and credible acting. I enjoyed the ride.

"The jungle shows us what we really are"

[BrunoRatesTheMovies · 6/10 · 24 January 2022]

Remind me never to go trekking in the Amazonian jungle with nothing but a random guide. True stories always hit harder than fiction. There really are some terrible people in the world and in the same movie, some people with amazing survival skills. I wouldn't have lasted the first night.

Gripping true story

[Zensha · 7/10 · 12 December 2017]

Not sure if this could be classified as horror, but it certainly got me on the edge of my seat. I've been out in the bush a fair bit and can say that this is all very realistic. Hallucination is very real in the wild, and so is not being able to get quality sleep and your socks getting stuck to your feet due to dried up blisters and foot rot. Ouch.

Great performance from Radcliffe. Good enough for me to have totally forgotten that he was once Harry Potter.

The ending was a little sad. I can only imagine how I would feel if I were in his position.

Hard to find anything wrong with it

[nathanmanson · 7/10 · 18 September 2020]

For me I've never read the book so I can't compare it to that. I also don't know how accurate it is because I know nothing about trekking through Jungles. However from what I saw it looked very realistic and I enjoyed it. Also Daniel Radcliffe's acting was incredible a real joy to watch.

Radcliffe is excellent, and the film a not-bad effort that had the potential to be better! [+57%]

[arungeorge13 · 6/10 · 22 October 2017]

Greg McLean, who's known for his vacation-gone-awry horror flicks like 'Wolf Creek' (and its sequel), 'Rogue' and 'The Darkness', wields the microphone to narrate the real-life account of a group of backpackers getting lost in the wilderness of the Amazon (in Bolivia). The tale is told from the perspective of Yossi (Daniel Radcliffe), an Israeli explorer hell bent on juicing more out of life than the usual routines. While on a backpacking expedition in South America, he befriends Marcus (Joel Jackson) and his photographer-acquaintance Kevin (Alex Russell), and happens to meet an Austrian gold-digger Karl (Thomas Kretschmann), who suggests a trip deep into the jungles of the Amazon in search of a near-extinct Indian tribe.

Justin Mongo's screenplay offers a slow-burn adventure that takes its own sweet time to peak. The shock value is added on by McLean who has just about mastered the art, by essence of his earlier ventures. Let's talk about the film's shortcomings first: the characters other than Yossi, are unfortunately not fleshed out well enough. Quite a lot is unraveled in the first half hour: the blokes meet, they make merry, and in no time, they're in the middle of an Amazonian voyage and emotional rifts have slowly begun to show. As we'd expect, things don't go according to plan (they never do, do they?) and the gang splits up. While Karl's character is shrouded in mystery, the supposed new friends of Yossi appear half-baked but are saved somewhat by the actors' pretty-decent portrayals.

Now, on to the positives: the film's recall capacity truly lies in Radcliffe's rendering of Yossi (with an accent), and the struggle (infection, desperation, starvation, isolation and of course, survival) he goes through for about three weeks. The hallucinatory episodes provide a little bit of comic relief in between terror-inducing segments. The point is made loud and clear: the jungle definitely isn't an easy place to get by. The obstacles lie in the form of the rainy weather, the unpredictable rapids, fungal/parasitic infection, attacks from wild fauna and low chances of rescue. McLean effectively engineers a scene where Yossi tries to protect an indigenous woman (who's later shown to be a figment of his imagination) - to remind us that the character, even during the most trying of times, hasn't lost his sense of empathy and compassion. This is again reinstated when he decides against killing a turtle for dinner.

'Jungle' assuredly rests on Radcliffe's shoulders almost throughout the entire third act and the 'Harry Potter' star's graph is certainly cresting, owing to a great selection of films - last year's 'Swiss Army Man' & 'Imperium'. Yossi's physical transformation is remarkably perturbing too: a clear indication that the actor's efforts managed to look on-point. The sequence where Yossi and Kevin get separated is adeptly shot: the bumpy ride through the rapids looked to be dangerously unsettling. Music by Johnny Klimek is more befitting a horror film than an adventure drama and at places, seems a bit out-of-sync. Cinematographer Stefan Duscio captures the chaos of the jungle in all its vicious beauty.

