The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas

Amazon.com

Kids will enjoy the dinosaurs, gaudy prehistoric decor, and cartoon humor of The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas. The movie begins before Fred (Mark Addy from The Full Monty) and Wilma (Kirsten Johnston from Third Rock from the Sun) Flintstone ever met, back when Wilma was an unhappy rich girl seeking happiness in a less snobby environment. Running away from her smothering mother (Joan Collins!) and an oily suitor, Chip Rockefeller (Thomas Gibson from Dharma and Greg), she winds up at a drive-in restaurant where she meets Betty (Jane Krakowski from Ally McBeal), a waitress who thinks Wilma is actually homeless and invites the runaway to live with her. Our blue-collar heroes, Fred and Barney Rubble (Stephen Baldwin from The Usual Suspects), ask the girls out on a double date, and before long Fred and Wilma bond over bowling. But it turns out that Chip is in debt to a ruthless loan shark and needs Wilma's money, so he invites the couples to his new casino in Rock Vegas, where he plots nefariously to ruin their blossoming love. The plot holds no surprises and the dialogue is clumsy, but there's a blithe dimwittedness to the whole affair that makes it curiously inoffensive. Adults will most enjoy the sly performance of Alan Cumming (Eyes Wide Shut) as the Great Gazoo, an alien sent to Earth to observe human mating behavior. Also featuring Harvey Korman as Wilma's doddering father. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews:

Could not stop laughing.......2005-10-29

This movie was prehysterical! From the moment I pushed it in, I could not stop laughing! And that was just the previews! I shat my pants several times and popped a testical from laughing so hard! I only got to watch it half-way through though, because I like to keep myself on the edge of my seat!! I can't wait to watch the rest tomorrow! Rent it! You'll have a gay old time! Guaranteed!

Underrated, Viva Rock Vegas!!!.......2003-07-14

"The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas" brings the iconic 60's cartoon about the "Modern-Day Stone-Age Family" back to the big screen for a second run. During it's first-run in the theatres people blasted the movie for its changes from the first movie (prequel instead of sequel, B-team cast instead of A-team cast). However, taking a look at the movie on it's own merits you'll find an equally well-done story and rendering of America's favorite Modern-Day Stone-Age Family.

THE MOVIE:

The Story:

Again, this movie is actually a prequel to the first movie as well as cartoon. It tells the story of how Fred and Barney first met Wilma and Betty. Buddies and Rock-Quarry workers Fred and Barney meet Betty and Wilma and engage in a whirlwind romance. Along the way the gang gains a pet dino (Dino) and cross paths with an exiled alien (The Great Gazoo). Things in paradise aren't quite perfect though as Wilma's ex-beau shows up to reclaim Wilma and throw a monkey wrench into the boys' relationship with the girls.

The Cool Stuff:

It's all about the story here and effects here. As in the first movie, Bedrock (and Rock Vegas) are beautifully rendered. All the charm of the cartoons shines through in the film from the way Fred bowls to how he and Barney float into the air when things go right (Yabba-Dabba Doo!!!) all the way to Dino's seemingly perfectly transferred animation from the cartoon to the film. While people lambasted this film, the storytelling is once again done very well. The story is classic Flintstones, Fred does some dumb things to his regret landing him and Barney in trouble, Barney's lovably innocent and the girls, of course, prove they are smarter than the men. The addition of the Great Gazoo to the film is icing on the cake.

THE DVD:

While a little sparse compared to most new release DVDs, there are some nice extras here to enhance your viewing pleasure. Among the goodies included here are:

1. "Making of Feature" - 15 minute feature that talks about, among other things, the making of the Rock Vegas set, the CGI animation and the casting of the actors.

2. Trailers: The theatrical and teaser trailer plus trailers for other movies.

3. Production Notes - more insight into the movie

4. Cast and Crew Bios

THE VERDICT:

Overall this movie was just nice. It may have may have been lambasted or passed by your radar the first time around but if you are looking for a nice rental for the weekend or evening this is your film. The storytelling is very solid and is just classic Flintstones in every respect. In my opinion, the movie is perhaps even superior to the first movie in this respect. All the charm of the cartoon translates perfectly is this movie. The DVD features, while a little sparse, help make this particular DVD a nice addition to your DVD library if you are so inclined to purchase it.

