When I watched this as a kid I think the charm of the film was the fact that it did all take place in one house, it felt like a couple kids playing with their imaginations when their parents aren't home, except instead of it being their imagination it was actually real. Like that blew my mind as a kid, I swear for like a month I just pretended to be playing Zathura and fighting lizard aliens and giant robots.

I have a theory, Zathura *is* Jumanji. In the Zathura book, they found the Jumanji game and rejected it. Later they found the Zathura game, which has the same properties as Jumanji. Maybe when Jumanji was rejected, it turned itself into a cooler board game, Zathura. The same thing happened to the board game in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. Alex rejected Jumanji and started to play video games. Then the board game turned itself into a video game to entice Alex. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

As a kid I love this movie, I even had the actual board game. Can confirm it was made by the devil.

I actually really like the fact that theres that feeling of "emptiness". It makes it feel like the kids are really dealing with this on their own. Theres no one else to help them, they just need to figure out how to beat this one their own

The Director of the newest Jumanji stated the new one is actually the 4th and Zathura is in fact, retroactively, the second movie.

As a 7 year old child when this came out, it was absolutely terrifying and I still compare other actually scary movies to this movie to this day

Twister also technically falls into the board game cinematic universe.

I'll be honest, I thought this movie was a fever dream in my childhood.

I did watch Zathura as a kid and I enjoyed it more than Jumanji. I thought being trapped in space was much cooler than being trapped in a jungle

As a kid I loved this movie and didn’t know jumanji existed

Zathura actually FEELs like a Jumanji sequel though. The "real Jumanji" sequels don't feel like those two movies at all.

When you're an older brother with a younger one watching this movie when you're six is really powerful. I understand the complaints, but this movie really was good as a kid.

Casting wasnt a problem 'A few minutes later' The astronaut could've been played by someone else.

Die Hard was based on a sequel book and the first book had a film adaption about a decade earlier. They had to offer Frank Sinatra the John McLane role because of his contract from the first film, but thankfully he turned it down haha. But that’s another technical another sequel book adaption that doesn’t take place in the same universe necessarily. Also the Girl in the Spider’s Web movie was based on a sequel book to the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo but takes place in its own rebooted timeline, instead of being a sequel to the far superior David Fincher film.

10:14 should've been Mark Hamill instead of Harrison Ford, then the incest would make sense.

I have the dvd of zathura (don’t ask why) and at the top it says: “ A NEW ADVENTURE FROM THE WORLD OF JUMANJI” so confirmed

I wore this dvd out when I was younger. I still love this movie.

as kid I remember feeling pure existential dread when I saw the house floating in space instead of awe.

6:20 Boy will you feel silly when the Loki Disney+ show is about how ole Tom Hid Loki is the Loki who made the Mask, Jumanji AND shows up as an angel in Dogma.

"Zathura" and "garbage" should not be in the same sentence.

The behind the scenes and the practical special effects actually made me interested to watch this movie now. I didn't know that it had so many creative practical effects. I'm impressed.

When I first saw Zathura in theaters, I thought to myself, "This is just a rip-off of Jumanji. It's Jumanji in space." It was only a few days ago (Dec 2019) that I learned the creator behind the Jumanji and Zathura was the same. Zathura was supposed to be spiritual sequel to Jumanji. It was supposed to be Jumanji in space. LOL

I was terrified the lizard men in this movie when i was a kid

Glad to see you guys tackle Kristen Stewart’s finest role

This movie was one of my favorite movies as a kid. I am still convinced it is an amazing childrens movie.

THIS MOVIE WAS MY CHILDHOOD THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THIS BACK

I totally love that it’s all in one place while they’re out in space. It’s a genuinely disturbing and claustrophobic film to watch as a child, and there’s some pretty tense sequences.

You know what villain this film needed? Corn of Coblin

This movie was so good, watched it all the time back in the day.

I loved this movie as a kid, could really relate to the brother and family aspect. I think we liked it because we could easily imagine an adventure like this happening to us when our parents weren't home

“Board game cinematic universe” I’m in,take my savings.

