The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle | |
|---|---|
 The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle Promotional Movie Poster |
|
| Directed by | Des McAnuff |
| Produced by | Capella International, KC Medien AG, Tribeca Productions |
| Written by | Kenneth Lonergan, Jay Ward (characters) |
| Starring | Rene Russo, Jason Alexander, Piper Perabo, Randy Quaid, Robert De Niro, June Foray (voice), Keith Scott (voice) |
| Distributed by | Universal Studios |
| Release date(s) | June 30, 2000 |
| Running time | 92 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$76,000,000 (est.) |
| IMDb profile | |
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle was a critically and financially unsuccessful movie released in 2000. The animated characters Rocky and Bullwinkle shared the screen with live actors portraying Fearless Leader (Robert DeNiro), Boris Badenov (Jason Alexander), Natasha Fatale (Rene Russo), and FBI agent Karen Sympathy (Piper Perabo).
The film was closely based on the television cartoon The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show by Jay Ward.
The film was nominated for two Saturn Awards, Alexander for Best Supporting Actor and Russo for Best Supporting Actress. Russo was also nominated for a Razzie Award as Worst Supporting Actress.
The movie proved unpopular with audiences, grossing only $6,814,270 in its opening weekend. After grossing $26,005,820 domestically with an overseas gross of $9,129,000, it totaled a worldwide gross of $35,134,820, well short of its budget of $76 million. [1] It is also one of the biggest box office bombs in history (the studio typically receives half the box office gross), with studio losses of over $80 million (when its production cost is combined with its estimated marketing expense of $22.6 million).
Critics noted that though the movie retained the style and spirit of the classic cartoons, it wasn't nearly as funny or engaging as the original cartoon series. The Tomatometer rating for the movie at Rotten Tomatoes is at 42%
In the film, Fearless Leader is said to have created a device that can completely destroy cartoon characters, much like "dip" in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (A scientist even notices this connection, only to be told this "is totally different").
[edit] Synopsis
The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show went off the air in 1964, and the cartoon moose and flying squirrel are not enjoying their life stuck in re-runs and their home, Frostbite Falls is in deforestation. Even the show's old narrator is not having an easy life, as he has had to move into his mother's house. But things are going well for Fearless Leader and his minions Boris Badenov and Natasha. After the Iron Curtain collapses and the citizens of Pottsylvania are free to travel across the world, the villains dig their way from underneath the curtain and appear in the real world.
They appear in the television set of Minnie Mogul, a junior executive at Phony Pictures Studio is Los Angeles. Fearless Leader manages to convince Minnie to sign a contract to the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, so she can create a movie version of it. But when she and Fearless Leader start fighting over the contract, Minnie pulls the villains right out the television and they become real people. (Explains Fearless Leader: "We're attached to the project".) The villains walk off into the real world, leaving Minnie to discuss her encounter with her boss, Mr. Biggershot. He dislikes her idea and she has to rip up the contract.
Back in the cartoon world, Rocky and Bullwinkle set off on the road to Washington D.C. to talk to the President about the destroyed trees, but their road is blocked by a lot of red tape. They stand in the spot for six months!
Meanwhile, FBI Agent, Karen Sympathy is hired by her elder, Cappy Von Trapment, to solve the case of Fearless Leader's plan to hypnotise the entire population of America with his television network, RBTV (Really Bad Television). Cappy repeats the scheme to the President, and reveals that Fearless Leader could make the country vote for him as president! Oblivious to everyone but Cappy, is Fearless Leader's mole spy, who gasps when Rocky and Bullwinkle are going summoned upon to save the world.
That evening, Karen flies to Los Angeles, where she infiltrates a green lighthouse which can summon cartoon characters and bring them to life. She manages to summon Rocky and Bullwinkle (and the narrator but only seen as a silhouette) to the lighthouse. Karen, Rocky and Bullwinkle start their journey to New York, and Rocky reveals he has lost his ability to fly...after he falls off the lighthouse.
At New York, Fearless Leader, Boris, Natasha and a group of Pottsylvanian spies are in the RBTV Headquarters. Fearless Leader introduces the Quality Control, a machine which can hypnotise humans, via the programs on RBTV. The villains wear protective glasses. An audience watches in a test room and watch adverts of random shows like "Clever Spies Crush the Enemy On Monday" and "Three Funny and Wacky Spies And Their Horse, Who Will Also Be A Spy". The programs hypnotise the audience and the villains celebrate. But they soon learn that Rocky and Bullwinkle, who they call "moose and squirrel", are on their way to stop them.
The villains head down to the RBTV Lab, where they are introduced to the CDI (Computer Degenerating Imagery), a laptop which has the ability to destroy CGI and send it to the Internet. Boris and Natasha are sent to destroy Rocky and Bullwinkle with the CDI.
The heroes drive through the country, when Boris and Natasha attack them with a safe and a shower of dynamite. Boris then tries to blow them up with a cannon, but Karen distracts him and blows out the lit fuse on the cannon. She, Rocky and Bullwinkle get away...by stealing Boris' truck, leaving the two villains behind with the CDI and a pile of cartoon weaponry.
Boris and Natasha soon catch up with the heroes, by stealing a helicopter from a nearby landing pad. Natasha pretends to be Karen and calls upon some state troopers from Oklahoma to arrest Karen for stealing their truck. The policemen and a camera from a television show catch up to Rocky, Bullwinkle and Karen. The lead policeman (played by John Goodman) arrests Karen and leaves Rocky and Bullwinkle behind.
