a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Sean Connery, slightly overweight for this role, plays a scientist who needs the help of a young female assistant in order to regain his 'lost' formula which has proved to be the cure for cancer.Many people think Lorraine Bracco as the girl whiz-kid is terrible in the role, but that's simply not true. It's the script that stinks. Lorraine is beautiful and charismatic. Connery is good no matter what he does and he's fine here, though he appears to be heavier than a man in his position would be -- he's living in the rain forest, eating fruits, and exercising like a madman climbing around in the trees using his ropes and pulleys. Unfortunately, the movie is marred by a predictable plot and beyond-stupid dialogue.OK if you're a Connery fan. Otherwise, take a rain check.... get it? 'Rain forest'.... 'rain check'.... hee-hee.

We loved this movie when it came out, have seen it many times over the years, and re-watched it again yesterday over 22 years later. It still holds up as a really good film. Sean brings all his wit, charm, and pragmatism honed over his career, while Lorraine has her NY attitude and the right moxie for the role she is playing. While Sean can correctly portray any job, Lorraine's acting was really spot on to convey both the academic and cultural differences of her role. The actual scenes among the trees and canopies were some of the best photography work in a jungle, predating and helping build interest in the huge fad of zip lines that have since flourished. The story itself is about discovery and redemption, differences in cultures, and how they interact. The soundtrack was really unique for its time, easily identified for the South American influences, and is still one of the best to listen to independent of the movie.

I was surprised I liked 'Medicine Man' as much as I did. One's first inclination would be to dismiss it as a goody two-shoes, 'save the rain forests' diatribe, and on top of that, it makes us sit through yet another on-screen relationship where the man and woman can't stand each other at first and then fall in love. I almost gave up on it about ten minutes in, after listening to Lorraine Bracco bitch about everything in sight with a nails-on-chalkboard New York accent. But both those characterizations turn out to be unfair and false. The movie actually accepts the inevitability of at least part of the rain forest being paved over; its complaint is much smaller and tightly defined- it's saying, at least wait till we've replicated the cancer serum that Sean Connery's Dr. Campbell discovered and then lost. And Campbell and Dr. Crane (Bracco) never fall in love. I don't think they ever even kiss. It's difficult to say exactly what kind of relationship they end up having, except that it's a lot of fun to watch. Ultimately, it's easy to say with certainty what is so right about 'Medicine Man.' It's Sean Connery's performance, and it is magnificent. While this is not the best movie he's ever been in (no question there), I really believe this might be his greatest acting job. It is subtle, nuanced, powerful, humorous... he has a way with the dialogue that makes it utterly believable, and his portrayal of Campell is also a very physical one. When he gets angry, his anger is incredibly palpable, both to be heard and seen. There is not a false note in it. He even raises the level of the requisite tit-for-tat back-and-forth arguments with Bracco's Crane to something more genuine and meaningful. There is a grace in his physical movements that is very natural, even in the brief fight scene toward the end. Everything he does seems real. And Lorraine Bracco, as it turns out, compliments his performance with a fine one of her own. The script gives her many opportunities to flesh out Dr. Crane's character (or, as Campbell calls her, 'Dr. Bronx'), and she does so with a lot of high spirits and enthusiasm. One of the best scenes has her bouncing off the walls, figuratively speaking, from a local concoction very high in caffeine. The location camera-work is another wonderful part of 'Medicine Man.' This may be the closest any 2-D film has come to seeming three dimensional. When it rains, you almost feel as soaked as the characters on screen. And when Connery and Bracco go gliding on ropes and pulleys over the canopy, looking down at the treetops and miles of forest in the distance, the effect is breathtaking. The ending should be a downer but somehow 'Medicine Man' manages an epilogue to the depressing finale that is hopeful, uplifting and encouraging while not seeming the least bit contrived or manipulative. It is the last wonder in an excellent movie full of them.

This ecological drama deals about Dr Robert Campbell(Sean Connery), he's a biochemist working in the Amazon rain forest on a cancer cure. There arrives a scientific, Dr Crane(Lorraine Bracco), a researcher sent by the laboratory sponsoring. Campbell has found a cure but he has been unable to duplicate it . Then they seek desperately the missed flower about being eradicated by civilization. Meanwhile, a Bulldozers sweeping the jungle and time is running out.The movie contains ecological adventure, an enjoyable relationship and breathtaking outdoors. In spite of Dr Campbell is grumpy and Dr Crane is obstinate, arise an agreeable chemical between them. The film is quite entertaining with some moments a little boring, but that doesn't detract for your amusement of a well-developed tale where drama, love and adventures mingle splendidly. Colorful cinematography reflecting marvellously the Amazon rain forest by Donald McAlpine. Sensible,sensitive musical score by the great Jerry Goldsmith, wonderfully appropriate when the protagonists climbed up to the top of the tallest trees in the Brazilian jungle. The picture is lavishly produced by Andrew G Vagna with his Carolco company and by Sean Connery. The motion picture is well directed by John McTiernan. He's an action expert director with hits, such as ¨Predator, Die Hard and sequels¨, and some flop, such as ¨Nomads and Thomas Crown¨. Rating : Acceptable and passable, the film will like to Sean Connery fans and ecology buffs.