Regarding the whole brothers dynamic, at the time this movie came out, I was about the same age as the younger brother and had/have an older brother who, at the time was also about the same age as the older brother in the movie, and I remember finding the whole dynamic between them to be veeery relatable. They hit the nail on the head in that regard.

Honestly, if given the choice between playing Jumanji and Zathura, I would choose Zathura. Mainly, for two reasons: 1. Everything in Jumanji is actively trying to kill you. There is no relief, it's just ’Survive and finish the game or die’. In Zathura, yes you're trapped in space, but as long as you stay inside the house, you have gravity, air, etc. Heck, even the Zorgons leave you alone if you hide from them. 2. The Shooting Star card. Need I say more?

I saw this when it came out and I was 5/6. Scared the shit out of me. Thanks mum

This movie has so much love behind it. The practical effects still look great and I just have so much nostalgia for it

I loved Zathura. Still do. Heartfelt and cool. Yes, Zathura is cool

The next Jumanji film will be a crossover with Zathura where the characters fight the devil's gaming company who made Jumanji & Zathura.

This was a movie I remember watching on cartoon network once then for the rest of my life questioning if it was real or a weird fever dream i had

"I mean, you're the vassal of Satan, of course you don't care."

"Get me a juice box, beotch"

This film is ingrained into my brain because of how many times I watched it as a child. Lisa was absolutely my favorite character because of the whole frozen thing. I always laughed when the frozen body fell down the stairs and I even think back on this movie when I hear the name Lisa to this day lmao. I also remember the scene where the little brother infiltrates the zorgons to get the board back ABSOLUTELY gave me nightmares

While Favreau wrote Swingers, he did not direct it. Doug Liman did.

9:04 I’m declaring these two stock images as canon and you can’t stop me.

Only read the end of this if you're Maso: Maclunkey

I saw this at the cinema in 2006- I loved it as a kid and even today I find it very underrated and on par with the first Jumanji.

house goes into space? if anything its a sequel to Up

I'm actually friends with Rizwan Manji and sent him the video. He loved it

Jim Henson was the voice for Kermit the frog, not Oz.

You should have made a Caravan of Garbage for Jumanji: The Animated Series, which had more to do with the sequels, since they go to the jungle

Yay! Zathura is indeed a forgotten sequel of sorts!

Awh man I loved this movie as a kid, and I really enjoyed that it was set in one house! I was an only child and a lot of time was spent creating my own fun indoors, so it really struck a chord with me!

I love how they say one dumb thing in most of these videos and then just run with it

In the Zathura trailer it says “from the Jumanji universe”

Did hard is also a film, that’s originally a sequel book that had a film, that Die Hard isn’t a sequel to

This film is my blind nostalgia movie, nothing can ruin it for me

The board design was the coolest thing ever.

"It's a game company run by the devil!!!" So the company from "Ready or Not" ?

The boy from Jumanji was at a con I went to the other week. Even in his 30's he's still pretty adorable.

I preferred this over Jumanji as a kid.

i remember seeing this with a group of friends for a friends birthday. we were the only people there. it was the best movie experience of my life. i respect this movie

"In what universe is there a sequel to a book which they then make into a movie that is not a sequel to the movie made of the first book?" This was the case with Die Hard! Die Hard was adapted from the book Nothing Lives Forever, which was the sequel to The Detective. A movie was made of The Detective (starring Frank Sinatra) but Die Hard is not a sequel to that movie - for one thing, they changed the protagonist's name. Amusingly, the makers of Die Hard were legally obliged to offer the role to Sinatra first, but thankfully he turned it down on the basis of his being *far* too old.

Can confirm as a kid this Movie felt enormous and awesome, even though nearly the whole movie was inside that one house.

I personally had so many fond memories of this film as a kid, but for the longest time I couldn't remember the title so I thought I made it up until I watched it on TV and nearly freaked out. I love this movie even as a 19 year old now. Will never get old ❤

Honestly this just made me want to watch Zathura again lol it's one of my favorites

11:30 The Detective based on the novel of the same name and Die Hard based on the novel Nothing Lasts Forever. Nothing Lasts Forever is a sequel to The Detective and the movies are unconnected.

I loved this movie as a kid.

