Krippendorf's Tribe (1998)

An anthropologist creates a fictitious lost New Guinea tribe using his family members to cover-up for his mis-use of grant moneys.

Director:

Todd Holland

Writers:

Frank Parkin (book), Charlie Peters (screenplay)

Stars:

Richard Dreyfuss, Jenna Elfman, Natasha Lyonne

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Krippendorf
Jenna Elfman	...	Veronica
Natasha Lyonne	...	Shelly
Gregory Smith	...	Mickey
Carl Michael Lindner	...	Edmund
Lily Tomlin	...	Ruth Allen
Stephen Root	...	Gerald Adams, Dean
Doris Belack	...	President Porter
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Simon Alonso
Siobhan Fallon Hogan	...	Lori (as Siobhan Fallon)
Amzie Strickland	...	Gladys Schmades
Phil Leeds	...	Dr. Harvey
Frances Bay	...	Edith Proxmire
Susan Ruttan	...	Mrs. O'Brian
Barbara Williams	...	Jennifer

Storyline

A university professor is paid to find the last undiscovered tribe of New Guinea. When he fails to find the tribe, he comes home, and rather than admitting that he's failed, he gives a lecture about the Shelmikedmu tribe (named after his children: Shelly, Mike, and Edmund) and then has his family dress like "Shelmikedmus," so that he can film them as proof of his discovery.

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Plot Keywords:

professor | new guinea | lecture | family relationships | hoax | 

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Taglines:

A father discovers that the most important 'long lost tribe' in his life may be very close to home.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual humor

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Tribo dos Krippendorf

Filming Locations:

Kualoa Ranch - 49560 Kamehameha Highway, Ka'a'awa, O'ahu, Hawaii, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,316,377, 1 March 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$7,514,883, 26 April 1998

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dreyfuss / James Productions,Touchstone Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name "Krippendorf" comes from Klaus Krippendorf, a renowned communications scholar best known for his work on the role of communication in social construction and design. The movie is based on a novel by Frank Parkin, who was himself a highly-regarded sociologist.

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Quotes

[Edmund opens the door to find Professor Micelli and a strange man]
Veronica Micelli: Oh, Pumpkin, do you remember me from yesterday? I'm Veronica Micelli and I've brought this nice reporter.
[Edmund slams the door in their faces]

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Crazy Credits

Production Dogs .... Rosebud and Mickey

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Connections

References Planet of the Apes (1968)

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Soundtracks

Boogie Fever
Written by Freddie Perren (as Frederick J. Perren) and Kenneth St. Lewis
Performed by The Sylvers
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under license from EMI-Capitol Music Special Markets

User Reviews

Appalling

An appalling piece of very unfunny smut, masquerading as a "family comedy".

How could Richard Dreyfuss have possibly descended this far? The acting is passable, but the script is truly dreadful. Embarrassingly bad.