Dudley Do-Right

What we have here is a failure to communicate any of the satire created by genius Jay Ward! Mr. Wilson made so many mistakes in telling Dudley's story that I believe this is simply not the Dudley Do-Right story, this was someone elses story. The set up should have centered more on the Mounties and less on Whiplash's plan, which dominated the entire film. Never once did Dudley have to rescue Nell, in fact, she seemed smittened by Whiplash. This gave less-than-attractive Sara Jessica Parker very little to do, not that as an actress, she has much to bring to the table. Aside from this, her character, Nell, was (under) written as though the writer (s) didn't want the character in the first place. Maybe, because Parker was re-cast in the role. Second Choice?

The character of Horse, which could have been an interesting character asset to Dudley were is not for the fact that he disappears a quarter into the film without explanation, was handled wrong. Likewise, Eric Idle's character seemed as though he might have been three separate characters in an original draft of the script. And now strung together, so the producers could use Idle's talents.

The flavor of the original cartoon is no where to be found.

Fraser and Alex Rocco were as wonderful as Parker and Molina were not up to snuff. However considering what they had to work with -- they were all okay ... silly set-ups, no pay offs and a script that seemed aimless at times leaves devotees of genius Jay Ward saddened.

Jay Ward's cute but bland cartoon about Canada's No. #1 Mountie plays even worse when brought to the big screen as a live-action comic adventure. Brendan Fraser is spirited and very adept at buffoonish slapstick, but he's not the right actor for Dudley Do-Right; he's a big, handsome lunk, and he's cheerful enough, but he doesn't know how to mug, nor is he helped by his limited voice (a deep monotone). It's always nice to see Sarah Jessica Parker in a film, but she isn't cast right either; as love-interest Nell, Parker gets no funny lines, she's too modern and grounded a presence, although she does help enliven a dance sequence about 47 minutes into the proceedings. Alfred Molina attempts to have fun as egomaniacal villain Snidely Whiplash, but his voice and fake mustache are his only props. The pithy announcer gets some dryly comic lines and Dudley's horse (named Horse, ha ha) shoots off a few raspberries, but this is a very dim slapstick vehicle, short on inspiration, poorly conceived and even more unmemorable than its cartoon predecessor. * from ****

First, may I humbly beseech the forgiveness of the Canadian People, for yet another AWFUL characterization of your people and your country. You have every right to be duly proud of the heritage of the R.C.M.P./Gendarmerie royale du Canada.

DUDLEY DO-RIGHT, the motion picture (yet another money seeking "parody" on cartoons of the 1960's...BORIS AND NATASHA, GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE, etc.) had the potential. Brendan Fraser is a very talented actor, and is not too darn hard on the eyes...*ahem*. Sarah Jessica Parker, Alfred Molina, Alex Rocco, Eric Idle and one of my favorite character actors, Robert Prosky, head up the cast. So, what exactly went wrong? Well, how about a lame, unfunny script that made for 83 minutes of painful viewing? I think we're getting WARM.

Very few chuckles here, provided mostly by Eric Idle and Alex Rocco, who do the best with what they have. This was the only thing that saved DUDLEY DO-RIGHT from being a complete catastrophe. If this is the only thing left on the video shelf, make a night of it with a game of Monopoly or Yahtzee, instead. You'll thank yourself in the morning.

Who started this trend of turning '60s cartoons into new live action? I'd say Spielberg with The Flintstones. That one, at least, worked. But it was, sadly, the camel's nose under the tent.

Did Hugh Wilson even WATCH any Dudley Do-Right cartoons as a kid? Did he rent videos or catch the Cartoon Channel? None of that shows.

The classic scene of the cartoon, Snidely tying Nell to the tracks ... is STILL a cartoon here. They didn't even try to render the credits it in live action as with The Flintstones.

Dudley, a blonde in the cartoon, was a brunette actor. He smiles a lot, has a big hero's chin, and is sort of dim but not such a stumblebum.

And Nell, a redhead in the cartoon, was a blonde actress. But wait ... Sarah Jessica Parker isn't REALLY blonde. She had to color her hair or wear a wig and STILL got it wrong.

Nell in the cartoon was content to live at the camp. But she was NOT stuck between Dudley and Snidely. Rather, she was stuck on HORSE!! And what happened to Horse's Mountie shirt and hat? This one in the movie was just a regular saddled horse.

Inspector Fenwick in the cartoon is the camp commandant, a fist-pounding boss, not a soft-spoken retiree. And he wears the red uniform, just like Dudley. Was Hugh Wilson being "accurate" by having someone of the inspector's rank wear black? Why bother being accurate on this obscure point if you can't get the obvious things right?

The real Snidely Whiplash has green skin. I forgive Alfred Molina for not donning greasepaint through the film. But at least we get a scene of him with a green face in the mudbath. Snidely is the ONLY character they got right.

Other problems: The cartoon very obviously took place during the Klondike or Yukon Gold Rush days. The player-piano score gave it away. We;re talking late 19th century. They would NOT have helicopters, cars, tanks, etc.

I remember, back in the '60s, the trend was the turn our beloved live-action heroes into cartoons and see them REALLY soar. Gone were the expenses of having to string George Reeves up on wires to have Superman fly. Now we could see Superman really fly and take on actual comic-book supervillains instead of always gangsters. And we got the Lone Ranger, Batman and eventually Star Trek in toon form and they all worked by doing things that would have been way too expensive in live action.

Don't any of the directors remember that these cartoons were made for a reason? Too expensive to film live!

Spielberg made The Flintstones work as nostalgia because he has the cash to be exacting in detail. For Hugh Wilson and all the rest, the lesson is simple: Watch the cartoon, note recurring themes, and most of all, don't do the show if you ain't got the dough!

This actually wasn't as bad as you might think. It's harmless fluff, silly in many parts but also a movie filled with likable characters and good adult jokes that go over the kids' heads. It's clean stuff: references to other movies and things. It's one of these films you find yourself laughing more than the kids but the next day you really can't remember much that you saw. In other words, you will be entertained but it's not a memorable movie.

The horse might be in the running as the most memorable character in the film. Even the villain isn't despicable. He's more cartoon-like than evil. Alfred Molina does a nice job as "Snidely Whiplash." Eric Idle and Sarah Jessica Parker are also good in here.

Brendan Fraser, playing the title role, was on a role their for a couple of years, playing these silly, comedic roles and being successful in doing so (i.e. George Of The Jungle, Bedazzled, etc.)

Don't dismiss this as totally stupid. It will surprise you. All of us can use a good laugh and this movie provides plenty.