Adventure with some laughs and hey, killer gorillas! Not all Michael Crichton inspired movies can match up to Jurassic Park, but what they can offer is a fun adventure.
"Congo" is a very fun movie with some stand out performances by Tim Curry, Ernie Hudson and Delroy Lindo. It's closer in tone to the Indiana Jones movies than anything else, with it's search for treasure, battles in exotic locations and humerous one-liners.
Some stand-out scenes are:
-Ernie Hudson's intro to himself as Monroe Kelley "I'll be your great white hunter today, though I happen to be black" as the team arrives during an attack on the African President. -Amy the Gorilla calling Laura Linney "Ug-ly-La-dy". -Delroy Lindo berating Tim Curry's character and demanding that he, "Stop eating my sesame cake!" and then stapling up a bag of bribe money singing "Don't want nobody peaking". -The descent into the caves is also pretty exciting.
If you like adventure with a humorous overtone, then this movie is for you-enjoy!
"Stop eating my sesame cakes" Herkermer Homolka (Tim Curry) has been looking for the Lost City of Zinj. He is contemplating picking up a few souvenirs when he finds it. Seems that the only one that has been there is Amy (Misty Rosas). However Amy needs to go home. Her buddy and mentor is economically taped out. So they all team up with a Dr. Karen Ross (Laura Linney) who just happens to be going in that direction and can afford the travel arrangements. While Karen thinks she is going to save fellow explorer, her boss also has a nefarious plan.
Will Amy go home? Will Karen find her friend "alive"? Does the boss's plan come to fruition? Will Herkermer Homolka get his trinkets or his fingers Zinj'd?
What secret does the lost city hold?
Let's face it Tim Curry makes the movie. Not only doe he excels in his character but allows others to play off him. Otherwise this would just be a run of the mill misadventure film. Great accent.
Decent enough film This film story-wise isn't that great or particularly interesting. It has its moments though, especially with Tim Curry in it. I enjoy Laura Linney's work alot so I certainly don't mind watching this film a few more times if just to watch her. I suppose its mildly entertaining, in parts, though the ending was a bit stupid and completely unrealistic.
Underappreciated As soon as I mentioned that I'd watched this to someone I work with, I was immediately met with the response: "Oh God, I hate that movie!"
Zuh?!
How can anybody hate this movie? Were we watching a different movie? Hello? OK, yes, undoubtedly there is a woman inside the costume that was Amy, and the acting does have its slightly dodgy moments. And it's based on a Michael Crichton novel, who apparently can do no wrong (my Dad has some of his novels, but can't remember reading this) and some people have taken offence to a film being based on one of his precious novels.
The actors keep the movie moving nicely along, although I still have a tendancy to dislike Laura Linney. Ernie Hudson is an amazing actor and Tim Curry's (laughable) Romanian accent is the highlight of the movie. Bruce Campbell is shockingly underused, and led to my saying, as soon as he appeared on screen: "That looks like Bruce Campbell". Well, duh!!! (I do have the 'occasional' stupid moment, they get worse when I've had a drink.)
The movie itself is simple, heartwarming, and a right tear jerker. It does draw comparisons to Harry & The Hendersons. Hey, it features big animals what can I say?! It features the outstanding Amy, who can speak through a machine that translates her sign language into a voice. She can't say much, can't have a full indepth conversation about politics (zzzzz), but she can say some basics. Her relationship with her trainer is practically a husband/wife relationship, without the screaming matches and the cheating, just to stereotype everything. It's this relationship that is the real heart of the movie, and will tug at the heart strings by the end. She is being taken back home, which involves along the way being shot at, taking Prozac, and jumping out of a plane.
Congo is well worthwhile seeing, unless you listen to stupid people who have no taste. It's a film get over it. Watch, like, cry, watch again. There, what's not to like?
Not enough Monkey Business! Everybody say CONGO is a film about scientists find killer gorillas in th rain forest. This is true, but before we get to the psycho monkeys, we have to sit trough hostile militants, the Hungry Hungry Hippos in their cruel retirement, and guys who just get this occasional urge to shoot planes out of the sky with seeker rockets that thwarted with flare guns. The killer gorillas show up in the first five minutes to kill Bruce Campbell (dang you monkeys!) and disappear until the last twenty minutes or so. And this film is 110 minutes.
Well, I guess I can't get too angry at CONGO, it at least has decent effect and a few cool action sequences. Those are really the only two good things I can say about this borefest. Stay away unless your a Michael Chritchon completest.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tony's Online Tips
Trevor
