George of the Jungle
From AwardAnnals
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| Director(s) | Sam Weisman |
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| Distributor | Walt Disney Video |
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| Not even the executives at Disney could have predicted the runaway success of this live-action movie inspired by Jay Ward’s goofy 1960s cartoon character. Not only did George make a killing at the box office, but Disney’s marketing wizards turned it into one of their best-selling videos. It’s hard to begrudge the movie’s success, even if this is the kind of mindless entertainment that caters to the lowest common denominator. In any case, it’s obvious that kids love this movie, in which the idiotic George (Brendan Fraser) repeatedly swings into trees and… | |
Honors
Reviews
Amazon.com
Not even the executives at Disney could have predicted the runaway success of this live-action movie inspired by Jay Ward’s goofy 1960s cartoon character. Not only did George make a killing at the box office, but Disney’s marketing wizards turned it into one of their best-selling videos. It’s hard to begrudge the movie’s success, even if this is the kind of mindless entertainment that caters to the lowest common denominator. In any case, it’s obvious that kids love this movie, in which the idiotic George (Brendan Fraser) repeatedly swings into trees and attracts the attention of a lovely jungle explorer (Leslie Mann) who decides to call off her engagement to a wealthy snob (Thomas Hayden Church) in favor of the vine-swinging hunk with an elephant named Shep (that thinks it’s a dog) and an ape named Ape (with a proper Brit voice provided by John Cleese). Filled with slapstick gags and some funny special effects, the movie can be a bit of a trial for adults, but it’s a hilarious treat for its intended audience. —Jeff Shannon
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Disney scored an unexpected hit with this goofy live-action remake of Jay Ward’s Saturday-morning cartoon, a zippy Tarzan parody with topical references and absurd gags. Disney’s big-screen version, George of the Jungle starring Brendan Fraser as the sweet, hopelessly inept jungle hero, puts the emphasis on slapstick and silly fun. The klutzy hero, still swinging into trees and stray boulders, saves a lost Los Angeles socialite (Leslie Mann) on safari and, completely smitten, leaves behind his tree-house home and simian best friend (an Oxford-accented ape voiced by John Cleese) to accompany the socialite back to the concrete jungle of LA, much to the frustration of her conniving fiancé (Thomas Haden Church). Fraser’s enthusiastic performance enriches our hunky hero with endearing innocence and energetic pluck. The humour is spotty and consistently more juvenile than the original cartoon, but the unending parade of visual gags (including George’s pet elephant Shep, transformed into an overexcited six-tonne puppy by inventive digital effects) keeps the tone light, frothy and winningly fun. —Sean Axmaker
