Rene Devereaux's opening song comes across as the most Randy Newman that anyone who isn't Randy Newman has ever been, and it's almost disappointing that we don't get more musical accompaniment to describe every single thing that's happening on-screen. The very premise seems wholly outrageous until one realizes that Skippy the kangaroo is just the Australian equivalent of Flipper the dolphin or Lassie the collie, so why not? While I'm not familiar with the TV show this follows from, I'm given to understand the feature is very much effectively just an episode, writ large, and I think that definitely does come across in some of the sitcom-style levity that rounds out some scenes and characterizations. 'The intruders' may be just lighthearted family-friendly fare, but it's suitably enjoyable for a lazy day.
Of course, as with other titles of this nature, the marsupial novelty is almost superfluous, flavoring added on top, for a tale of bad guys doing shady business and ultimately being discovered and/or foiled by scrappy young somebodies. We don't necessary get that that much screen time for our non-human friend, at least not as much as one might think; the bad guys, on the other hand, get a lot. In the meanwhile, we are treated to lots of sights of Australia in the 1960s - landscapes, cityscapes, and the surrounding waters. I'm not sure that this actually needed to be as long as it is, and the pacing is emphatically languid, even at the climax. Still, for any idiosyncrasies or issues one may discern, this is only intended for a passing good time, and it's well made such as it is. With the same cast and crew attached from the series it's clear that like care went into the production, with especially strong direction and cinematography, and solid acting. I quite like Eric Jupp's score, and the production design is excellent. Though too drawn out, the story is standard but entertaining, and any stunts or mild action sequences are done very well.
There aren't really any surprises here. Whether an animal companion is (nominally) involved or not, we've seen this movie before, and we will again, with a likely PG rating. The broad strokes of the screenplay are very recognizable; whatever one wants out of this movie, I don't think there's anything about it so special as to demand viewership over comparable pictures. It's still a reasonably good time though, and if you happen to come across 'The intruders' it's worth checking out - only, one should perhaps temper their expectations about the involvement of the kangaroo who gets top billing, and have plenty of one's favored beverage on hand.
