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Crocodile Dundee In LA
Paramount // PG // September 18, 2001
List Price: $29.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
There are times when I would have loved to be a fly-on-a-wall in a studio meeting, or better yet, simply to have been sitting in the room when a particular project was being greenlighted. I'd love to hear the reasoning, the thoughts on why that particular picture would be a success. The original "Crocodile Dundee" pictures were put into theaters about 15 years ago; those (the original and its sequel) were good, this is not. There's little evidence that this third picture really had any cause for being made in the first place.
In this picture, Mick (Hogan) and Sue (Kozlowski) have a young son, Mikey (Serge Cockburn). When Sue's father things it's a good idea for her to come to Los Angeles to take over his newspaper offices, the three travel back to the United States. The two stumble over a plot to make bad sequels that don't make any money to cover up a scam (I could make a joke about that plot piece coming from this movie, but suprisingly, the picture's grosses just inched over the film's 25m budget).
The performances aren't too bad. Hogan has this part down cold and does a fairly nice job attempting to sell even some of the weaker gags. Kozlowski (who still looks very good years after the original) is rather bland, but the two have a decent chemistry together. There's really not that many places to go with the fish-out-of-water premise that made the first two pictures mildly entertaining. As refreshing as it is to see a comedy that attempts to get jokes from someplace besides bathroom humor, the gags are predictable and only work infrequently. It becomes rather apparent early on that this third entry it stretching the series beyond its possibilities.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles" is presented by Paramount in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. Aside from a few minor flaws, the picture quality here looked superb throughout the movie. Especially beautiful were some of the early scenes in Australia. Sharpness and detail were often quite good, although there were a few scenes here and there that appeared slightly softer.
I really noticed very few flaws throughout the presentation. There were only a few minor print flaws here and there throughout the film - nothing major, just a few minor speckles. I caught a few traces of pixelation, but didn't see any edge enhancement or other problems. The majority of the film looked superbly clean and crisp.
Colors appeared bright, well-saturated and vibrant, with no instances of smearing or other problems. Contrast was solid, flesh tones were natural and accurate and black level was strong. One of the better transfers I've seen from Paramount lately.
SOUND: The film's Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation remained rather uninspired. The upbeat musical score was really one of the only elements that was distributed to the surrounds. Otherwise, things remained front-focused throughout. I was suprised that even in the early scenes in the wilds there weren't really any ambient sounds. The film's score didn't have a great deal of presence and the majority of the film seemed to fold up into almost dialogue-driven mono.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus that essentially use film-themed images as backgrounds.
EXTRAS:: 11 1/2 minute promotional featurette with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage and trailer.
Final Thoughts: Not as horrid a fish-out-of-water picture as the recent video release "Just Visiting", this third entry in the "Crocodile Dundee" series doesn't find much more success (or laughs). Paramount's DVD provides strong video quality, but mediocre audio and supplements. Those who're fans of the film might want to check out the DVD. Only those who are hardcore fans of the series might consider a rental, but go in with low expectations.
There are times when I would have loved to be a fly-on-a-wall in a studio meeting, or better yet, simply to have been sitting in the room when a particular project was being greenlighted. I'd love to hear the reasoning, the thoughts on why that particular picture would be a success. The original "Crocodile Dundee" pictures were put into theaters about 15 years ago; those (the original and its sequel) were good, this is not. There's little evidence that this third picture really had any cause for being made in the first place.
In this picture, Mick (Hogan) and Sue (Kozlowski) have a young son, Mikey (Serge Cockburn). When Sue's father things it's a good idea for her to come to Los Angeles to take over his newspaper offices, the three travel back to the United States. The two stumble over a plot to make bad sequels that don't make any money to cover up a scam (I could make a joke about that plot piece coming from this movie, but suprisingly, the picture's grosses just inched over the film's 25m budget).
The performances aren't too bad. Hogan has this part down cold and does a fairly nice job attempting to sell even some of the weaker gags. Kozlowski (who still looks very good years after the original) is rather bland, but the two have a decent chemistry together. There's really not that many places to go with the fish-out-of-water premise that made the first two pictures mildly entertaining. As refreshing as it is to see a comedy that attempts to get jokes from someplace besides bathroom humor, the gags are predictable and only work infrequently. It becomes rather apparent early on that this third entry it stretching the series beyond its possibilities.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles" is presented by Paramount in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. Aside from a few minor flaws, the picture quality here looked superb throughout the movie. Especially beautiful were some of the early scenes in Australia. Sharpness and detail were often quite good, although there were a few scenes here and there that appeared slightly softer.
I really noticed very few flaws throughout the presentation. There were only a few minor print flaws here and there throughout the film - nothing major, just a few minor speckles. I caught a few traces of pixelation, but didn't see any edge enhancement or other problems. The majority of the film looked superbly clean and crisp.
Colors appeared bright, well-saturated and vibrant, with no instances of smearing or other problems. Contrast was solid, flesh tones were natural and accurate and black level was strong. One of the better transfers I've seen from Paramount lately.
SOUND: The film's Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation remained rather uninspired. The upbeat musical score was really one of the only elements that was distributed to the surrounds. Otherwise, things remained front-focused throughout. I was suprised that even in the early scenes in the wilds there weren't really any ambient sounds. The film's score didn't have a great deal of presence and the majority of the film seemed to fold up into almost dialogue-driven mono.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus that essentially use film-themed images as backgrounds.
EXTRAS:: 11 1/2 minute promotional featurette with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage and trailer.
Final Thoughts: Not as horrid a fish-out-of-water picture as the recent video release "Just Visiting", this third entry in the "Crocodile Dundee" series doesn't find much more success (or laughs). Paramount's DVD provides strong video quality, but mediocre audio and supplements. Those who're fans of the film might want to check out the DVD. Only those who are hardcore fans of the series might consider a rental, but go in with low expectations.
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