McLean and his writer should have utilized their first hour to build stronger, more relatable bonds between the protagonists instead of opting to showcase a rather straight-forward approach. Just look at 'The Lost City of Z', or '127 Hours' and we'll know why these films were able to resonate a lot better than 'Jungle'. A couple of body-horror scenes (as you'd imagine in a Greg McLean film) are bound to make the viewer squirm. However, 'Jungle' simply needed more shocks, more emotion and well-rounded character arcs.

Verdict: A moderately entertaining fare for lovers of survival- drama!

I genuinely do not understand all the low ratings!

[agasi999 · 10/10 · 25 February 2018]

I just caught this film on Amazon Video and I'm kicking myself for not catching this at the movies. I don't think the movie was marketed well when it was released. I was blown away by all aspects of this film and found it hard to hold back my tears towards the end of the film.To an extent it reminded me of Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, but it's a beautifully made film in its own right. It's a survival story so be prepared to see some not so appetising scenes in parts but the pay off is worth it. Towards the end of the film we get to see the real people behind these characters and those photos will stay with you long after you've seen the film. I'd recommend you to seek this one out on the biggest screen you could find.

Good but not accurate

[elzwillner · 6/10 · 10 July 2021]

As someone that read the book it is a good movie but it lacks a certain amount of accuracy and it skips over and doesn't mention key plot holes from the actual story. Although the parts that are portrayed in the story are acted out nicely.

In addition the movie doesn't Quiet portray marcus as well as he is described in the book and the movie completely skipped over the whole marcus and karl story except for a little part in the end credits.

Hey, it worked for James Franco

[HotToastyRag · 8/10 · 16 February 2022]

Poor Daniel Radcliffe. I can imagine him reading the script of Jungle, based on a true story of one man's harrowing trials when he gets lost in the unexplored jungles of Bolivia. He probably said, "Hey, it worked for James Franco! Maybe I'll get an Oscar nod out of this." If you liked 127 Hours, you'll probably like this one as well. Many people find survival movies to be extremely entertaining - but if you're not one of those people, don't even think of renting it. This isn't like Robert Redford's A Walk in the Woods; it's quite gory and upsetting.

You won't believe it until you see it, but Jungle is actually grosser than 127 Hours. What could be more disgusting than cutting off your own arm with a pocket knife? There are three scenes where the lead actor has to eat an animal in order to keep his energy up, and they're so upsetting, I would highly recommend fast-forwarding them as I did. In one scene, Daniel has to cut open his own forehead to rid himself of a parasite; in another, he fights off a vicious snake to prove his manliness. It's heartbreaking to remind yourself that a man actually did live through these things and that you're not just watching a "for your consideration" piece of entertainment.

I was very interested in seeing Daniel Radcliffe's acting chops in what was arguably a one-man show, but as a squeamish viewer, I knew some of it would be too intense. If you're like me, skip ahead for a few minutes when they capture the baboon, when he figures out there's a bug in his head, and when he finds the bird's egg. In my opinion, it was a little unnecessary for the film to be that gross, but it was a small price to pay to see a great acting performance.

Physical acting is often taken for granted, but it really shouldn't be. Swimming around in the rapids, climbing and hiking in difficult terrain, and getting stuck in quicksand - take after take after take - is quite difficult to do. As is maintaining (and increasing throughout the film) a sense of exhaustion, starvation, and hopelessness - take after take after take. In addition to all the physical and emotional acting, Daniel also put on a distinctive Israeli accent.

