The Flintstones (1994)

In this live-action feature of the cartoon show, Fred Flintstone finally gets the job he's always wanted, but it may just come at a price.

Director:

Brian Levant

Writers:

Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein,

Stars:

John Goodman, Rick Moranis, Rosie O'Donnell

6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Goodman	...	Fred Flintstone
Elizabeth Perkins	...	Wilma Flintstone
Rick Moranis	...	Barney Rubble
Rosie O'Donnell	...	Betty Rubble
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Cliff Vandercave
Halle Berry	...	Miss Stone
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Pearl Slaghoople
Dann Florek	...	Mr. Slate
Richard Moll	...	Hoagie
Irwin Keyes	...	Joe Rockhead (as Irwin '88' Keyes)
Jonathan Winters	...	Grizzled Man
Harvey Korman	...	Dictabird (voice)
Elaine Silver	...	Pebbles
Melanie Silver	...	Pebbles
Hlynur Sigurðsson	...	Bamm-Bamm (as Hlynur Sigurdsson)

Storyline

The Flintstones and the Rubbles are modern stone-age families. Fred and Barney work at Slate and Company, mining rock. Fred gives Barney some money so he and Betty can adopt a baby. When Fred and Barney take a test to determine who should become the new associate vice president, Barney returns the favor by switching his test answers for Fred's, whose answers aren't very good. Fred gets the executive position, but little realizes that he's being manipulated by Cliff Vandercave to be the fall guy for an embezzlement scheme.

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Plot Keywords:

singer | yelling | promotion | nightclub | car | 

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Taglines:

Yabba-dabba-doo it!

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some mild innuendos

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 May 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Flintstones: The Live-Action Movie

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

£19,723,140 (UK) (9 September 1994)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, Hanna-Barbera Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Barney's snow cone van plays the theme song from The Jetsons.

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Goofs

Since the villain's plan called for finding a patsy to pin the blame on, logically they should have "promoted" the employee who scored the *lowest* on the test instead of the highest. They wanted the dumbest, most gullible person possible since he presumably would have been the least likely to figure out exactly what was going on. While looking at the test scores, Cliff expresses his knowledge of Fred being a "dunce and witless" and may very likely know that his test had to have been switch which someone else. They also should have terminated the person with the *highest* score, for the opposite reason, which they did after checking the scores and assumed that Barney had to be the one that Fred had switched tests with.

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Quotes

Cliff Vandercave: Through the miracle of geothermal power, the raw material is elevated to the second stage where our steam powered conveyer belts carry...
Bill: Steam? He's a mad man!
Cliff Vandercave: *Steam* powered conveyer belts, carry the product...

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Crazy Credits

No dinosaurs were be harmed for the production of this motion picture.

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Connections

Featured in Troldspejlet: Dennis Jürgensen (1995)

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Soundtracks

"ANARCHY IN THE UK"
Written by John Lydon (as J. Lydon), Steve Jones (as S. Jones), Glen Matlock (as G. Matlock), and Paul Cook (as P. Cook)
Performed by Green Jellÿ (as Green Jelly)
Courtesy of Zoo Entertainment

User Reviews

I liked it, what can I say?

I was 8 years old when this movie came out and remember really liking it despite the lackluster reviews it received from not only critics but most of my friends as well. I don't remember anybody out and out hating it, it just kinda got one of those "meh" grunts whenever it was mentioned.

Now I'm twenty three and I just watched it again and I gotta say, I still think it's pretty damn good. And unless you just simply are not of a fan of the Flintstones cartoons I don't see how you can not like this film. It plays like an extended episode of the series, with a plot not unlike something we have seen in our Saturday morning reruns, but loaded with enough clever one liners and risqué humor to elevate it to a much more adult oriented comedy. It's also got tons of sight gags and background jokes that you will likely need some multiple viewings to appreciate. Not to mention the sheer scope and execution of the sets, costumes and animatronic and CG dinosaurs are really something to admire, especially for its day.

The actors all play their parts well too, John Goodman and Rick Moranis as Fred and Barney are the standouts but there's nobody here that I thought fell short. Yes, I would have liked to have seen Betty portrayed with somebody with more curves in the right places...I mean she was the hottie in the cartoon and Rosie O'Donnell's physique definitely doesn't live up, but you have to give credit where credit is due and while she may not look quite the same, she plays the part well and has the voice and trademark giggle down perfectly.

Is this a fantastic film no...but I enjoy it every time I watch it and I think the attention to detail and obvious care that went into making this movie alone should keep it entertaining for years to come and considering its unlikely anything quite like this will ever be done again outside of its sequels, I would not be surprised if this movie eventually earns its respect among film buffs in the future.