You don’t have to be a fan of the old Yogi Bear cartoons to enjoy “Yogi Bear” the movie. In fact, I’m sure most kids have never heard of Yogi or Boo Boo or Ranger Smith or Jellystone Park. Fortunately, most parents do know these characters and the good news is that both adults and kids will get a kick out of this live-action/CGI version.
As the story begins Yogi is up to his old tricks: trying to steal pic-a-nic baskets and driving Ranger Smith (Tom Cavanagh) crazy. A documentary film maker (Anna Faris) comes to Jellystone Park looking to do a movie about Yogi, the famous talking brown bear who wears a white collar and green tie and hat.
Meantime, Jellystone is in financial trouble and the evil mayor wants to close the park and cut-down and sell all the trees so he can buy everyone’s vote and get elected governor. Ranger Smith decides to hold a 100th Anniversary celebration to make enough money to keep the park open, but Yogi’s plan to show he’s “smarter than the average bear” backfires and the ranger loses his job, leaving it up to Yogi and Boo Boo to try to save the day.
The most surprising thing about “Yogi Bear” is the effort that was taken by the studio in making this film. It could have been a typical silly, family comedy – filled with slapstick, and a weak script. Instead, this movie is genuinely funny, with clever gags, well-written dialogue and possibly the best CGI characters of any I’ve seen. I’m sure most little kids will leave the theater thinking Yogi and Boo Boo are real.
The interaction between two bear buddies is hilarious. They make one of the best comedy teams we’ve seen in movies in years. And Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake deserve much of the credit. Aykroyd doesn’t sound exactly like the cartoon Yogi, but after you hear him talk a few times it doesn’t matter. Timberlake, however, does a perfect Boo Boo. He doesn’t say a lot, but has most of the best lines.
It’s too bad the movie is only 79-minutes. We could have used some more of Yogi and Boo Boo. The film is filled with subtle jokes that kids may not get, but parents will. And older kids will really enjoy “Yogi Bear” if they give it a chance.
The plot is similar to this year’s “Furry Vengeance” – but the difference is that the writers of that film didn’t care at all about their script, which didn’t contain a single laugh or funny situation. “Yogi Bear” is packed with laughs, and there isn’t one scene of a character getting hit in the groin or being forced to do something embarrassing.
Yes, I know it’s not Shakespeare. But “Yogi Bear” is a great example of what a good, clean and fun, family film can be if the people behind it care about what they’re doing and care about their audience. It’s rated PG, for a few scenes of mild peril, but it’s o.k. for everybody. And, as I mentioned earlier, parents will enjoy this as much as their kids.
On The Official Kid Critic Report Card, “Yogi Bear” gets a B! This was one of the pleasant surprises of 2010. It did only so-so at the box office and you may have skipped it because of the poor reviews it received from most other critics (who obviously didn’t give it a chance). Now here’s a chance to see what both they and you missed.