Furry Vengeance
Furry Vengeance | |
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Directed by | Roger Kumble |
Written by |
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Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Peter Lyons Collister |
Edited by | Lawrence Jordan |
Music by | Edward Shearmur |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Summit Entertainment |
Release date |
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Running time | 92 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $35 million[1] |
Box office | $36.2 million[2] |
Furry Vengeance is a 2010 American
Furry Vengeance was Fraser's final film as part of the
Plot
In the wilderness of Oregon, a prairie dog screams after Riggs drives past and throws a cigar at it while talking to Lyman Enterprise CEO Neal Lyman on the phone while planning to check up on co-worker Dan Sanders. This causes a raccoon to signal a mink to release a boulder that pushes Riggs' car to the edge of a cliff, teetering back and forth. After that, the raccoon throws the cigar back to Riggs who yells "You're a bad raccoon!". The raccoon then blows the car down the cliff. Riggs is then heard calling up Lyman to tell him that he quits.
Dan Sanders is a real estate developer from Chicago and nature lover who meets with Lyman who gives Dan the task of turning the forest of Rocky Springs into a residential development after Riggs' instant resignation. This all transpires much to the objections of Dan's son Tyler and wife Tammy who are unhappy in Rocky Springs while missing their lives in Chicago.
Unfortunately for Dan, the animals who are led by the raccoon refuse to sit back and watch
Meanwhile, Tammy is forced to plan an "
Lyman accidentally tranquilizes the sponsor for the construction named Mr. Gupta after he attempted to break their deal. He flees into a worm tunnel with the animals in close pursuit. The animals begin attacking him as the bear drives a golf cart, pulling the tunnel away into the forest. After some convincing from Amber and Tammy, Tyler finally tells his father that he loves him.
Three months later, the forest is reclaimed as a
During the credits, the humans and animals dance to the Transcenders version of "Insane in the Brain."
Cast
- Brendan Fraser as Dan Sanders, a real estate developer.
- Fraser also appears uncredited as Tuka the Puritan, and Terrence the Hippie, characters from Rocky Springs' folklore that had issues with the Raccoon's ancestors when they tried to settle Rocky Springs.
- Fraser also appears uncredited as Tuka the
- method actor, describing it as "not easy."[10]
- Shields also does an uncredited performance as the wife of Tuka the Caveman in the credits.
- Ken Jeong as Neal Lyman, the CEO of Lyman Enterprises who wants to develop on the lands of Rocky Springs while pretending to be eco-friendly.
- Matt Prokop as Tyler Sanders, the son of Dan and Tammy.
- Angela Kinsey as Felder, Lyman's personal assistant.
- Toby Huss as Wilson, one of the officers.
- Skyler Samuels as Amber, the love interest of Tyler.
- Samantha Bee as Principal Baker, the principal of Tyler and Amber's school who is Tammy's boss.
- Alice Drummond as Mrs. Martin, an elderly senile school teacher and senior citizen.
- Ricky Garcia as Frank, a construction worker.
- Jim Nortonas Hank, a construction worker.
- Patrice O'Neal as Gus, a construction worker. According to Norton, O'Neal was difficult to work with on Furry Vengeance: "I was like the co-dependent wife. He was just embarrassing to be associated with. We had to go in and do our first meet with the director, and we had sat around all day. And I'm trying to like, 'Hey, we're doing a movie!' And it's a Brooke Shields movie, and we're sitting down. And he's just sitting there like 'Aahhhhhh.' Everybody hated him on that shoot."[11]
- Eugene Cordero as Cheese
- Gerry Bednob as Mr. Gupta, the sponsor of Lyman's project in Rocky Springs.
- Billy Bush as a Drill Sergeant that leads the capture of the forest animals.
- Alexander Chance as a security guard.
- Rob Riggle[12] as Riggs (uncredited), a worker for Neal Lyman who quits following the raccoon's first attack.
- Wallace Shawn as Dr. Christian Burr (uncredited), a therapist that Tammy hooks Dan up with after various incidents with the raccoon.
The vocal effects of the raccoon and the other forest animals were performed by Dee Bradley Baker, an experience he described as "a lot of fun."[13]
Production
Development
On June 8, 2004, New Line Cinema bought a spec script by Carnes and Gilbert, Furry Vengeance, at a price of $750,000. Its premise of forest animals attacking a real estate developer was announced by the company; Kent Alterman, Keith Goldberg and Michelle Weiss were also announced as supervisors.[14] Steve Carell, an actor Alterman previously worked with on The Daily Show,[15] went on board to play the real estate developer on July 12.[16] It would've been Carell's first studio film where he received top billing.[17] A May 6, 2007 Variety article announced Carell was replaced by Samuel L. Jackson.[18]
On January 26, 2009,
One of Kumble's major ideas included the creatures not speaking.[5]
Matt Prokop was cast on June 10, 2009,[21] with Skyler Samuels joining four days later.[22] On July 8, Brooke Shields, Ken Jeong and Samantha Bee joined; the film was Shields' first role in a mainstream film since Black and White (1999).[23] Dick Van Dyke was also announced to appear in the film that same day,[23] although he doesn't make an appearance in the final cut.
