Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
After their father is called into work, two young boys, Walter and Danny, are left in the care of their teenage sister, Lisa, and told they must stay inside. Walter and Danny, who anticipate a boring day, are shocked when they begin playing Zathura, a space-themed board game, which they realize has mystical powers when their house is shot into space. With the help of an astronaut, the boys attempt to return home.
Zathura is a solid, imaginative family adventure that lifts its Jumanji-in-space premise into genuinely fun territory with practical effects and a good sense of escalating stakes. The plot is competent and well-structured for its audience, building on sibling rivalry in a satisfying way, though it lacks the depth to transcend its genre origins. The acting from the child leads is uneven — Jonah Bobo and Josh Hutcherson are serviceable but not standout, while Dax Shepard as the Astronaut adds some gravitas. Cinematography under Jon Favreau is functional and occasionally impressive with its space vistas and practical set work, but rarely remarkable. Novelty earns a middling score — it's distinctive enough as a companion piece to Jumanji with real personality, but the concept is borrowed and the execution, while charming, doesn't transcend its source material in a singular way. The ending, relying on a time-loop twist, feels rushed and undercooked, leaning on a reveal that isn't fully earned emotionally.