The scenery in the film, though obviously dangerous, is quite beautiful (the jungle scenes were filmed in Australia). And you'll absolutely take an emotional journey while watching Daniel's on the screen, but just make sure you have the stomach for it. Daniel Radcliffe has certainly proved his point: he's no longer the sweet little Harry Potter kid. Now he can go make some mainstream movies for a nice change.

DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When Daniel Radcliffe takes the hallucinogenic drug, he sees double vision for a couple of minutes, and during the water rapids scene, the camera spins around quite a bit, and that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"

Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to gore and upsetting situations involving animals, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.

Pretty Good Survival Epic

[sddavis63 · 7/10 · 20 August 2019]

Daniel Radcliffe has come a long way since Harry Potter. In "Jungle" he stars as Yossi Ghinsberg in a true story about survival in the South American jungle. Yossi - along with two friends and a guide - sets off on an adventure, and along the way gets separated from everyone else and has to fight for survival for three weeks, battling wild animals, fire ants, the weather, quicksand and pretty much anything else the jungle could be expected to throw at him. Radcliffe's performance was very good. There are long portions of this that are essentially a one man show, and if Radcliffe had been less than excellent the movie would have suffered. But he pulled it off, and he pulled it off well.

The first hour or so of the movie I thought was a little bit lacklustre. It recounts how the four guys meet and then follows them on the start of the trek. To be honest this was little more than four guys hiking through the jungle. It had a bit of a light-hearted, almost "yarn-ish" feel to it at times. There was nothing especially dramatic or exciting involved. But when the four split into two groups, and then Yossi finds himself alone, the movie really takes off. It becomes a survival epic, full of drama and at times seemingly hopeless for Yossi, who falls into hallucinations and hunger.

You do spend some time wondering why any of these guys decided to make this journey in the first place. They seemed woefully ill prepared for a long journey through the jungle. In fact, their lack of preparedness would probably make this story quite unbelievable - except for the fact that this is based on the true story of Yossi Ghinsberg, and from what I've read of what happened to him, this seems to be a pretty accurate telling of his experience. (7/10)

Not bad... But not a Horror film as it was listed.

[bartmacmanus · 1 March 2019]

I had to temper my expectations for writing this review after watching this movie. It was listed as a horror flick on Amazon Prime suggesting that a group of friends were trying to escape something, probably a predator or other person(s) hunting them. If that's what you're expecting then you will be disappointed, just as I was. But all in all it was a good movie and Daniel Radcliffe actually does a pretty good job. But where I instantly have problems is how they were ill-equipped for a trek through the jungle for 6 days or so. Improper clothing, no tools, no food... so it's a miracle any of them actually survived and mostly due to sheer luck and not any saying they actually did on their own. However the cinematography for it was over-the-top. As an example trying to depict the feet being torn up after walking in Boots for a week was extremely overbearing. anyone that had feet that look like that wouldn't be able to walk on them and gangrene would set in. seriously at the end of the story I'm wondering how anyone made it out alive considering the poor decisions they seem to make over and over again there survived in spite of their poor judgement and while I didn't read the book I'm hoping that it didn't come across like the movie and was more humble.

A struggle to empathise with the characters

[ephram-sg · 5/10 · 22 October 2017]

This is a true story of 4 men from different parts of the world, making the stupid, seemingly pointless decision to make a long, hard trek to a 'lost' part of the Amazon jungle.

Right off the bat, the film quickly introduces us to the 4 main characters of the film. Spending not more than a minute or two introducing us to each man and their backstories which to me is one fatal flaw of the film.

It's hard enough to empathise with 4 white guys with no real reason to trek the amazon with little to no training and experience, no gear, no real guide and no solid reason as to why the trek should have taken place at all. The reasons behind it were so flimsy, it was very hard to get behind them in the journey.

