It's croc saving time (The Crocodile Hunter (DVD))

Member Name: mmintfresh

Product:	The Crocodile Hunter (DVD)
Date:	03/08/02 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Steve and Terri scenes

Disadvantages: Brozzie

A satellite has crashed into North Queensland on Brozzie Drewitt's (Magda Szubanski)land. This is no ordinary satellite, it contains a tracking drone that contains loads of data on millions of people in it, if it falls into the wrong hands the balance of power in the world could change completely. The CIA send two agents out to secretly get back this drone before someone finds out how powerful it is. However the satellite recovery team also send out a member to get it. Unfortunately the drone has been swallowed by a crocodile that has been tormented by Brozzie because of it's taste for her cows. Elsewhere Steve Irwin and his wife Terri (themselves)are out doing what they usually do, saving animals and manage to amount a baby Joey, a poisonous spider and a deadly snake when they hear that the croc on Brozzie's land needs relocating before it becomes a handbag. The two set off and get the croc, meanwhile the CIA track the drone to Terri and Steve and think they are trying to take over the world and pursue them. Steve however thinks that the two agents are poachers trying to kill the croc, so they g on the run not knowing they are caring something much more important than they ever imagined.

I am not a fan of Steve Irwin and have never ever watched any of his tv shows, my 7 year old brother has and is a great fan of all things concerning animals, especially Irwin's tv shows. So I grudgingly took him to see this thinking I was going to go through two hours of torture and was far from looking forward to it. However I was surprised to find that I found the film quite enjoyable and the experience wasn't as painful as I thought.

The film itself is basically a longer version of the tv show, with Steve doing his own stunts with real animals and no script. He captures various animals and talks to the camera about it and how dangerous it can be and if this was on tv and you were flicking through the channels you would probably mistake it fo
r the tv show. What makes it a film is the whole CIA satellite plot. It contains actors saying lines and different locations and has the look and feel of a film. These are edited together and at first seem separate but the stories eventually collide and the last 15 minutes (except a few bits) is basically a film. I thought this was quite clever because those looking for a big screen version of the tv show get that and those looking for a film get that too.

The plot itself is okaish, not to taxing but not stupid. However the really enjoyable bits I found were the bits with Steve and Terri because they were much more entertaining. Firstly the plot's characters are basically 2d, you have the tech obsessed agent, the hot female agent and the agent who has never even camped out before and finds himself in the middle of the outback. Also the Brozzie character annoyed the hell out of me and I wanted her to die. The Steve and Terri bits were much more humorous and they were much more likable people, also their scenes had some tension and action and were much more authentic because they were real. The shaky camera work also added to this effect. I also thought the way the audience were addressed personally was quite good.

Overall this is a slightly above average film that most kids will love, my brother did, especially the ones who like animals and stuff. Some people may not like this film though so be warned.

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