The Flintstones: On the Rocks

I was lucky enough to stumble across this movie a while back during one of the very few times Cartoon Network decided to rerun it. Why this movie isn't out on DVD and in my collection right now, I have no idea. The creative team took a lot of care in recreating everything about the original show from the designs and voices from the very beginning, back in the early 1960's. They amped up the humor a bit for the 21st century but not much! They got the characters right, the look of the series right and most amazingly of all, they got someone who could perfectly mimic the voice of Alan Reed, the man who did Fred's voice originally.

I know some people were put off because these weren't the generic, lame version of the Flintstones from the '70's and later when pitching cereal. Well, they don't know their Flintstones. Or at least the original series. Here's hoping that someone has the smarts to finally put this out on DVD someday SOON!

Jeff Bergman does a beautiful job impersonating the great Alan Reed. The other voices are acceptable. The animation was impossibly crude and looked more like Ren and Stimpy. Of course some of the usual continuity errors were there. On the original series, a running gag was, no one knew what Barney did for a living. Here, he is briefly shown working with Fred at the quarry (similar to the comic strip).

I liked the idea of an adult theme. While kids watched this show in the beginning (I was one of them), it was rightly billed as the first adult cartoon show. Having Fred and Wilma act cruel to each other has more in common with today's immature couples than with the characters on the series. Even Ralph and Alice on the Honeymooners (a series superficially similar to this) wouldn't act in a deliberately hurtful manner. The truth is that they are a match and can take each other for granted, but this is too much. The basic core of decency behind the satire in the series is gone. There are moments, but just moments. I'm glad that the late great Jean Vander Pyl didn't live to see this. A lot of sensitivity to the characters could have saved this movie. Unfortunately, I do not have high hopes with regard to Seth MacFarlane's venture either. Too bad.

I only saw this once on Cartoon Network. I couldn't find it on DVD/VHS anywhere and it doesn't look like Cartoon Network has any intentions of playing it again. (Hopefully I'm wrong on both accounts.) This was actually a hilarious and more adult version of the Flintstones. The humor has been updated to a more modern style. However, it is a bit more "real" than the old cartoon series, so it may not be for everyone. It's be a few years since this cartoon movie came on, so I unfortunately don't remember enough about it to give a synopsis of the story. The animation is a little bit different from the original, but that's to be expected. I believe the creator of Ren & Stimpy was the producer of this cartoon, so it has that kind of appearance and humor. (I may be wrong about that though.)

Having corresponded with a former employee of Hanna Barbera who believes "On The Rocks" was a slap in the face to Hanna Barbera and the very soul of everything Flintstones I have a lot to say about Craig Kellmans' fresh old style. I absolutely LOVE everything about it! This cartoon breathes life back in to what had gradually become soft and round and made for the kiddies. The Flintstones is for everyone not just the targets of merchandising.

To the nay sayers who feel this version of the Flintstones was too scary to make money I say it could take The Flintstones through the next fifty years at least! It rocks!

Man this movie made kids think hated this movie and they never never see this again!! please dont watch it