Instead of rooting for them, I found myself rooting for the jungle to take them out. It's like when a cat gets struck up a tree, you empathise with it and try to help it down even if its done it several times before because it knows no better. But imagine 4 grown men, getting stuck up a tree, waiting to be rescued, all you're thinking is "STOP GOING UP THERE!". That's exactly how I felt for our 4 protagonists. No real reason to go into such dangerous uncharted territory, got stuck, suffered loss and now a film to memorialise their... ill-advised, pointless and stupid journey? The fact that the film took a cursory look at the character's backstories, and showed mostly their shortcomings as human beings (impatient, unreasonable, lacking empathy for their own travelling partners) further added to the struggle I had to empathise with any of them.

As for the performances for our main characters, I didn't find any standout roles. Daniel Radcliffe's portrayal of Yossi was the most substantial in the film but his overall performance lent itself to the whole 'annoying little man' image, making one bad and stupid decision after another, disparaging his own travel mates for things they had absolutely no control over, basically overcompensating for his tiny stature with feigned machismo.

An alright film for background noise but nothing to shout home about. 5/10.

Very very good lazy-Sunday-afternoon-movie

[ricky-975-773039 · 7/10 · 26 October 2017]

When I first heard of this movie I thought it sounded like a good lazy-Sunday-afternoon-movie, but it sure as hell was surprising!

It follows the true story of 3 friends who get lost in the jungle with a suspicious guide and it's show throw the perspective of Yossi (Daniel Radcliffe). The cast is actually very good but the movie is extremely dependent on Radcliffe's performance. And it is outstanding. One of the things I really liked is that the "bad guy" is never introduced as the "bad guy", there are no sound warning or even shot's the make you look at him in a suspicious way. In fact, even knowing that he was wanted for the authorities, nothing bad happens because of him. Everything could have happened the same way if the guy was the humblest person in the world.

The directing is also very enjoyable. McLean mix a lot of hallucinations with what is real happening, but he can do it in a way that you don't lose anything in the story or you don't get confused. It's based on true events and it's as simple as the events were. But it's also as dark as you can imagine for someone who is lost in the jungle for 3 weeks. Shooting in this kind of decors is never a easy thing, but the scenes are very well-thought and it really makes you feel like you are there and that you don't belong there, just like the main character.

The soundtrack could have been better and the cinematography is very good, but mostly because of the beauty of the places themselves.

In short, it's still a very good lazy-Sunday-afternoon-movie, but one of the best I've seen in a long time.

Just incredible Landscapes

[mccavaco · 6/10 · 2 November 2017]

The movie is about a group of friends that are tempted to go on an adventure into the jungle and got separated and, finally lost. The concept is not new, and the movie did not surprise us at all. Some of the scenes are confusing, and the action is sometimes lost. The actors give their best to stand out, but that is difficult due to the poor script. Daniel Radcliffe has an OK performance. We have seen better, but no doubt that is an incredible actor. Overall, it is a good movie to chill and enjoy the incredible landscapes.

Gripping for the most part but slow in places.

[biddymitchell · 7/10 · 22 November 2017]

Jungle is the story of Yossi Ghinsberg (played by Daniel Radcliffe) who, with little experience sets out into the Amazonian rainforest. The directing is fantastic, especially the underwater shots and the beautiful scenery, with a strong performance from Daniel Radcliffe. The film overall was slow in places, especially the opening 20 minutes. However, from when the group decided to part ways it became gripping and exciting and at times I found myself on the edge of my seat. I would recommend this film to someone looking for an easy watch, but give it a chance as it is slow to get going.

The Yossi Ghinsberg Survival!

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 17 August 2019]

Jungle is directed by Greg McLean and adapted to screenplay by Justin Monjo from the book written by Yossi Ghinsberg. It stars Daniel Radcliffe, Joel Jackson, Alex Russell and Thomas Kretschman. Music is by Johnny Klimek and cinematography by Stefan Duscio.

Film is the retelling of real incidents when in 1981 Israeli adventure Yossi Ghinsberg entered deep into the Amazon Rainforest and found hell waiting for him.