Furry Vengeance was initially planned to be released in July 2010,[22] but it was changed to an April date.
Filming
Filming began on July 6, 2009.[24]
Music
Songs appearing in the film include:
- "Gavotte" – Jeff Cardoni and Katisse Buckingham
- "Frank & Beans" – Chad Fischer (version by Count Smokula)
- "Insane in the Brain" – Transcenders (original version by Cypress Hill)
- "We Got It All" – Right The Stars
- "A-Punk" – Vampire Weekend
- "Surrender" – Ben Lee
- "Don't Bring Me Down" – Electric Light Orchestra
- "Le Freak" – Chic
- "The Saddest Song" – Transcenders (version by Morphine)
- "Beautiful Morning" – Transcenders
- "Washington Post March" – John Philip Sousa
- "Cotton-Eyed Joe" – The Goodtime Stringband (version by Asleep at the Wheel)
Original music for Furry Vengeance was composed by Edward Shearmur.
Marketing
When Furry Vengeance was announced in early 2009, Film School Rejects had little hope, especially when it came to Kumble being director: "The premise has some comic potential, but barring an unforeseen injection of intelligent satire into the screenplay one should expect little more than a live action takeoff on Over the Hedge, with lots of CGI and mild slapstick."[25] Collider reported that "casting directors just keep giving Brendan Fraser more chances to bore audiences," also sarcastically suggesting Furry Vengeance "is sure to be a hilariously unpredictable comedy gem."[26]
The trailer for Furry Vengeance was released on December 23, 2009.[12] Using only the trailer as reference, a Cinema Blend writer suggested the film was a rip-off of Over the Hedge (2006): "Never have I seen anything so blatant. It's not only the premise that's been stolen, the trailer contains specific scenes taken right from DreamWorks movie. And that's just the trailer."[27] Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News called the trailer "offensively bad," criticizing Fraser's presence and the "endless variety of shit, piss and fart gags."[28] James White also had little hope in the film, thinking it would be nothing more than a "slapstick-laden wannabe laugh riot." However, he did look forward to seeing Riggle, Bee, and Jeong in the film.[12] As /Film covered the trailer, "it's got self-aware animals and airbag and 'sprinkler to the crotch' jokes. If you're six, have at it. Otherwise, the less said, the better."[29]
On January 13, 2010, the
Participant also collaborated with DonorsChoose to fund classroom projects about protecting wildlife and the planet.[31] TakePart, another participating non-profit, offered a Furry Vengeance Activity Guide that included activities such as quizzes and games to help kids learn about environmental protection.[32][33] Seattle Weekly noted the film's overly-simple message to extend to its marketing, joking that "They all but print the lesson plan on biodegradable popcorn boxes."[34]
Release
The film was released on April 30, 2010 in the United States.
Critical response
The film was panned by critics.
Alicia Potter of
Illinois Times Chuck Koplinski described the problem of the film's humor: "how much you enjoy this film is dependent on how funny you think someone being thrashed around in a Porta-Potty is." However, those ten and over "will smile occasionally at this silly production and might be a bit impressed with the computer effects on display."[55] Allan Hunter of the Daily Express summarized the film as "a feeble family comedy that really tests your patience," reasoning that "Rarely in the field of slapstick can one actor have fallen on his backside so many times during a single film."[56] The Hollywood Reporter summarized the film in two ways: as a "collection of feeble jokes in the service of green themes" where the writing "substitute[s] crude gags for humor at nearly every turn," and as "a jumble of Apple product placement and wan message-mongering, with a few anemic visual references to Harold Lloyd, North by Northwest and Braveheart."[57] Philip French of The Observer summarized the film as an 1950s ecological horror film masquerading as a comedy about protecting the environment: "The hapless hero (Brendan Fraser) is treated with a degree of gleeful sadism not seen in a Hollywood comedy since Home Alone, and his contemptuous wife is played by Brooke Shields, once a chilly child star in Pretty Baby, now a hatchet-faced matron. His Chinese-American employer brings in Mr Gupta, a rich Indian entrepreneur to help destroy the American environment, a scene that should play well in downtown Bhopal."[58] Peter Bradshaw also criticized Shields' performance, describing her as "not a natural comic performer, to say the least. Her face has the comic mobility and expressiveness of an Easter Island statue."[59] The A.V. Club writer Scott Tobias appreciated its cast and "surprisingly tough message about so-called "eco-friendly" companies and the green PR schemes they devise to paper over their destruction of the environment." However, he was turned off by the premise of "Brendan Fraser getting beat up by creepily anthropomorphized animals."[60] An Entertainment Weekly critic praised the choice of non-speaking animals as Kumble's "rare show of restraint" as well as the presence of comics like Bee and Kinsey; however, he found the cartoony comedy direction "creepy in live action:" "I'm not convinced that repeated assaults to the groin, bee stings to the eyes, raccoon pee in the mouth, or skunk stink sprayed head to toe is the way to teach ecological balance."[61]
However, Furry Vengeance did receive a decent review from
Box office
The film debuted at #5 at the box office, with an estimated $6.5 million during its opening weekend; although Summit distribution president Richie Fay reported a positive audience response, he also stated the opening weekend was below their expectations.[63] The film went down to sixth place in the next weekend, where its gross amount was 40% less than the opening.[64] At the end of its run, it came up with $32 million worldwide. Domestically grossing $17,630,465, it was the ninth-biggest 2,000-plus-theater box office bomb of 2010.[65]
However, it has earned at least $3 million with DVD sales,[66] debuting at number four on Home Media Magazine's rental chart.[67] The film was released in the United Kingdom on May 7, 2010, and opened on #2, behind Iron Man 2.[68]
Accolades
Furry Vengeance garnered a Worst Picture nomination from the Houston Film Critics Society, losing to Jonah Hex.[69] Shields and Jeong were also shortlisted for worst actor nominations (Worst Actress and Worst Supporting Actor, respectively) from the Golden Raspberry Awards.[70]
References
Citations
- ^ Fritz, Ben (April 29, 2010). "Movie projector: 'Nightmare' to rule at home with $30 million while 'Iron Man 2' explodes to $100 million-plus overseas". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
Independent distributor Summit Entertainment is releasing the film, which it co-financed with Participant Media and Imagenation Abu Dhabi for about $35 million.
