George of the Jungle (film)

Infobox_Film
name = George of the Jungle


caption = Theatrical Release Poster
director = Sam Weisman
producer = David Hoberman, Jon Avnet
writer =Dana Olsen (script/story)
Audrey Wells (script)
narrator =Keith Scott
starring = Brendan Fraser
Leslie Mann
Thomas Haden Church
Holland Taylor
and John Cleese
music = Sheldon Allman, Marc Shaiman
cinematography = Thomas Ackerman
editing = Kent Beyda, Roger Bondelli, Stuart Pappé
distributor = Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
released = July 16, 1997
runtime = 92 min
language = English, Spanish
followed_by = "George of the Jungle 2"
budget =
imdb_id = 0119190|

"George of the Jungle" is a live-action romantic-family comedy film based on the characters from the original cartoon of the same name. This film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures, and originally released to movie theatres in 1997. It starred Brendan Fraser as the eponymous main character.

The film was followed by "George of the Jungle 2", in which George and Ursula have a son.

Plot

Ursula Stanhope is a beautiful, blonde American heiress, reluctantly engaged to marry one Lyle Van De Groot, who seems more attached to his fiancee's wealth than to her. On an expedition to Central Africa, joined by Lyle and two men he hired named Max and Thor, Ursula is rescued from a lion attack. Her savior is a young man named "George" (Brendan Fraser), who is stated to have survived an airplane crash as a child, to be raised in the jungle by a talking, highly intelligent gorilla named Ape (voiced by John Cleese). George now lives on friendly terms with most animals. He is quite clumsy, a tendency manifest in his collisions with trees and his less than secure footing; but takes all mishaps in stride. However, during her rescue, George accidentally knocks her out on a tree branch and takes her back to his jungle treehouse.

Ursula is charmed by George and they become friends. She is introduced to George's pet elephant Shep. George begins to fall in love with her; with Ape's variably dependable advice, he makes attempts at courtship, which meet with some success. Lyle and the rest of the expedition search for Ursula, during which time it is revealed that the men Lyle hired are poachers. He finds George's tree house, and tries to persuaded Ursula to come with him. She calls George, whereupon Lyle tries to stop George in his tracks by menacing his rival. He threatens George with what he believes to be a pistol-shaped cigarette lighter, only to discover that it is in fact a pistol, having been exchanged with the true cigarette lighter by a porter. George is shot, but survives, and Lyle is sent to prison. Max and Thor attempt to capture Ape, whom they have overheard speaking in English. They are arrested and sent to Bujumbura jail, but are released on a technicality. Ursula returns to her home in San Francisco, taking George with her to "get him the best medical treatment available".

In San Francisco, George is introduced to the society of humans. He proceeds to make a remarkable impression upon his new acquaintances, especially those of the female gender. This involuntary disturbance of the norms includes his rescue of a stranded parasailor.

Ursula's parents throw a engagement party for Ursula, at which her mother, Beatrice Stanhope, realizes George's affection for Ursula might spoil her plans to marry her daughter to Lyle. Mrs. Stanhope then lectures George on the unsuitability of any relationship he might have with Ursula; discouraged, George returns to Ursula's flat. There, he finds his friend Tookie Bird, who tells George that Max and Thor have stolen Ape to take him to vagas to make a fortune. Soon afterward, Ursula has realized that she reciprocates George's affection and decides to follow him to Africa.

George returns to Africa to save Ape, who fortunately has been misleading his captors into following false trails. Ursula arrives in George's wake, to discover that Lyle has escaped from jail, hired mercenaries, and gained a priesthood which allows him to perform marriages. He then kidnaps the young woman so he can marry her against her will. George finds Ape, defeats Lyle's henchmen in a fistfight, aided by a few other gorillas, and condemns the poachers to be the destination of Shep's urine. He then embarks to rescue Ursula, who is now in a raft with Lyle, floating down river rapids. He rescues Ursula, whereinafter Lyle is left in the raft with a flirtatious female ape. After admitting they love each other, George and Ursula are married in a lavish jungle celebration on the next full moon and eventually have a son, also named George, who would feature in "George of the Jungle 2". Ape travels to Las Vegas, where he becomes a performer, having Max and Thor become stage props of his program.

Cast

* Brendan Fraser - George, King of the Jungle
* Leslie Mann - Ursula Stanhope
* Thomas Haden Church - Lyle van de Groot
* John Cleese - Ape the gorilla (voice)
* Richard Roundtree - Kwame, Ursula's jungle guide
* Greg Cruttwell - Max
* Abraham Benrubi - Thor
* Holland Taylor - Beatrice Stanhope
* Kelly Miller - Betsy, Ursula's friend, who like all women George meets is infatuated with him.
* John Bennett Perry - Arthur Stanhope
* Keith Scott - Narrator, who plays an active role in the story by breaking the fourth wall, making wry comments, editing the story as it progresses, and interacting with the characters.
* Frank Welker - voice of Little Monkey, Shep, Tooki Tooki Bird, and gorilla sound effects [ [http://voicechasers.com/database/showprod.php?prodid=101 George of the Jungle] , Voice Chasers]

Animals

In the opening animated sequence, various animals swing on vines with young George, his "dog" Shep fetches a crocodile instead of a log, and a wildebeest falls in love with a bushman wearing a wildebeest mask.

In the live action movie, a whole host of animals are seen. George fights with a lion, accidentally swings on a snake instead of a vine, rides an elephant, talks to a bird, and lives with various monkeys and apes.

The lion, elephant, and bird scenes were all filmed with a mix of real animals, puppetry (especially for the lion fight), and CGI (to show the elephant acting like a dog). The scenes with the orangutan and the capuchin monkeys were filmed with live animals, but some computer work was used in a scene wherein the little monkey imitates George. The large Apes who live with George were all costumed actors or animatronic figures. In the "Pride Rock" scene, when George presents his son to the animals, CGI work is again used. [ [http://www.ahafilm.info/movies/moviereviews.phtml?fid=6121 Movie Review - George Of The Jungle ] ]

Soundtrack

Track #2, the Johnny Clegg song "Dela", also features the first few bars of the George of the Jungle theme song.

#"George of the Jungle" (Sheldon Allman, Stanley Worth) - 2:53 - Presidents of the United States of America
#"Dela (I Know Why the Dog Howls at the Moon)" (Johnny Clegg) - 4:16 - Johnny Clegg & Savuka
#"Wipe Out" (Jim Fuller, Berryhill, Patrick Connolly, Ron Wilson) - 2:39 - The Surfaris
#"The Man on the Flying Trapeze" (Traditional) - 0:57 - Roger Freeland, Jon Joyce, Steve Lively, Gary Stockdale
#"My Way" (Paul Anka, Jacques Revaux, Claude François, Gilles Thibault) - 1:11 - John Cleese
#"Aba Daba Honeymoon" (Walter Donovan, Arthur Fields) - 1:55 - Karen Harper
#"George of the Jungle" (Allman, Worth) - 1:03 - Weird Al Yankovic
#"Go Ape [The Dance Mix] " (Michael Becker) - 3:25 - Michael Becker
#"Jungle Band" (Michael Becker) - 3:18 - Carl Graves
#"George to the Rescue" - 1:11
#"Rumble in the Jungle" - 3:15
#"The Little Monkey" - 2:23
#"George of the Jungle [Main Title Movie Mix] " (Marc Shaiman) - 2:20

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0119190|title=George of the Jungle