People keep doing it, these adventure types going into treacherous Mother Nature territory to explore and discover the untapped world - only to find misery, while some are never seen again. Greg McLean mixes adventure and horror perfectly, which when coming from the director of Wolf Creek and Rogue comes as no surprise. It's standard formula in narrative drive, man meets new friends in beautiful surrounds, it's all very jolly and daring, and off they go in search of wonderment.

Of course, as is often the case, these stories can sometimes end in utter distress, Ghinsberg was a very lucky fellow to come out alive and tell his amazing story, which is in turn compelling and excellently performed by the cast. As problems begin to surface, the group dynamic begins to facture, with one particular character highly dubious in motives intent. The terrain gets steadily worse, then they got to eat of course, and as bodies begin to wane, decisions on a survival course of action take precedence. Then it's over to high peril for Ghinsberg who has to try and salvage body and mind in the hope that he might somehow escape his jungle nightmare.

Once the pic turns its entire focus on Ghinsberg's solitude, things become a little repetitive and much of the chilling danger begins to ebb away. Yet we are willing him to survive, to stay hooked in as we grasp for a semblance of good news to come out of an otherwise dark tale. Clearly from Ghinsberg's perspective, the real man himself, there was a yearning to be a better man, for better or worse, but the film is a little out of focus for an in depth portrayal of Yossi, with this blend of survival horror and characterisation not quite working. That said though, this still comes as highly recommended viewing, as does further reading on the incidents featured here. For come the closing credits, as real people are shown in photos, and their actual fates written in type, you know there has been no titillation here. 7.5/10

Make sure you watch your films properly before writing your reviews!

[mat919 · 7/10 · 13 April 2020]

Many poor reviews on this movie I feel are down to people not watching. Criticism that the lost survival story has been done before and that its predictable. This is based on a true story and from the small amount of research iv done around this movie it is very accurate. Performances from all actors were very genuine and I feel the story of this real life ordeal has been captured very well.

Go to the jungle they said. It'll be fun they said.

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 8/10 · 30 October 2017]

Man -vs- Nature.

This film is a smorgasbord of epic cinematography, beautiful location shoots, great directing and outstanding performance by Daniel Radcliffe.

However, I felt this is one of those films that had it been played at 1.5x speed, I would have enjoyed it more. The 1h 55min run-time felt really unnecessarily long. 1hr 15-25min would have been perfect had the pace picked up in certain areas it dragged.

Nevertheless, very enjoyable 'True Story' and a 8/10 from me.

gritty and suspenseful

[jadynwinters · 7/10 · 28 October 2020]

As I was watching I couldnt help but put myself in their shoes imagining how terrifying it would be.

To think that this was based on a real story that happened to these ordinary people, and has happened to many many others who were never found is so scary to me and how much i will NEVER!!! Put myself in a situation like that!!

I thought the film-work was nice, some real stunning frames, pretty believable acting (definitely nothing complex or oscar worthy but it was not bad at all) and there were a lot of times where i was on the edge of my seat or felt sorry for the main character. Like ughhhh even the whole foot rotting from it constantly raining - note to self and anyone else who sees this IF YOU EVER GO CAMPING OR GO ANYWHERE BRING !!!! EXTRA!!!! SOCKS!!!!! do not let ur feet stay wet

heads up as there were a few cringey/gritty scenes where i had to look away from the screen and cover my ears the sounds of some parts we're definitely disturbing to say the least (i have a weak stomach lol)

not a bad film in my opinion, it doesnt have to be a masterpiece to enjoy it

Refreshing break from the world rotting in Marvel excrements

[tatarzy · 10/10 · 30 April 2018]

I've been lookign for a story. Tired of all the nonsense of the recent crap, filled with CGi and nothing else. Jungle gives you a story. Think about what you see, and this one becomes a masterpiece. Don't look for giant apes or crodiles, this one is all about a human soul and friendship against the mother nature. Simple and beautiful

Okay...If You Don't Mind Your Adventure With a Bible Study

[redrobin62-321-207311 · 7/10 · 5 November 2017]

I liked this film. It wasn't great, and you can see the director directing, but it was pretty good. Everyone on screen did as they were paid to do. I wonder if they could've done with less CGI in the picture, though, as some of it seemed a little unreal.

