George of the Jungle (film)

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This article is about the film. For the animated television show, see George of the Jungle.
George of the Jungle

DVD cover for George of the Jungle
Directed by Sam Weisman
Produced by David Hoberman, Jon Avnet
Written by Dana Olsen (script/story)
Audrey Wells (script)
Narrated by Keith Scott
Starring Brendan Fraser
Leslie Mann
Thomas Hayden Church
Holland Taylor
John Cleese
Music by Sheldon Allman, Marc Shaiman
Cinematography Thomas Ackerman
Editing by Kent Beyda, Roger Bondelli, Stuart Pappé
Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release date(s) July 16, 1997
Running time 92 min
Language English, Spanish
Followed by George of the Jungle 2
IMDb profile

George of the Jungle is a live-action 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.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Ursula Stanhope is a beautiful, blonde American heiress, reluctantly engaged to 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 who apparently 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.

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. Lyle and the rest of the expedition begin to look for Ursula, during which time it is revealed that the men Lyle hired are poachers. He finds George's tree house, and tries to get Ursula to come with him. She calls George, whereupon Lyle tries to stop George in his tracks by bluffing his way out. He threatens George with what he believes to be a pistol-shaped cigarette lighter, only to discover that it is in fact a pistol; due to some confusion by the porter who was asked to clean it. George is shot, but doesn't die, ("cause, hey let's face it, he's the hero," the narrator points out.) He survives, and Lyle is sent to prison. At the same time, Max and Thor try 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; she brings 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 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 lectures George on the unsuitability of any relationship he might have with Ursula, and discouraged, George returns to Ursula's flat. There he finds his friend Tookie Bird, who has urgent news from the jungle: Max and Thor have ape-napped Ape to sell him on the black market. Meanwhile, Ursula has realized that what she feels for George is love, and that she can't marry Lyle.

George returns to Africa to save the flatulent Ape, who fortunately has managed to get Max and Thor lost on their way to the seaport. 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 kidnaps the young woman so he can marry her against her will. George finds Ape and defeats Lyle's henchmen in a fistfight. He then embarks to rescue Ursula, who is now in a raft with Lyle, floating down river rapids. He rescues Ursula; Lyle ends up 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. Max and Thor become stage props of his program.

[edit] Cast

[edit] 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 (when the elephant acts like a dog). The scenes with the orangutan and the capuchin monkeys were filmed with live animals, but some computer work was used when 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. [1]

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • Little Monkey sounds exactly like Abu since they share the same voice actor, Frank Welker.
  • The plot of the movie shown on the back of the DVD contradicts the movie, stating that George was the only survivor of the plane crash. However, the introductory cartoon shows the plane survivors searching for George, and the narrator states "Nobody dies in this story, they only get really big boo-boos".
  • In one of the last scenes of the movie, Ursula's mother (Holland Taylor) tells her husband : "Arthur, I wish you would do something about all these monkeys. I feel like Jane Goodall.". The talking Ape replies: "Madam, I knew Jane Goodall and you are no Jane Goodall." This is a reference to the famous phrase "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy".
  • In the final scene as George presents his young son towards the animals, he is standing on Pride Rock in a salute to The Lion King.
  • Almost all of the locations (with the exception of some obvious ones, like Ape Mountain) are real, such as Bujumbura in Burundi, Bukavu (spelled differently) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
  • The Johnny Clegg song "Dela" is featured in the film. The song features the familiar first few bars of the George of the Jungle theme song.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Movie Review - George Of The Jungle

[edit] External links