Too much of everything

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Michael Cromwell (Tim Allen) is successful in the world of New York commodities trading. He plans to marry high fashion high maintenance girlfriend Charlotte (Lolita Davidovich) but first, he must get a divorce from his estranged wife Patricia (JoBeth Williams). Patricia is presently living with natives in the jungle and she shocks him by revealing that they had a son in 13-year-old Mimi-Siku (Sam Huntington). He reluctantly allows Mimi-Siku to go back to NY with him. It's a tough transition especially with the boy's pet spider. The kid falls for Michael's high strung co-worker Richard Kempster (Martin Short)'s daughter (Leelee Sobieski).I like nobody and they are all annoying to some degree. The worst is Short but his wackiness is not unexpected. By himself, he could be written off as a bad sidekick. The problem is that Michael is unlikeable and sadly the kid is not much better. While the dad's idiocy fits the premise, it's the boy who is the most disappointing. He should be a likeable fish out of water character. He could have a nice puppy love romance with Karen as she teaches him the ways of the city and he teaches her the nobility of jungle living. Instead, he's more of a brat especially with his pet spider and he does it all with that goofy smile. I don't like the coffee trade subplot. I don't know anything about the French original but it sounds even worst. This is misguided at its core.

Tim Allen made this film at the height of his fame,and this is probably one of his better films.The story itself is pretty simple. Business man learns he has a son raised in the jungle and then has to adapt to the son living with him in the city.Allen plays a similar sort of character to the one he did in 'The Santa Clause' and the film really plays to his strengths. Although he has tried to do more edgy films (Crazy on the outside, which was pretty poor) Allen has always produced his best work with Disney and with John Pasquin as director.The film also features a not well explored relationship between Allen's character and his love interest but far more interesting is the chemistry between Allen and Martin Short. They play of each other so well that it makes you wonder what went so wrong when 9 years later they teamed up for 'The Santa Clause 3'.Overall if you're looking for a good Tim Allen film then look no further.

During his success in the sitcom Home Improvement, Tim Allen's only good movie appearance was as Buzz Lightyear in Toy Story, not even The Santa Clause made the biggest impact in Britain, so this was his next attempt, from director John Pasquin (The Santa Clause). Basically Michael Cromwell (Allen) is to be married to his new girlfriend, but first he needs to divorce from his separated wife Patricia (JoBeth Williams), living in Venezuela. So he travels there to settle things, but he instead discovers he has a 13-year-old son, raised by the local tribe and named Mimi-Siku (introducing Not Another Teen Movie's Ox, Sam Huntington). Michael inadvertently makes Mimi a promise to go to the Statue of Liberty, and bring back its fire (?), so he takes him back with him to New York. What follows is obviously lots of slapstick gags relating to Mimi's upbringing, so peeing in pots, having a pet tarantula, eating weird foods, etc, all making himself or Michael look strange. It takes a while for Michael to get used to having a son, especially with all the background Mimi has, but he is obviously very sad when he has to go back home, but not before giving him the flame of Liberty (a miniature Liberty, a lighter with the torch as the flame, cute), and he does show up back in Venezuela for a little while. Also starring Martin Short as Richard Kempster, Lolita Davidovich as Charlotte, David Ogden Stiers as Alexei Jovanovic, Valerie Mahaffey as Jan Kempster, Leelee Sobieski as Karen Kempster and Frankie J. Galasso as Andrew Kempster. Allen doesn't do too bad, young Huntington adds most of the quite light but still affective jokes, not a bad family film. Worth watching!

This movie is solid fun. It's typical Tim Allen, which means that if you like him you should enjoy the movie. He employs lots of quick wit, sarcasm, and slapstick self-deprivation. The son does a mostly believable job with the typical fish out of water story. He climbs out on the ledge of a Manhattan skyscraper and also climbs to the top of the statue of liberty to see the "fire up the sky's butt". The supporting cast puts in workman quality acting as well. The real mom (JoBeth Williams) is believable as a post 60's Peace Corp leftover and villain played by David Ogden Stiers (M*A*S*H) is terrific as a scary and quirky Russian mafia boss. It is a down the middle Disney pre-teen movie and fun.