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Krippendorf's Tribe

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment // PG-13 // June 4, 2002
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]

Review by Aaron Beierle | posted June 1, 2002 | E-mail the Author
The Movie:

"Krippendorf's Tribe" actually has a moderately funny plot but, this being a movie aimed towards early teens, it wastes both actors and general potential after a moderately promising start. The film stars Richard Dreyfuss, who was once an actor who had remarkable taste in roles and could provide a powerful and convincing performance. Somewhere down the line, Dreyfuss seemed to become a little less choosy about roles. Dreyfuss plays James Krippendorf, an anthropologist who was once one of the most highly regarded professionals in his field.

Cut to years later, where Krippendorf has been using grant money to provide for his family rather than actually taking the trips that he's supposed to have gone on. One morning, Veronica (Jenna Elfman) knocks on the door to remind the professor that he's supposed to give a lecture on his findings that day. The only problem is, he's got nothing.

Terrified when he thinks that he might get into serious trouble, Krippendorf starts riffing at the lecture and comes up with a tribe name based upon his kids names. When another colleague suggests that he produce some sort of film footage, he takes things further, dressing up his kids, Shelly (Natasha Lyonne), Mikey (Gregory Smith) and Edmund (Carl Michael Lindner), as tribesfolk. Of course, the lie becomes more and more complex until Krippendorf doesn't think that he can sink any further - he does.

The film's set-up occasionally brings out some funny moments, but a fair amount of the jokes either fall flat or are oddly adult for a Disney film that seems to be aimed towards children (the film is rated PG-13 for a reason). The performances are fairly good - Dreyfuss nicely walks the line between energetic and overacting, while Elfman is funny as colleague Veronica. Lyonne brings her usual cynical, smart charm in an early role, while Lily Tomlin is rather amusing as Dreyfuss's rival.

"Krippendorf's Tribe" is stereotypical, hard to believe, occasionally ridiculous and predictable, but overall, it's light silliness that produces a few laughs. Still, I think that the plot could have generated more consistent comedy.


The DVD

VIDEO: Disney continues to provide disapointing catalog releases, as "Krippendorf's Tribe" is listed as being presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen on the back cover - but isn't. Instead, often-nominated cinematographer Dean Cundey ("Jurassic Park", "Back to the Future", "Apollo 13")'s work is presented in pan & scan only. While the fact that the title isn't presented in its original aspect ratio is an inexcusable flaw, the picture quality however, is not as problematic as the studio's recent pan & scan offerings have been.

Sharpness and detail are generally very good. The picture did appear inconsistent at times, with a few darker scenes looking slightly soft and murky, but most of the bright, outdoor sequences appeared crisp. Some light edge enhancement appeared during a couple of moments, as did a tiny instance or two of shimmer. No pixelation was seen, while print flaws were also minimal - a speck here and a mark there, but nothing more.

The film's bright, vibrant color palette looked superb, appearing well-saturated and bold, with no smearing. While this presentation didn't offer terrible image quality, an anamorphic widescreen offering would not only offer the film in its original aspect ratio, but probably would have smoothed out the flaws.

SOUND: "Krippendorf's Tribe" is presented by Disney in Dolby Digital 5.1. However, the soundtrack is probably the biggest example of a "comedy" soundtrack that I've ever heard. Aside from a few touches of music, the surrounds go completely unused. Little or nothing in the way of ambience is offered - it's a purely dialogue-driven soundtrack.

MENUS: Bare basics - no animation.

EXTRAS: Nothing whatsoever.

Final Thoughts: "Krippendorf's Tribe" has a few decent laughs, but doesn't generate the kind of comedy that the cast is capable of. Disney's DVD is a dissapointment, offering only a pan & scan edition (even though the box indicates otherwise) and no supplements. Skip it.
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