Rocky and Bullwinkle travel across the country, falling into some long grass and getting run over by a bus on the way. Rocky and Bullwinkle then meet Martin and Lewis (played by Kenan and Kel) two college students from Wossamotta U, the old college Bullwinkle used to go to. Boris and Natasha fly ahead to Wossamotta U and bribe the college's headmaster to give Bullwinkle an honorary "Mooster's Degree". Boris plans that when Bullwinkle gets the degree, he'll destroy him with the CDI on the college's water tower. But they soon discover that the college had no water tower, so they build their own.
The following morning, Karen is in Red Bait Prison, and manages to fool a Swedish prison guard, named Ole, to help her break out of jail, and she'll take him to the movies. Ole has fallen madly in love with her, and he helps her out jail. But when they arrive at the movies, Karen drives away secretly, leaving Ole stranded.
At Wossamotta U, Bullwinkle goes to accept his degree, and Rocky spies Boris on top of the water tower. Rocky tries to tell Bullwinkle, but he is too far away to get the moose's attention. Boris activates the CDI and is on the verge of destroying Bullwinkle. Rocky tries to summon up his depleted flying skills, and they kick in at the right time. He knocks the CDI out of Boris' hands and Boris simple-mindedly steps off the water tower to catch the CDI, but falls instead. Boris is defeated, after the CDI hits him on the head and he falls over unconscious. The students of the college start to like Bullwinkle, but it is really because of Rocky. After the celebration, Martin and Lewis give Rocky and Bullwinkle their car, so they can get to New York faster. Bullwinkle takes the wheel and drives straight into a wall.
Later, the two are driving down a highway in Illinois, but are causing mayhem on the roads. They accidentally miss a turn and go to Chicago instead, Boris and Natasha not far behind.
In Indiana, Karen enters a town where everybody is hypnotised. She drives on in hot pursuit of Rocky and Bullwinkle. In New York, Fearless Leader is informed that 30% of the Americans are zombies. In Oklahoma, the police are out after Karen.
Back in Chicago, Rocky and Bullwinkle flee from Boris and Natasha in their car. The two villains trash the car by ripping off the windscreen. Boris tries to annihilate the two with the CDI, but degenerates the helicopter instead. Rocky and Bullwinkle make their escape on a tow-truck. Boris and Natasha are saved from death by a travelling mattress salesman, and then are forced to rent a Chevy Metro from the Cheap-O Rent-A-Car Company.
Rocky and Bullwinkle are reunited with Karen, after they cause Karen to drive off the road. The police appear and take the trio to court. There, Judge Cameo (played by Whoopi Goldberg), charges them for grand theft auto, breaking out of jail, impugning the character of a prison guard (Ole), reckless driving, "Talking To The Audience" and Criminally Bad Punning. When Karen is called to the witness stand, and Bullwinkle and her argue, Judge Cameo falls asleep. The district attorney awakens the judge by saying that celebrity defenders are not allowed in court. Judge Cameo puts on her glasses and goes gaga when she spots Rocky and Bullwinkle and happily dismisses the case.
Later, the trio are back on the road, and drive into an airfield where they meet Old Jeb, who gives them an old red bi-plane. Boris and Natasha appear and try to chase the trio before they take off. The two villains are grounded by the employers of the Cheap-O Rent-A-Car Company. The plane takes off, leaving Boris and Natasha behind. Now without transport, the two give up. Natasha exclaims to Boris that she is tired of being a spy, have tried everything for 35 years to get rid of rocky and bullwinkle and they don't even now their names and tries to make Boris give up by suggesting they have children and live by the sea of Pottsylvania. As the two about to kiss, when Fearless Leader calls. Natasha lies to him that they destroyed Rocky and Bullwinkle. Natasha explains to Boris that they have won anyway, as America is in hypnosis.
boris and natasha get baCk to RBTV through limo and tell fearless leader about boris being killer of moose and squirl and fearless leader, boris, natashua and all the henchmen sing hail potsylvania. Meanwhile, the heroes are falling as their plane is crashing from weight. Rocky and Karen fly away, while Bullwinkle takes the controls of plane. Rocky and Karen make it to New York and discover the entire city is zombified. The two infiltrate RBTV and are captured and turned into vegetables! Bullwinkle accidentally travels to Washington, which he thinks is New York. In the White House, the President is in the trance, and Cappy helps Bullwinkle e-mail himself to the RBTV Building.
Bullwinkle changes Rocky and Karen back to normal, and the villains chase the trio around the studio, while Fearless Leader speaks to America on a live broadcast. Bullwinkle throws Fearless Leader into a pile with Boris Natasha and Rocky ties them up. Bullwinkle finishes the broadcast, by asking the population to turn off their televisions, vote for who they want and replant the trees in Frostbite Falls. The Quality Control is destroyed by Karen and America is released from their hypnotic state. Bullwinkle messes with the CDI, which fires a laser beam and transforms Fearless Leader, Boris and Natasha back to cartoons and they rocket off to the Internet.
The following day, RBTV is changed to Rocky and Bullwinkle Television. Karen says farewell to Rocky and Bullwinkle and goes to Oklahoma, where Ole still waits for her. The narrator is reunited with his mother, and Rocky and Bullwinkle return to their revived home. Bullwinkle ends the movie by saying "I'll never forget our trip to New York to meet President Washington!", and Rocky flies across the cartoon sky creating the words THE END.
[edit] Triva
- At the end of the movie when the Credits are rolling, is a tribute to the old cartoon series-Boris; Natasha and Fearless Leader chase "moose and Squirell"-but like in the Fractured Fairy Tales teaser-all three villians get crushed by the movie title card!!
