Rating: 3 out of 5 starsThe remake of the 1967 Jungle Book is the same story we’ve always known, but this time in live action.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, cartoon characters no longer cut it.

Mowgli (voiced by Neel Sethi), a boy abandoned in the jungle and raised by a pack of wolves, finds that he is not welcome in the place he calls his home. The tiger, Shere Khan (voiced by Idris Elba) has had unpleasant experiences with man and decides Mowgli is no different. He does not just want Mowgli out of the jungle, he wants him dead.

The live-action version of this age-old tale was worth the watch. The CGI done to the animals in the film was weird at first, but as the movie progressed, it became normal. The cinematography reminded me of Life of Pi. The storytelling was slow, but the scenery was unreal, compared to the Flint Hills of Kansas.

Although it is a recreation of a Disney movie, I would not advise my five-year-old cousin to watch this. Several scenes with Shere Khan and King Louie not only make the animals seem vicious, but would leave children questioning, “what happened to the tiger, mommy?”

The idea of turning animals to villains, in my opinion, is not acceptable. When I was younger, I was not aware of the threats that many animals face. Both the orangutan and tiger are endangered species. What people watch in movies and TV shows impacts their behavior, so allowing a person to see a tiger as a villain, hypothetically, allows them to think that it’s right to hunt that animal.

The live action trend is new and one that brings emotion to the film. The bond made between the sloth bear Baloo (voiced by Bill Murray), black panther Bagheera (voice by Ben Kingsley) and Mowgli was more evident because they were real. I’ve always felt like live action films create a stronger emotional connection to the audience.

Some people do not like the animated movies because they see them as childish. Using live action to tell this classic film makes it a real experience.