Dudley Do-Right

During his rise to stardom, Brendan Fraser had become quite the leading man when it came to films in the family and adventure genres. After getting his big break with Disney in Jay Ward's live-action George of the Jungle (1997) and landed in the smash hit movie reboot The Mummy (1999), he had the reputation as a solid bankable star. Which naturally led him back to participating in a film quite similar to that of George of the Jungle (1997). Stepping back into the cartoon live-action genre, Fraser landed the role of Dudley Do-Right (1999), another Jay Ward based cartoon. Sadly, this one didn't have the same appeal. While it does have its moments there are several problems too.

The Dudley Do-Right (1969) cartoon was a short lived show that didn't make it past 1 season and was very much similar in plot to that of Popeye. For this feature, it was kept the same where Dudley Do-Right (Brendan Fraser) the protagonist has been working to do his best to outsmart Snidely Whiplash (Alfred Molina), his childhood (now grown up) arch enemy. Together these two old foes square off for the affections of Nell Fenwick (Sarah Jessica Parker) who can't seem to make up her mind as to who is the better individual. As if it was hard to tell. The adaption was written and directed by Hugh Wilson, a veteran of many comedies in the past like Police Academy (1984) and Rhustler's Rhapsody (1985). The difference is, those were original works.

Here Wilson seems to struggle between what exactly is necessary and what isn't for a number of components. Right from the start, the movie begins with a Jay Ward Short under the "Fractured Fairy Tales" banner. Unlike George of the Jungle (1997) and even The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle, which began as cartoons and led into the live action feature. Here the cartoon short is comical, but completely unrelated to the feature. What is the point? But that's not the only thing that drags, the pacing tends to feel overly drawn out for needless reasons too. There's a number of scenes where dance numbers take center stage over carrying the plot through. They are well choreographed, but that doesn't take away the pointlessness of having it.

There's also weak character development among the main characters. Nell really doesn't change and neither does Snidely. Really it's just Dudley who is shown this from a hobo played by Eric Idle. And while there are certain aspects to the supporting characters that can be important, most don't move the plot. There's also appearances from Robert Prosky as Nell's father. Alex Rocco plays the Chief of a Native American tribe and Jack Kehler plays one of Snidely's right hand henchmen. Lastly there's Corey Burton who oddly enough sounds like Keith Scott's impression of the narrator from George of the Jungle (1997) and The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000). All in all, the actors act okay. It's just the script that stilts them in making their characters any more likable.

Cinematography on the other hand was well shot by Donald E. Thorin, cameraman of Lock Up (1989), Tango & Cash (1989) and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995). Again, while some scenes were not crucial to have in the picture, they were all competently filmed with a wide angle lens. As for music, Steve Dorff served as composer to the film. And while an official soundtrack nor score was released, the music matches the scenes at hand and the TV show theme is revisited. Out of the three cartoon movies mentioned, The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000) was the only film to get its own score released. So weird.

This cartoon live-action adaptation isn't as bad as the score says it is, but it is not that great either. There are some funny moments, the actors try, the camerawork is well done and the music fits. Yet there are several over padded scenes, little character development and unneeded characters.

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.

Brendan Fraser wasted his time and talent and Sarah Jessica Parker made the biggest movie mistake in choosing to star in "Dudley Do-Right."

"Dudley Do-Right" is the type of movie everyone hopes will be a success. Unfortunately, the writing did not measure up to the level of talent that signed on to the movie. It is always fun to watch comedic spoofs if they are written well and are logical. However, this film broke both these rules.

It was clear that there was no plot or humor in "Dudley Do-Right." The only thing that made it bearable was the narrator because he is the only character who kept my interest.

SKIP this movie because you will be sorely disappointed if you don't

Dudley Do-Right, Canadian Mountie (Brendan Fraser) is on his post in a remote village in Canada. A lifelong resident of the area, it was Dudley's childhood dream to become a Mountie. He lives in a small cabin with only his horse, Horse, as a companion. Yet, two people from Dudley's past resurface in the small, nearby village. One is Nell (Sara Jessica Parker) who Dudley has loved since their tweenage years. She has returned from a trip around the world and is more lovely than ever. But, alas, the other returnee is the dastardly Snidely Whiplash (Alfred Molina). He was Dudley's rival for Nell's affections long ago, despite his evil and conniving ways. Soon, Snidely has taken over the town's businesses, by hook and by crook, and is making a big play for Nell's attention while Dudley manages to upset the ruling party in Ottawa and is fired from his post. The world is looking pretty harsh to Dudley, that is for certain. Will he recover his job and win the heart of Nell? This is a second, cartoon-based film for Fraser, after the infinitely more successful George of the Jungle. The same creative minds were at work here but the results are far from perfect. Don't blame the cast, however, for Fraser, Parker, and Molina, with a bit of help from Eric Idle and Alex Rocco, are the reasons to see the film at all. Simply put, they are terrific and rise above the mundane script and uneven direction. Certainly, there are some very funny scenes, such as the one in which Snidely orders a poor lady and her children out of their home or where Dudley has the bad luck to have a moose head fall on him during a critical moment with Nell. Now, that's entertainment. Unfortunately, though, a few good scenes do not a great film make. Yet, if you like silly nonsense with likable stars, you might take a chance with this film. Yes, it may elicit a yawn here or there, but it's truly not a bad way to spend a couple of leisure hours.

I though this film was going to be nothing but juvenile nonsense. How pleased I was when I discovered that it was a lot livelier and energetic than I predicted.

The voice-over never once annoyed me as I thought it would and everyone in this movie seems to go overboard with their characters. Yet, despite all the energy and frenetic comedy, the film never feels indulgent.

The plot is, of course, nonsense. But then again you hardly want a family movie to have a labyrinth plot. Dudley Do-Right may have flopped but I don't know why. It's in the same field as the terrible "Waterboy" but that made over $100, 000, 000. This I won't understand. Maybe it's only because Canadians will truly love the intellectually-challenged Mountie.