California Man

*about a Cro-Magnon man attending high school.

*featuring Sean Astin as a non-hobbit.

*that's got Pauly Shore in it.

I just saw this movie again after many, many hundreds of years, and bugger me if it hasn't IMPROVED with age! (er, by that I mean it HAS...)

I was a bit like the Sean Astin character when I was at school. If only I'd had a caveman of my own to help me pull chicks, how differently things might have turned out...

Okay, so the movie has no basis in reality, but who would expect it to? Cavemen aside, it's a TEEN movie, and they NEVER depict real people or situations. At least, not on any planet I've ever been to.

This movie doesn't pretend to be anything outstanding. It's intended purely as entertainment, and that's what it is.

It appears to have been promoted as one of those frightful "Pauly Shore movies", but it's not. He's really just a supporting player (and is nowhere near as annoying in small doses, it turns out). This is Brendan Fraser's flick. If anyone else had played Link, I can't imagine the movie being as good as it is.

My one beef is that Sandra Hess ("Cave Nug") wasn't given enough screen time (but then, as far as I'm concerned, she's NEVER given enough screen time).

I never knew Scatterbrain had covered "Mama Said Knock You Out", either. That's cool.

Okay, I'm going for a lie down now.

Bye.

Dave Morgan (Sean Astin) decides to dig his own swimming pool for an end of high school party. Along with his wacky best friend Stoney Brown (Pauly Shore), they find a frozen caveman Link (Brendan Fraser). Dave is in love with his old friend Robyn Sweeney (Megan Ward). However she's now out of his league with douche bully boyfriend Matt Wilson (Michael DeLuise) and dismissive friend Ella (Robin Tunney). Link gets thawed out and tries to adjust to the modern world with the help of the boys. Link becomes the cool new guy in school with Dave and Stoney tagging along.

It's sometimes fun. Pauly Shore is actually likable as the wacky sidekick. Sean Astin is a bit too hyper desperate. Brendan Fraser is great as the wild caveman. It's cute but not hilarious. Director Les Mayfield doesn't have the greatest comedic touch. The movie survives on the wild performances of Fraser and Shore.

When they find a frozen caveman (Brendan Fraser) in their back yard, two high school outcasts thaw him and introduce him to modern life while he in turn gets them to actually enjoy life.

Pauly Shore made some okay movies and some bad movies. This one, along with "Bio-Dome", is an okay movie, or maybe even good. Then it starts going downhill from "Son-in-Law" to "Jury Duty" and we try to forget everything else. Shore was sort of a one-note joke, and because he was not able to grow beyond that, he kind of faded away.

This film works well because Fraser captures the caveman thing really well, but even more so it is Sean Astin who saves the day. By playing the straight man, he keeps the Fraser-Shore antics grounded, and his role should not be understated.

I really like this movie. Maybe its ending is a little predictable, still it's good fun, easygoing and one of these movies you can watch over and over again. The characters are brilliant, Brendan Fraser's performance as an unfrozen stoneage guy in modern California is simply great. my absolute favourite scene is the one in the bathroom - no matter how often i watch it, it always makes me laugh.

I Mean that literally!

I was going through a rough time in my life, and Encino Man was the only thing that could make me laugh!

Brendan Fraser was terrific, and I even learned how to like Pauly Shore after this movie...who up to this point I couldn't stand!

I saw it 8 (yes, that's EIGHT) times at the theatre in a four week period when it was out, and have watched it dozens of times since on video. Despite it's absurd premise, the movie worked for me, in the relationships that developed between Link, Dave, and Stoney, and the little family the three of them made.

It's goofy, it's at times stupid..and it's all around FUNNY! Just one of those little movies that if you will allow yourself to put reality on hold for 90 minutes, it can and will charm the socks off of you.