Final Grades:

Movie: 5 stars
Extras: 3 stars

Total: 4 stars

Highly Recommended

"Viva Rock Vegas" See how everyone met and fell in love........2003-04-16

This film is NOT a sequel to THE FLINTSTONES (1994), but a prequel. This story takes place before the story of the first movie. A new cast is in this film telling the story (the movie version) of how Wilma, Betty, Fred and Barney meet each other. When it becomes love at first sight, they all become friends and decide to go to Rock Vegas. Ann-Margret sings "Viva Rock Vegas" to the tune of "Viva Las Vegas". Joan Collins plays the rich mother of Wilma who looks out for best interest. Harvey Korman has a fun role. And Dino is born. Locations include, Malibu, Vasquez Rocks Natural Area, California and Blayney Ranch, Palmdale, California. This DVD contains "Spotlight on Location", a behind-the-scenes look of the making of the film. Mark Addy played a wonderful and easier-on-the eye Fred Flintstone.

Yaba-Daba-Doo!.......2003-02-01

I'm a big fan of Flintstones vitamins and the animated series. So I was really disappointed with the previous Flintstones live action movie. The jokes fell flat and although the casting was great (John Goodman was born to play Fred and Halle Berre in that skimpy outfit, yaba-daba-doo!), it didn't feel right. I think they tried too hard to capture the magic of the original show. You can't catch lightning in a bottle.

The beauty of "Rock Vegas" is, they didn't even try! This movie has Stephen Baldwin in it. He's the Baldwin they call when the other Baldwins have all thumbed their noses at the script! Mark Addy? Wasn't he one of the extras in "A Knight's Tale" or something? Kristen Johnson (Wilma) has the most celebrity here but she's horrendously miscast! Wilma is supposed to be this petite thing. Johnson, all 6 feet of her, with those thunder thighs and that whiskey voice...! Watch out for an appearance by a washed up, wrinkled Joan Collins!

So this movie has "Straight To Video" written all over it.

But somehow, it works. Don't ask me how. Somehow this cast, and the plot, and the wonderful sight gags all come together and if you suspend your belief for a moment, you'd think you were still watching the cartoon.

So if you like the Flintstones, give this a shot. Or wait til it comes on cable. And if you haven't tried Flintstones vitamins, do so. They're great and if you eat enough of them rumor has it, your urine will turn purple and green.

Fantastic Movie!!.......2003-01-31

This movie is better than the first one. This movie should have been released first. Since, it tells how the Flintstones and the Rubbles first met. I didn't get to see this in thetare but I wished that I had. I watched the first movie in the theatre around twelve times. This one is by far the best out of the two.

Average customer rating:

Don't be fooled by this .....
Love Rosie O'Donnell
Yabba Dabba DON'T!
Why do some people hate this
AN EYE-CANDY ADAPTATION TO A POPULAR CARTOON.

The Flintstones - DTS
Starring: John Goodman , Elizabeth Perkins , Rick Moranis , Rosie O'Donnell , and Kyle MacLachlan
Director: Brian Levant
Manufacturer: Universal Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 0783232012
Release Date: 2002-09-24

Amazon.com

This pleasant, lightweight live-action version of the popular cartoon is about as good as you might expect. The kids should love the broad humor and the Henson Studios creatures, but like The Addams Family movies, the look and the cast are the best things going for it. Considering that the nature of the material is so sparse, the thinly plotted story works better than other TV-to-movie fare. Our fabulous Stone Age man is promoted per a calculated move by a scheming exec (Kyle MacLachlan, whose casting ensured at least one cute guy). As a comedy, the humor is one-note and flat for anyone older than 12. The special-effects creatures look wondrous, though not as seamless as in other movies, such as in Roger Rabbit. The most joyous moments come during the full-scale re-creations of the famous credits. The Flinstones provided a major launching pad for Halle Berry as a vamping secretary. --Doug Thomas

Customer Reviews:

Don't be fooled by this ............2007-04-25

Okay, this was an okay. John Goodman and Elizbeth Perkins are great as Fred and Wilma. The producers couldn't of picked a choice. Rick Moranis was terrific as Barney Rubble. He hasn't lost his comedic touch. Even Hally Berry was good as the seductive, Ms. Rosetta Stone. However, once again Rosie O'Donnell just didn't cut it as Betty Rubble. Her preformance in this film was just not as good, as it could be. Which is a shame, cause this could of been a great film.

Love Rosie O'Donnell .......2007-02-10

Rosie O'Donnell is Great in this movie. I Love her character in the movie.

Yabba Dabba DON'T!.......2006-08-15

I recently watched The Flintstones, a stone-studded masterpiece from 1994 and, though I can't say I was necessarily surprised by the execution, (I choose my words carefully) of the film, I was interested in the decision to even make such an ill-fated concept of a live action feature.