The religious tie-ins at the end of the movie weren't expected, but taken from Yoshi's religious background and his point of view, it was believable. A little heavy handed, but believable.

Lastly, if you're a fan of horror, this movie might appeal to you as there are several horror tropes within in - eerie silence, darkness, things that go bump in the night, blood, stalkers, etc.

Welcome to the jungle

[j_smith_7 · 4/10 · 20 October 2017]

Well, this goes exactly where you expect it to go. After all, it is about 4 dimwitted buffoons who decide to demonstrate their stupidity in as clear a fashion as is possible and, oh what a shock, the inevitable happens. They get lost. In the jungle. Where they don't have a clue what they are doing nor how to get out. There ends my analysis of the story line. You can work out for yourselves what unfolds.

As for the film of this stupid tale, it's not badly made. Clearly there was a lot of effort put into ensuring the scenes attempted to recreate as much as possible the sense of being lost in such an environment. The scary beasts are portrayed as scary; the landscape is wild, the rivers fast flowing and treacherous. Yeah, yeah...we get it. It's not the place to go ... yawn...oh, excuse me...it's the er...uh- huh....jungle, yeah, got ya.

But, fret not. The flashback scenes add...no, hold on...let me think about them...I mean...when our 'hero' hallucinates...it's...yeah, no, wait...hold on a second...actually, you're right...what were they all about? Buffalo in fast food stores? Stunningly beautiful waitresses moving slowly to 1950's bee-bop... Amazingly western looking Amazon jungle women in $12.99 Walmart wigs and with boot polish make up? Ya know, now I think about it...ya lost me.

Still, back to the jungle. Daniel Radcliffe does his best, in fact, I'd say it's a great performance. Maybe his most dramatic role so far. I like Daniel Radcliffe...I thought 'Swiss Army Man' was great. And 'Horns' was a hoot. But here, the long shadow of 'why would anyone be this stupid?' keeps invading thoughts and it just all leads to a feeling of 'well, serves you right' and thus no investment in the character at all.

The supporting cast did their bit with a weak script based on a weak story. The square jawed chick bait guy was all huffy and puffy where needed. The 'I'm so full of life I could just explode' dude was OK until his boots began to pinch. After that, mercifully, the film dumped him. And the villain was not especially villainous. Just a guy whose hair looked great even in the humidity of the jungle. A lesson for us all to use conditioner regularly, I believe. And there's a woman in the film too. For a while. At the beginning. Why exactly, I don't know. But she is.

There is a laugh in the film, however - a big one, actually. It starts at the very beginning when the 'Based on a true story' image appears but you're not chuckling then. The real belly laugh comes at the end, when the film shows real photos of the four idiots this 'true' story revolves around. Yup, people this stupid really exist/ed. I walked out of the cinema thanking my lucky stars that I have my senses intact. Because, clearly, not a one of these clowns did.

All in all, kudos to Daniel Radcliffe. he does well here in an otherwise poorly dramatized version of a tale of 4 morons.

Kind of reminds me of Vietnam and Panama

[dncorp · 7/10 · 22 October 2017]

I got my Selective Service Notification at age 18, was Field Artillery, then got switched to U.S. Army Special Forces Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol and U.S. Army Airborne Ranger, 4 Man L.R.R.P. Team spending Weeks in the Jungle without being detected by the Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army while performing Special Surveillance and Special Reconnaissance. Later as a U.S. Military Officer, I graduated from the U.S. Army's Jungle Warfare School when the School was still at Panama.

Rescue tips, Pillar of Smoke by Day, Pillar of Fire by Night, in other words gather as much wood as possible as if your life depends on that (it does), in the Day make a huge smoky fire, at Night make a huge flaming fire.