Man the older brother was in 4th Grade and had a girlfriend. Man so cool.

"Put it on the thumbnail."

I remember when this came out and they did indeed call it Zathura: A Jumanji Space Adventure. I forgot all about this film

9:06 are those actually pictures of James' brothers, or just stock photos? If they are this brothers, they've been photographed very well.

As a kid, I used to play imaginary games in which my house became all sorts of amazing places. Space, lava, caves full of monsters, it was all my house while also those places. I saw this movie as a tribute to that kind of imaginary game kids play. You're in the house, but it's been transformed into a fantastical place.

Jamanji, Was one of my favorite books... As a kid. The movie's.... Have gotten waaay out of Hand!

“The guy who played Cadbury in Richie Rich.” That made my day. Love you guys.

Zathura was a great movie if you watched it when you were 12!

Zathuras dad was the reason I chose to be a car designer. Idk why, just looked cool

this was honestly just a modern-day Twilight Zone episode, Change My Mind.

this movie gives me more nostalgia than anything else in this world. this movie will be forever be cemented in my heart

I remembered this film from when I was younger and kept on searching for the name of it

One of my favorite things about watching these videos is seeing Ben's hidden commentary and acting in the video. It's like a bonus hidden guy playing in the background

This actually upsets me that they talk so much shit about the moving taking place in a house. That's part of the magic of the movie. The fact that such a beautiful adventure story could even be written to take place in a house is incredible. The whole point of the movie was to encapture the imagination and creativity that comes with childhood, and I think making the film take place in the house was essential to keeping that innocent, imaginative feel. This wasn't a story about kids exploring the galaxy and it never was meant to be, even if that's what these guys wanted it that way. They might as well bitch about how restricting it was that they were playing a board game or how they were brothers or that there was a small cast or literally anything else. But taking away the essentials out of the movie would have made it something else entirely and if that's what they're really judging Zathura on then they're just comparing it to what they had gone into the theatre expecting to watch while ignoring the fucking GEM that is this movie. Cameron Tankersley out.

Big fan of when we get a fun look @ Ben! Best editor in the business

These games are brought to you by dr. Wondertainment

Loved this as a child. By setting it in the house and (mostly) removing the Robin Williams character it tapped in to that very relatable fear that many children have about being home alone. Suddenly the most comforting and familiar surroundings become foreign and harsh. Which I think the movie ties it nicely with the themes of divorce and absence. Zathura was genuinely scary as a child, I think it was designed as a horror film for children. And I think when viewed through that lens it is pretty successful.

Wow you guys have some spectacular synergy, you must be really good friends.

Zathura was a movie i grew up with and hearing this brought something back

I would like to have seen a continuation of the story that would have explained who made the games.

I was a little kid when this movie came out and the crocodile aliens scared me soo much. I was not able to sleep for like 3 years.

I saw this and went, "Oh, yeah... Zathura!" And then I *smiled.*

Used to love this as a kid. The robot actually terrified me. Seeing that dude in the suit made me realize why I actually thought the robot had weight and would crush the kids haha

i used to want my house to go to space like the movie

With zathura the movie feels dark and mysterious and sometimes threatening now that dark vibe could be because they are in outer space but even so the vibes are not ooh whimsy mystical space adventure it feels more grounded and gritty while jumanji was more whimsy and magical

Manhunter is a film adaptation of Red Dragon, and then Silence of the Lambs is an unrelated (not a sequel) adaptation of the sequel novel of the same name. Then they went back and made a prequel, Red Dragon, in (I guess) this rebooted Hannibal Lecter universe. So that very thing you said, ya dickheads.

I adore this movie. Childhood favorite! Watched all the time when it played on tv.

The audio is so delayed in this video it's incredibly hard to watch

This was one of my favourite films as a kid.

If I've already had a great one time, does this mean I get another? Or do I only get the one?

I remember Zathura scaring the shit out of me when I was a kid. The robot and them being in Space freaked me out.

Do The Mask for the Sonic release Jim Carey > Jim Carey, close enough!

I love how much you both and the editor have with these COG videos

I remember watching this as a kid and absolutely hating it.