I mean are we, as the audience, truly to believe that John Goodman (no chiseled features here), Rick Moranis, Elizabeth Perkins and Rosie O'Donnell, are actually Fred, Barney, Wilma and Betty? Apparently the makers of Hollyrock's latest White Mastodon would have you suspend your disbelief in this regard. Goodman plays Fred more like Jackie Gleason's Ralph Kramden, on which the character of Fred Flintstone was obviously based. How's that for convoluted logic? Elizabeth Perkins walks through the role of Wilma with less affect than one of the animals in their animated appliances, ("It's a living"). Lost in her interpretation is the familiar read headed, alabaster skinned beauty with "eyes as black.........as frying pans?". And what about Betty? No offense to Ms. O'Donnell, who does an admirable job as Mrs. Rubble, (giggle and all) but is a far cry from the delightful "Betty Jean McBricker" we all love and who Wayne and Garth rated one of the top 10 babes of all time, ("Schwing!"). Rick Moranis mugs the camera shamelessly, cocking his mouth to one side in a desperate attempt to echo the graphic overbite of the original Barney Rubble, and to no avail. Alas, try as he might, Moranis never overcame the fact that his own human eyes have pupils. I won't even go into the supporting characters but, as I watched I felt somewhat embarrassed for the entire cast. I don't blame them. I just don't think that human beings should ever be required to emulate cartoon characters. It's not fair. Cartoons can convincingly do what live action can not.

And incidentally, if you're looking for a plot line, this one is a little on the boney side. Basically the gags are all hung on the very simple story structure of Fred being promoted to executive stature at the gravel pit, presumably because of his ineptitude, (sometimes art really does imitate life). He is then framed in an embezzlement scheme and somehow invents concrete which changes the course of human history. The end.

As far as the The Flintstones goes, those who loved the '60s T.V. program will probably be left stone cold by the movie. Gone is any of the character and warmth of the original series, (though, personally I feel it's been gone in the animation for many years). Alan Reed, Jean VanderPyl, Mel Blanc and Bea Benaderet were "The Flintstones". There was a natural quality in their early performances that made the characters believable. This, combined with the design, timing, writing, music and style of the show is what made "The Flintstones" so immensely popular in it's first run. There was a comfortable unself-consciousness about the program that made it a genuine piece of Americana and a joy to watch over and over again. The movie , however, is about as self conscious as you can get with it's forced performances, cloying gags and practically extinct stone-age puns relentlessly coming at you like hurled boulders that hit you right between the eyes and then just lay there.

Sigh, Hollyrock. They just don't get it, do they?

Why do some people hate this.......2005-04-24

I thought this movie would be terrible,but when i saw it I loved it. It was very funny. I also like Rosie Odonnell as Betty. John Goodman was a good Fred,Elizibeth Perkins was a wonderful Wilma,and Rick Moranis was very good as Barney.But my favorite charactar is the dicta-bird.

AN EYE-CANDY ADAPTATION TO A POPULAR CARTOON........2004-08-14

"The Flintstones" is a visually strong adaptation of the animated series, but it suffers the same weak spots that most of the cartoon-based movies have. The TV episodes are 20 minutes long, they have small stories that work well for TV, but a movie is usually between 90 and 120 minutes, so when the writers try to stretch the anecdotes of a TV episode, usually it feels too forced and schematic.

But in this kind of movies, the viewer is willing to forgive the holes in the plot, if the visual style of the movie matches the visual style of the original material, and thankfully to all the fans of the cartoon, this movie is delightful to see. The sets are an exact representation of the houses and buildings that the cartoon shows. The creatures are very funny and every creature in the movie works as a prehistoric representation of our modern machines.

Most of the cast feels right, John Goodman looks like a solid Fred Flintstone, Elizabeth Perkins is as pretty and smart as the original Wilma Flintstone, Rick Moranis is a good representation of Barney Rubble, Dann Florek looks exactly the same as the Mr. Slate that we can see in the cartoon and Halle Berry looks gorgeous as the sexy secretary Miss Stone. But what were they thinking when they cast Rosie O'Donnell as Betty Rubble? I mean, in the TV series Betty is pretty and dynamic, but this Betty looks like she ate too many brontosaurus, when I saw her I thought that she was already pregnant with Bam-Bam.

"The Flintstones" throw jokes at the slightest provocation, some of them are clever and some of them are just plain silly, but once again, the set designs, the creatures and some jokes are good enough to make "The Flintstones" an amusing movie.

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