The Just So Movie is a Disney film inspired by the book, Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling.
Plot[]
A group of animals known as the Main Eleven live in a run down zoo that is about to be shut down. With a little help from Mother Nature, they travel back in time to see their ancestors so they can help their friend, Joe Grover the head zookeeper, and save their home from getting shut down by the good-for-nothing landlady, Julia McSteller.
Characters[]
Bigmouth: A grey whale from the aquarium since he was born and raised in the zoo. All the animals get together at the aquarium since Bigmouth can't come out of the water; he is a good friend to Joe and the other animals. He uses his blowhole and tail for attacking Julia. Bigmouth learns about his ancestor from "How the Whale Got his Throat".
Humphrey: A dromedary camel from the desert enclosure since he was born and raised in the zoo. Despite his grumpy looks, he's a good friend of the other animals and Joe. He attacks Julia by kicking and spitting at her. Humphrey learns about his ancestor from "How the Camel Got his Hump".
Wrinkles: An Indian rhinoceros from the rainforest enclosure since he was born and raised in the zoo. He's a very good friend of the other animals and Joe, despite his grouchy looks. He charges Julia to attack her. Wrinkles learns about his ancestor from "How the Rhinoceros Got his Skin".
Spot: An African leopard from the savanna enclosure. He's good friends with Joe and the other animals having been born and raised in the zoo. He pounces on Julia to attack her. Spot learns about his ancestor from "How the Leopard Got his Spots".
Trunksworth: An African elephant from the savanna enclosure. He's good friends with Joe and the other animals having been born and raised in the zoo. He uses his trunk for attacking Julia. Trunksworth learns about his ancestor from "The Elephant's Child".
Joey: A red kangaroo from the outback enclosure. Having been born and raised in the zoo, he's a good friend of Joe and the other animals despite his tough looks. He kick-boxes Julia for attack. Joey learns about his ancestor from "The Sing-Song of Old Man Kangaroo".
Penny and Arnold: Penny is a female pangolin and Arnold is a male three-banded armadillo, both are from the rainforest enclosure. Since they were both born and raised at the zoo, they're good friends of the other animals and Joe. They roll up into balls so as to make Julia slip as part of the attack. Both Penny and Arnold learn about their ancestors from "The Beginning of the Armadillos".
Clyde: A blue crab from the aquarium. Since he was born and raised in the zoo, he's good friends with the other animals and Joe. He pinches Julia with his claws as his attack. Clyde learns about his ancestor from "The Crab that Played With the Sea".
Carl: A stray alley cat who is a frequent visitor of the zoo, which makes him a good friend of Joe and the other animals. He attacks Julia by scratching her with his nails. Carl learns about his ancestor from "The Cat that Walked by Himself".
Floyd: A monarch butterfly who is a frequent visitor of the zoo, which makes him a good friend of Joe and the other animals. He doesn't fight, but he does guide Joe and Sally to Julia's car to help them find evidence. Floyd learns about his ancestor from "The Butterfly that Stamped".
Various animals: Other animals who used to live in the zoo with Bigmouth, Humphrey, Wrinkles, Spot, Trunksworth, Joey, Penny, Arnold, and Clyde despite how they were behaving otherwise until the zoo went broke and they had to be sent back to their natural habitats while the main animals did not want to leave, however. In the end, after the zoo is saved and rebuilt, new animals come to live in it, including mates for the Main Eleven so they can start families.
Zoo Staff: The zookeepers who used to work for Joe until the place went broke, causing the workers to either quit or retire. In the end, after the zoo is saved and rebuilt, Joe hires new zookeepers to work for him.
Mother Nature: The narrator and an immortal spirit in charge of all the earth from plants to animals ever since the beginning. Her powers come from a staff with a globe on top. She helps the Main Eleven by telling them that she will take them back in time to see their ancestors at night as they sleep. She even does the same for Joe when he can't understand the animals trying to talk to him about seeing their ancestors. Mother Nature is always true to her word.
Marty Grover: The deceased founder of the zoo and Joe's late father. Marty had always dreamed of opening and running the zoo ever since he was a boy. The Main Eleven have been good friends with Marty as well as with his son. When Marty died, a statue of him was built as a memory and the zoo became run-down as Joe kept trying to keep the place in business. Yet, Marty's son and his animals friends are wishing to save their home and dream.
Joe Grover: The head zookeeper and Marty's son. Joe had been good friends with the Main Eleven since he was a boy, having grown up to be the head zookeeper so his father could share his dream with him. As he wishes to think of how he can save the zoo, he just doesn't have any idea; so it's up to his animal friends to come up with something. Joe learns about his ancestors from "How the First Letter Was Written" and "How the Alphabet Was Made", which makes him come to his senses so he can finally help the animals save the zoo from Julia. In the end, he takes his father's place as being in charge of the zoo, has the place fixed up, hires new zoo keepers, brings in new animals, marries Sally, and becomes a father to a baby.
Sally Fletcher: Julia's coworker and Joe's love interest. She hates having to work for her boss and likes animals. As she falls in love with Joe, she wishes to help him in any way she can against her boss' wishes. In the end, she helps save the zoo from getting shut down, quits working for Julia, marries Joe, and becomes a mother to a baby.
Julia McSteller: The main antagonist, the money-loving landlady who dislikes animals. She even despises Joe and his late father, also gets very aggressive whenever she doesn't get her way. No one can stand up to her as she threatens to close down the zoo and forbids Sally to quit working for her or spend any time with Joe. Julia secretly plans to make the zoo into a shopping mall and sell the animals as museum displays. When she comes back to the zoo so she can make her profit, Joe stands up to her, refusing to give up his dream. This makes Julia angry, but before she can do anything, she gets attacked by Carl, Penny, Arnold, Clyde, Wrinkles, Spot, Joey, Trunksworth, Bigmouth, and Humphrey while Floyd guides Joe and Sally to the landlady's car where they find the evidence. In the end, Julia gets arrested for her crime as Sally quits working for her and the police look at the evidence, allowing the zoo to never be shut down, thus foiling the landlady's profit making plans.
Cast[]
- Ben Affleck as Bigmouth the Whale
- Idris Elba as Humphrey the Camel
- J.K. Simmons as Wrinkles the Rhinoceros
- Jess Harnell as Spot the Leopard
- Dwayne Johnson as Trunksworth the Elephant
- Hugh Jackman as Joey the Kangaroo
- Teala Dunn as Penny the Pangolin
- Josh Keaton as Arnold the Armadillo
- Tracy Morgan as Clyde the Crab
- Alan Tudyk as Carl the Cat
- Jason Bateman as Floyd the Butterfly
- Matthew Mercer as Joe Grover
- Melissa McCarthy as Mother Nature
- Mae Whitman as Sally Fletcher
- Grey DeLisle as Julia McSteller
- Nik Dodani as The Police Chief
Songs[]
- The Money Song - sung by Julia McSteller
- Sally & Joe - sung by Sally Fletcher
- It's All Up to You - sung by Mother Nature
- I Just Can't Do It - sung by Joe Grover
- Got to Save the Zoo - sung by the Main Eleven
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- This movie is a like a combination of Just So Stories, The Wild, Tall Tale, and Home On The Range.
- This is to be the first film ever to be made based on Just So Stories.
Trailer[]
The Just So Movie Trailer/Transcript