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Encino Man

Play trailer Poster for Encino Man PG 1992 1h 29m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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17% Tomatometer 36 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
California teen Dave Morgan (Sean Astin) is digging a pit for a pool in his backyard when he happens upon a caveman frozen in a block of ice. Aided by his goofy friend Stoney (Pauly Shore), Dave transports their discovery to his garage, where the Neanderthal thaws and is revived. When Dave and Stoney find the living and thoroughly bewildered caveman, they attempt to pass him off as a foreign exchange student named Link (Brendan Fraser), resulting in many misadventures.
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Encino Man

Encino Man

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Critics Consensus

Encino Man isn't the first unabashedly silly comedy to embrace its stupidity and amass a cult following, but whether or not it works for you will largely be determined by your tolerance for Pauly Shore.

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Critics Reviews

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Hugo Davenport Daily Telegraph (UK) The warp factor of Shore's customized Californian dialect goes well beyond Wayne's World. In fact I found it as inscrutable as the reason why anyone at all should go see this movie, save for Brendan Fraser's lumbering enthusiasm as Link. Jun 6, 2023 Full Review Sheila Johnston Independent (UK) The film, school of Bob and Ted and Wayne and Garth, but inferior in all regards, illustrates the Theory of Reverse Evolution. Nov 13, 2017 Full Review Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly Rated: D+ Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Branyan Towe Loud and Clear Reviews The plot is nonsensical, with more telling the audience rather than showing, especially when it comes to the arcs of the characters. With that said, I had quite a bit of fun with this nonsense Rated: 3/5 Jul 29, 2024 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...watchable yet somewhat disappointing... Rated: 2.5/4 May 9, 2021 Full Review Malcolm Johnson Hartford Courant The strongest contender imaginable for the worst picture of the summer. Apr 10, 2018 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Cork B I mean, I can't really give this 5 stars or anything - the plot, premise and acting are BEYOND stupid. But it has an undeniable charm to its goofiness... maybe not as well done as Bill and Ted, but it is light and breezy and has a positive message about friendship as a backdrop. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 12/02/24 Full Review AnnMarie T I LOVED it when I was an adolescent/ teenager. Haven’t seen it since then. Not sure what I’d think about it now but I have fond memories of it. It may be just for teenagers & nostalgic/ silly movie appreciators like me! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/25/24 Full Review Audience Member Better than Acolyte. Would watch all weekend Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/12/24 Full Review Dave O Bring nostalgia lol..No it wasn't the best movie but it was about a frozen caveman who was thawed out lol what you expect? It was a fun movie and became bigger as time went on.Allot of them kind of movies was made and it's like the owner of them movie's rights knew them fun movies would become classics cause all them movies are streaming everywhere and allot of money being made off licensing.Them movies are taking care of generations.Weekend at Bernie's is another one.That movie has made more money as time goes on and the theater flop money was just the beginning.And to think them actors got 5-20,000 dollars and them movies keep making millions and will forever. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/20/24 Full Review Daniel S The film capitalizes on the early 90s California culture, with Pauly Shore bringing his unique comedic style that either you love or you don't. Brendan Fraser's performance as Link is both heartfelt and hilariously executed, showcasing his physical comedy skills and timing. This movie isn't aiming for high art; it's a product of its time, filled with era-specific slang, fashion, and humor. While some may find the film's premise silly and its humor sophomoric, it undeniably has a charm that has allowed it to retain a cult following. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/24 Full Review Parker D Truly among the worst movies of the 90s as well as one of the worst and stupidest comedies ever made next to Freddy got fingered pauly shore should be stopped and Brendan Fraser's performance was just stupid and moronic he looks as if he just wanted to fool around on set rather than trying to give an actual performance who's idea was it to even makes this film something about an unfrozen caveman from prehistoric times it's just stupid we all know prehistoric people (aka cavemen) don't talk and just behave like animals notably primates that make noisy and annoying sounds they don't exist anymore and all there is nowadays of any human that doesn't talk or make sounds is a disabled person with issues that scene with him covered in mood that looks more like manure is disgusting and gross especially when he licks and drinks dirty water, anyone who likes this film is a fake cinema fan of you are into critically acclaimed classics and award worthy masterpieces as well as intelligent and even subtle movies you must avoid this film like the pleague to anyone who knows about film or has watched many movies especially popular films from each decade do yourselves a favor and don't waste your time with this true stinkers of a film it's that bad and must never be seen and if there was a possibility of ever deleting a film from existence this would be one of those films that deserves to be removed from existence 0/10 Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 09/15/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Encino Man

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Movie Info

Synopsis California teen Dave Morgan (Sean Astin) is digging a pit for a pool in his backyard when he happens upon a caveman frozen in a block of ice. Aided by his goofy friend Stoney (Pauly Shore), Dave transports their discovery to his garage, where the Neanderthal thaws and is revived. When Dave and Stoney find the living and thoroughly bewildered caveman, they attempt to pass him off as a foreign exchange student named Link (Brendan Fraser), resulting in many misadventures.
Director
Les Mayfield
Producer
George Zaloom
Screenwriter
Shawn Schepps
Production Co
Hollywood Pictures, Encino Man Productions
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 22, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$40.0M
Runtime
1h 29m
Sound Mix
Surround, Stereo
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