I watched this way back as a little kid when VHS tapes were still around. Until I rediscovered it about thirty years later, I could have sworn it was a fever dream. I couldn't even remember its name until I accidentally stumbled upon it here.
Anyway, a trio of dinosaur loving kids are zapped inside their television set and wind up trapped in the world of their favorite cartoon, simply named "Dinosaurs". There, they must battle a tribe of cavemen named the Rockies led by the evil Allosaurus despot, Mr. Big, before they can find a way back home by retrieving a fuse stolen by the villains.
The three child actors are whiny and put up a lousy performance. The cartoon heroes weren't much better: Rex and Tops were thoughtless jerks at first and Forrys voice was really annoying, but they did have a change of heart and help the kids get back home. Mr. Big with his deep, booming voice and his goofy gang of cave people were a total riot to watch.
The dinosaur puppets and suits looked passable for a TV movie, but their uneven movements, poor lip sync, and barely functioning mouths and eyes lessened their effect, especially when compared to those used in Jim Henson's "Dinosaurs" broadcasted around the same time.
There were other good qualities. The bar fight and final battle against Mr. Big were surprisingly fun to watch. A few pieces of scenery the kids pass during their journey were pretty cool looking, too, like the boneyard and the dinosaur grim reaper statue. The cartoon introduction near the beginning had a catchy theme song, and its animation looked like an interesting mix of Ren and Stimpy and the Flintstones.
Overall, this wasn't the worst dinosaur film, and the sheer level of cheesiness made it good for a laugh. But chances are, most kids would only give this a single watch, even if they were big dinosaur fans.
