Encino Man

Theatrical Release Date: 1992 05 22 (USA)

UPC: 717951003379

Studio: Walt Disney Video

MPAA Rating: PG   Contains:[Adult Situations, Questionable for Children, Youth Substance Use, Suitable for Teens]

Summary: A clueless caveman meets his intellectual match in the form of Pauly Shore in this teen-oriented comedy. Dave Morgan (Sean Astin) is a high school student in Encino, California, where he spends most of his time with his dazed-and-confused buddy Stoney Brown (Shore) and tries to figure out why his girlfriend Robyn (Megan Ward) left him for thick-headed jock Matt (Michael DeLuise). Hoping to boost his low status in the High School pecking order, Dave wants to put in a swimming pool at his family's home for a massive post-prom party. While Dave and Stoney are digging the pit, an earthquake strikes that unearths a frozen caveman (Brendan Fraser). To Dave and Stoney's surprise, the frozen Neanderthal soon comes to life, and after a bath, a shave, and a new set of clothes, the boys are passing off their dim-witted-but-friendly companion "Link" as an exchange student from Estonia. Link soon becomes the most popular guy at school, and Dave is determined to use Link's social success as a way to win back Robyn and foil Matt. Encino Man marked the directorial debut of Les Mayfield, who previously produced the critically acclaimed documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Comedy

Features: Production featurette
Theatrical trailer
French-language track
2.0 Dolby Surround
Widescreen [1.85:1]

Encino Man

Format: DVD

Release Date: 01/18/2000

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen

Audio: DDS Dolby Digital Surround

Runtime: 88 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
0. Chapter Selection
1. Opening Credits [2:32]
2. Dave's Frozen Discovery [2:32]
3. The Dude Thaws Out [9:14]
4. Greeting The Cave Dude [7:15]
5. Link Meets The Family [5:51]
6. Dinner At The Morgans' [8:28]
7. A New Man On Campus [13:37]
8. A Remembered Past [8:02]
9. Fighting It Out [3:47]
10. Matt Discovers The Truth [9:11]
11. Just Deserts [:28]
12. End Credits [:28]

Derek Armstrong

That Brendan Fraser plays a Neanderthal in Encino Man is a good metaphor for this early stage of his comic career -- he's developed some of the physical and vocal patterns of his later success, but he clearly hasn't yet evolved. Having shown promise in School Ties that same year, Fraser is no doubt acting down to the level of the material, which requires mostly grunts and wild gesticulations from him. Retrofitting a caveman with skateboarder duds and teen lingo was an inevitable idea for a movie, but Encino Man isn't quite as moronic as a viewer might expect, given Pauly Shore's involvement. At the center of either his own TV show or star vehicle, Shore is intolerable, but with less of the movie to carry, his grating schtick induces fewer groans. Aiming for the same audience as Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, and using the same Southern California high school setting and fish-out-of-water/time themes, Encino Man occasionally rises to the level of a harmless, guilty pleasure. Fraser's physical comedy warrants some laughs, and the writing earns the odd grin now and again. Hearty thanks also go to Sean Astin for offsetting some of Shore's antics. Still, this bone-headed outing is much better suited to high school boys fluent in Shore's dated dudespeak. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Shawn Schepps  Screenwriter 
Hilton A. Green  Producer 
Les Mayfield  Director 
Les Mayfield  Producer 
Dana Olsen  Screenwriter 
J. Peter Robinson  Composer (Music Score) 
Michael Rotenberg  Producer 
Jonathan Sheffer  Composer (Music Score) 
G. Zaloom  Producer 
George Zaloom  Producer 
George Zaloom  Screenwriter 
Sean Astin  Actor 
Pauly Shore  Actor 
Brendan Fraser  Actor 
Richard Masur  Actor 
Megan Ward  Actor 
Mariette Hartley  Actor 
Rose McGowan  Actor 
Rick Ducommun  Actor 
Peter Allas  Actor 
Christian Hoff  Actor 
Noel L. Walcott III  Actor 
Melinda Armstrong  Actor 
Dalton James  Actor 
Mike Muir  Actor 
Erick Avari  Actor 
Jerri Renee Griffin  Actor 
Therese Kablan  Actor 
Stephen Perkins  Actor 
Jose Luis Lozano  Actor 
Wanda Acuna  Actor 
Heather Bennett  Actor 
Toni Herkert  Actor 
Jonathan Ke Quan  Actor 
Robin Tunney  Actor 
Steven Elkins  Actor 
Mark Adair-Rios  Actor 
Ellen Blain  Actor 
Sandra Hess  Actor 
Douglas McCallie  Actor 
Sicily Rossomando  Actor 
Patrick Van Horn  Actor 
Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter  Actor 
R.D. Carpenter  Actor 
Kyle-Scott Jackson  Actor 
Esther Scott  Actor 
Furley Lumpkin  Actor 
Dean Pleasants  Actor 
Robert Trujillo  Actor 
Julianne Christie  Actor 
Deborah Lee Johnson  Actor 
Jack Noseworthy  Actor 
Adam Siegel  Actor 
Michael DeLuise  Actor 
Gerry Bednob  Actor 
Boris the Dog  Actor 
Richard Montoya  Actor 
Ricardo Salinas  Actor 
Herbert Siguenza  Actor 
Michole Briana White  Actor 

Country: USA