The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course
Studio: MGM
Website: http://www.mgm.com/crocodilehunter/home.html
Release Date: 2002-07-12
Cast: Steve Irwin, Terri Irwin, Bindi Sue Irwin, Steve Bastoni, Kate Behan
Director: John Stainton
Screenwriter: Holly Goldberg Sloan
WorkNameSort: The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course
Our Rating: 0.00
Jesus Crikey. It’s always trouble when you try to make a movie out of a teevee show, but give it up for director and story writer (and producer of the “Crocodile Hunter” television series, “naturellement”) John Stainton and screenwriter Holly Goldberg Sloan for doing exactly what you’re supposed to do with a movie made out of a teevee show: nothing. You get the teevee actors to do exactly what they do on their teevee show, and you wrap it up in some sort of entertaining conceit to fill 90 minutes or so. In this case, you got Steve Irwin, television’s kooky-crazy “Crocodile Hunter,” his missus, Terri, and their dog, Sui, driving and boating around Australia encountering animals such as the perentie, a lizard more commonly referred to as goanna in Australia; the fierce snake of Queensland (not aggressive, but venomous); the Eastern gray kangaroo; the bird-eating spider; the king brown snake; and, of course, the Australian saltwater or estuarine crocodile, a large specimen of which (cue entertaining conceit) swallows a satellite gizmo that has fallen to Earth, much to the dismay of feuding U.S. secret spy organizations. The kids will enjoy the alarmingly, disturbingly, suspiciously, annoyingly energetic Mr. Irwin as he grapples in the dirt with creatures great and small, runs his fingers through their droppings, and talks straight into the camera about ways to respect and preserve nature, just like on his teevee show. And the official City Paper Film Clips Steve Irwin “Crikey” Count is 19.
This article appears in Jul 10-16, 2002.