Mowgli trailer: Motion-capture sorcery works magic in darker take of 'The Jungle Book'

Warner Bros released the first official trailer of Mowgli -- A darker take on Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.

Master of motion capture, Andy Serkis is helming the project and he also plays the character of Baloo. The movie features the talents of Benedict Cumberbatch, Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Naomie Harris, Peter Mullan, Jack Reynor, Eddie Marsan, and Tom Hollander for the mo-cap/jungle side. Debutant Rohan Chand plays Mowgli. Matthew Rhys and Frida Pinto round off the human side of the intense movie.

The trailer is an intriguing montage of Mowgli's struggle of survival -- sometimes in the taxing, brutal forest and sometimes in an unforgiving human company. Stunning visuals of the wilds are served up on a platter by cinematographer Michael Seresin. Nitin Sawhney's background music simply ads to the melancholy and intensity of the video unfolding in front of you.

"We wanted to engage much more closely with the tone of the book. It's not so much a child's fairy tale. This has a reality to it. There is real consequence.

"This is definitely drawn from Kipling and has a much darker approach to the storytelling. 
 
"There's no singing or dancing by the animals, that's for sure," says director Serkis.

Serkis zeroed in on this kind of retelling after creating his wildly popular mo-cap creatures Gollum from Lord of the Rings franchise and Caesar from Planet of the Apes series. 

Talking about the cast, Serkis said that he was lucky to have them onboard.

"For instance, Christian Bale as Bagheera. He played him so beautifully, I mean there's phenomenal warmth and real love between them (Bagheera and Mowgli), said Serkis.

"Benedict Cumberbatch is Shere Khan. Benedict  is just of course the most magnificent choice for this character because he plays it not just a black and white villain, but as a damaged individual," he continued.

About Cate Blanchett playing Kaa, Serkis said, "She is an ancient soul of the jungle. The one that can see that the world is changing."

Serkis also talked about newbie Rohan Chand brilliantly taking on a very complex adult role.

"One of the main themes in this movie is -- Who am I in the world of animals and in the world of man? It all hinges on the quest to find his own identity. 

"The journey is immense, and I think it'll be very surprising for an audience," concluded Serkis.

Watch the trailer

Official Synopsis 

The story follows the upbringing of the human child Mowgli, raised by a wolf pack in the jungles of India.  As he learns the often harsh rules of the jungle, under the tutelage of a bear named Baloo and a panther named Bagheera, Mowgli becomes accepted by the animals of the jungle as one of their own.  All but one: the fearsome tiger Shere Khan.  But there may be greater dangers lurking in the jungle, as Mowgli comes face to face with his human origins.

Official poster

Wild. Child. #Mowgli only in theaters October 19. pic.twitter.com/DBx8XpmjWg

— Mowgli Movie (@MowgliMovie) May 21, 2018

The movie hit theatres on October 19.