'Jumanji' draws new players into the game

'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle'

Grading on the "Baywatch"-deflated scale of 2017 The Rock reboot roles, "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" turns out to be surprisingly fun, infusing the premise with a "The Breakfast Club" twist while accentuating the comedy. For those seeking a yuletide movie-going alternative to awards bait and "Star Wars," this game-inspired offering is worth giving a spin.

"Jumanji" receives a videogame-informed upgrade from the 1995 movie that starred Robin Williams, which requires transacting a whole lot of business in the first 15 minutes to get the board set up.

Four high-school students -- two nerds, a popular girl and a jock -- all land in detention, where they discover the play console that yanks them into the peril-filled world of Jumanji.

There, the four each take the form of the avatar they chose when not realizing the stakes. One of the nerds thus becomes musclebound Dr. Smolder Bravestone (the aforementioned Dwayne Johnson), the other skilled fighter Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan), the jock Bravestone's sidekick "Moose" Finbar (Kevin Hart), and the other girl scientist Shelly Oberon (Jack Black), owing to some confusion about the name.

The body-hopping aspect actually gives the cast material worth playing, even if it's extremely broad. In Johnson's case, that includes spoofing his own image -- as the kid revels in Bravestone's strength and physique -- while Gillan grouses about her wardrobe, Hart gripes about his diminutive size and, most obviously, Black vamps in playing a flighty girl confused by her new, er, accessories.