U.S. Army Issued Wool Boot Socks, Wool socks allow moisture to escape, Cotton keeps moisture in so you get "Immersion Foot". The towel we wore around the neck during the Save Democracy of South Vietnam War was to dry our feet, the towel dried out faster from body heat from around the neck.

Navigation in a Jungle (what we could not do in combat), line up two trees going in the direction you are going to, mark the trees by scraping the bark until white shows, the marks being squares or triangles as something that does not blend in and can be seen from a distance, kind of like sights on a rifle. You keep doing this to other trees before you get out of sight of the trees you previously marked. So that you are not walking in circles.

Banging Metal against Metal can be heard from longer distances than yelling. So can a cheap whistle. Two stream rocks or river rocks banged together makes a loud artificial clacking sound heard for a distance, use a larger flat rock and bang that with a smaller round or oval rock, face the flat side of the larger flat rock in the direction you want the sound to be heard, bang on the side facing you with the smaller rock.

Marking where you are at a river bank or stream, the object must be vertical and horizontal, like a cross, at eye level. Vertical only will blend in with trees. Add bright cloth if possible. Make a man sized or larger stick figure if possible. Make sure you scraped the bark off the branches until tan or white, use a sharp rock if you don't have a knife.

Walking "Stick" 6 feet to 7 feet tall, one end sharpened, 1.5 inches thick. Uses described in Boy Scout Manual. Two of these plus a poncho equals a two person carry emergency stretcher.

Non Combat, if lost, stay were you are, Extended Camping. Traps and Snares. Smoke meats into jerky to preserve, place food into bag, save some on your person and hoist rest in bag into High Tree Branches unless there are monkeys (that will steal your food). Eating snakes cut about 2 inches behind the head, so that you don't poison yourself.

As U.S. Army Special Forces L.R.R.P.s we usually carried. 4 Waterproof Bags (Cloth lined with a rubber coating) also used as flotation devices inside our Rucksacks. U.S. Army Issue Poncho used as a Shelter or stretcher. 120 Feet of Rope, of the U.S. Army Mountain Climbing Type, 6 foot lengths of same kind of rope. With lanyards attached U.S. Army Machete each, U.S. Military Aviator's Survival Knife, U.S. Army Issued Stainless Steel Pocket Knife, "Commo" pliers. Zippo Lighter with small can of lighter fluid (eventhough we could not use fire while on Mission). Two Weeks of Freeze Dried L.R.R.P. Rations, could be rationed to one month. Two Two Quart Collapsible Canteens with bottles of water purification tablets. Towel worn around neck. Parachute Cord. 1 PRC 77 and two extra batteries, one long antenna and one short antenna per Team. Compasses and maps. Stainless Steel Signal Mirror. Medic First Aid Kit with morphine syrettes. Camouflage Sticks and Insect Repellent. One roll of 100 Mile an Hour Tape (O.D. Duct Tape). U.S. Army Arm Sling worn around head like a bandana. Flashlight and extra batteries that we rarely used. Memo pad, pencil, U.S. Government Pen inside of plastic bag. We made our own metal bandaid box survival kit that included fishing line, fish hooks, sewing kit (could be used as sutures), waterproof matches, a whistle, a button compass, single edge razor blades (kept in a buttoned pocket). Issued U.S. Army mechanical wrist watches. 2 Identification tags worn around neck, 1 identification tag wrapped in black electrical tape laced into each boot lace. Packs of cigarettes not smoked, used like chewing tobacco as a stimulant. As many packets of instant coffee and sugar packets we could get from Combat Rations, usually popped into mouth not mixed with water while on the move (U.S. Army Ranger Training). Just before night we climbed up trees tied ourselves with the 6 foot lengths of rope, as there were apex predators at night. We Never carried a 100 pounds like the "Grunts" and U.S. Army Rangers, we moved fast, silently, and covered our tracks.