Admirable film.

Absolutely the worst movie.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

There are two kinds of bad comedies. The first kind - let's call them the 'Adam Sandlers' - lazily try to dispute their indisputable 'bad' status. Braying with smarmy self-importance and bleating for affirmation, they're all the more contemptible for it. The second kind are the Dudley Do-Rights: sweet, innocent creatures, either dopily unaware or uncaring of their fundamental mediocrity. Content to simply be, they provide the basest of childish entertainment at all costs. We're talking the kind of cinema where the same 'getting bonked in the head by a loose floorboard' gag, if you can call it that, is repeated not once. Not twice, not three times. But upwards of eight. You know -in case you didn't get enough in Brendan Fraser's former George of the Jungle. But that's not the only trick up the film's sleeve! Love farting horses? Then oh boy do we have a show for you!Tone is everything, though. And it's because of this that Dudley Do-Right, almost worrisomely idiotic as it (mostly) is, is resoundingly hard not to take to. It's unflinchingly cheery and earnest, banking hard on every Canadian stereotype in the book without a hint of ironic revisionism. In doing so, it steadily wears the viewer down until it's almost impossible to resist a sheepish smile creeping across their face. It helps that creator Jay Ward's sly sensibility of playing things so ludicrously straight that a sneaky cleverness creeps up (we get a welcome reminder in the film's fantastic, old-timey 'Fractured Fairy tales' opening short) is dutifully replicated, if not perfected, by writer/director Hugh Wilson. He makes particularly good use of a joyfully hokey narrator, and allows occasional cheeky bits to creep in, enough to keep adults from drifting off entirely amidst the lazy slapstick and tritely wholesome morals. For example: here, uber-fiend Snidely Whiplash has evolved past simply tying damsels to train tracks (but don't worry - they've left one such sequence for posterity) to a more devious scheme involving rent-controlled properties and converting the superbly named Semi-Happy Valley into an exploitatively garish, faux gold-rush tourist town. It's a ploy so grotesque that it's, naturally, almost too close to home to laugh at, especially when Ottawa signs off on it for economic stimulation and job creation, leaving contemporary Canadian audiences flinching with unwanted flashbacks to the methodology of a certain unsavoury former administration (but let's not harp on about that).Sure, there's a bit of a clash between the film's overall rustic (read: cheap) look and the oddly inflated production values in its dance and vehicular chase scenes (though I'll never say no to impromptu tanks in a climactic showdown). And yes, there's a recurring bit involving a First Nations community which isn't as tongue-in-cheek as it'd like to think, dabbling in dubious racial politics (and don't worry - Brendan Fraser gets in on the redface too. Errgh...). It's mitigated (barely) by the superb commentary of how intensely 'authentic' it is, while the Chief later grumbles that they're "basically doing dinner theatre here", with their Riverdance bit being a particularly good seller. But hey - if Wilson's tentative forays into sociopolitical satire aren't for you, there's always a woodland training montage with a gamely silly comedy drunk Eric Idle, a surprisingly tasteful nod to Raiders of the Lost Ark with Alfred Molina, and... y'know...a bit where Dudley crashes around his lodge wearing a giant moose head. And you know you're a hoser if you can't appreciate a giant moose head gag.Brendan Fraser has built a career around playing adorably dim live action cartoon characters, and is astute enough to play Dudley's clueless earnestness wholly straight. He doesn't have much to work with here, but he pours on the charm like no tomorrow, and is winningly affable for it. Similarly, the always superb Alfred Molina is exquisitely cartoony, bagging the majority of the film's meagre laughs, and embodying Snidely Whiplash's trademark sneer with such outrageous commitment that it's almost alarming to see him turn around and realize he's still a three-dimensional, live action human. The normally intolerable Sarah Jessica Parker delivers the film's most remarkable feat by being...tolerable; in fact, her simpering vacuous Nell is almost likable, even vaguely funny at times (although juxtaposing her apparent slew of postsecondary degrees with her voluminous stupidity is a conceit which wears thin very quickly). Finally, adult viewers caught in the existential throes of 'how did I get here' might recognize Jack Kehler, otherwise known as the Dude's awkward landlord from The Big Lebowski, playing an expanded version of the same character as Snidely's second-in-command here, which brings delights of its own.Dudley Do-Right is not a good film by any stretch of the imagination, and even the youngest of kids are likely to call the bluff of its lazy, repetitive, shallow attempts at humour. And yet, Wilson's touch is so perennially chipper that the simplistic adventures of everyone's favourite cartoon Mountie here - thanks largely to tireless efforts by Molina, and Fraser's innate, goofy charisma - are still liable to raise a smile. And if you aren't able to suspend some measure of disbelief and ride out Dudley Do- Right with kernels of the most forgiving enjoyment... well then, take off, eh?-4/10

Dudley Do-Right (1999): Dir: Hugh Wilson / Cast: Brendan Fraser, Alfred Molina, Sarah Jessica Parker, Eric Idle, Robert Prosky: From the creators of George of the Jungle and proof that they haven't improved. Brendan Fraser plays Dudley Do-Right, a Royal Canadian Mountie and together with his horse named Horse he will attempt to reclaim the dignity he lost when the evil Whiplash took over the land. Lame and predictable with the same appeal as an episode of Sesame Street. Misfire by director Hugh Wilson who at one time made hilarious comedies such as Police Academy and Blast From the Past, the latter featuring Fraser is a less embarrassing role. Fraser overplays a joke involving falling off a chair. That doesn't help the fact that Do-Right is totally unsympathetic due to his juvenile stupidity. Alfred Molina brings correct humour to the role of Whiplash and becomes the one character of worth here. He basically takes over and Do-Right eventually stops him. Sarah Jessica Parker plays off the humour as the otherwise standard damsel. In a broader role Parker would shine but here the role is a dud playing off every lame cliché within reach and never surfacing as anything she should have been a part of. Eric Idle is wasted as a gold digger who teaches Do-Right the ropes. There is no purpose to this junk other than to resurrect a T.V. cartoon into a poorly contrived crap fest. Score: 1/2 / 10

In pleasant Semi-Happy Valley, brave but naive Brendan Fraser (as Dudley Do-Right) grows up to be a Royal Canadian Mountie. His wicked rival Alfred Molina (as Snidely Whiplash), faithful girlfriend Sarah Jessica Parker (as Nell Fenwick), and steadfast horse (as Horse) also appear. The threat of vampires in the valley occupies Mr. Fraser's mind at first, but Mr. Molina poses an even greater threat... This live action version of the 1960s cartoon character, originally part of the "Rocky and Bullwinkle" shows, does not translate into a feature length film. Naming an American Indian "Standing Room Only" and the cheeky Molina garner a few chuckles worthy of Jay Ward and his writers, but the satirical whimsy is missing.*** Dudley Do-Right (8/21/99) Hugh Wilson ~ Brendan Fraser, Alfred Molina, Sarah Jessica Parker, Eric Idle

Brendan Fraser wasted his time and talent and Sarah Jessica Parker made the biggest movie mistake in choosing to star in "Dudley Do-Right.""Dudley Do-Right" is the type of movie everyone hopes will be a success. Unfortunately, the writing did not measure up to the level of talent that signed on to the movie. It is always fun to watch comedic spoofs if they are written well and are logical. However, this film broke both these rules.It was clear that there was no plot or humor in "Dudley Do-Right." The only thing that made it bearable was the narrator because he is the only character who kept my interest. SKIP this movie because you will be sorely disappointed if you don't