- Internet Movie Database.
- ^ Massarella, Linda (March 27, 2011). "Fraser finds 'Sole' in Ireland". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ E. Slotnik, Daniel (November 30, 2016). "Alice Drummond, Character Actress, Dies at 88". The New York Times. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- ^ a b Brown, Phil (April 23, 2010). "Nature fights back in the wacky Furry Vengeance". Metro New York. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Parsons 2010, event occurs at 0:52–1:10.
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- ^ Parsons 2010, event occurs at 1:22–1:27.
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- ^ Brawley, Eddie (December 18, 2015). "Truth Is a Feeling: An Oral History of Elephant in the Room". Vulture. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ a b c White, James (December 23, 2009). "Brendan Fraser Suffers Furry Vengeance". Empire. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Mouse Skywalker (May 21, 2010). "Star Wars Weekends: Send In The Clones!". DIS Unplugged. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- ^ Harris, Dana (June 8, 2004). "'Furry' flies to New Line". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (August 22, 2004). "Funny business". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Fleming, Michael (July 12, 2004). "New Line finds 'Furry' friend". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Fleming, Michael; Dunkley, Cathy (August 2, 2004). "Warner Bros. gets Smart". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Fleming, Michael (May 6, 2007). "Disney deals for 'Yosemite Three'". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ a b Fleming, Michael (January 26, 2009). "Brendan Fraser set for 'Vengeance'". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Jaafar, Ali (May 13, 2009). "Imagenation tips Participant pair". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ A. Fernandez, Jay (June 10, 2009). "Matt Prokop out for 'Vengeance'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ a b A. Fernandez, Jay (June 14, 2009). "'Furry' adds young actress". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ a b Zeitchik, Steven (July 8, 2009). "Brooke Shields finally gets 'Vengeance'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Fleming, Michael (June 4, 2009). "Redgrave, Garcia Bernal join 'Letters'". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ Levin, Robert (February 25, 2009). "Brendan Fraser Takes On the Woods in 'Furry Vengeance'". Film School Rejects. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Weintraub, Steven (January 27, 2009). "Brendan Fraser Seeks FURRY VENGEANCE". Collider. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Tyler, Josh (December 23, 2009). "Furry Vengeance Trailer: Brendan Fraser Rips Off Over The Hedge". Cinema Blend. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Knowles, Harry (December 23, 2009). "Trailers that make you George Bailey out in the face of Christmas & the New Year..." Ain't It Cool News. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ Fischer, Russ (December 22, 2009). "New Trailers: Sex and the City 2; The Back-up Plan; Furry Vengeance". /Film. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "MPAA ratings: Jan. 13, 2010". The Hollywood Reporter. January 13, 2010. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- ^ "Donate to a project in support of Furry Vengeance". DonorsChoose. Archived from the original on May 4, 2010. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "Furry Vengeance". TakePart. Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- The Huffington Post. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Wilonsky, Robert (April 27, 2010). "Furry Vengeance: Brendan Fraser, Eco-Propagandist". Seattle Weekly. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "Furry Vengeance - Trailers - Movie Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
- ^ Ryan, Tim (April 30, 2010). "Critics Consensus: Nightmare, Vengeance Both Get Panned". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Sciretta, Peter (July 1, 2010). "Official: The Last Airbender is the Worst Reviewed Movie of 2010 (So Far)". /Film. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "Furry Vengeance Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
- ^ Dietz, Jason (April 29, 2010). "The Verdict on This Weekend's Movies: "Elm Street", "Furry Vengeance", and More". Metacritic. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (2010-05-02). "A Nightmare on Elm Street Remake Takes $32 Million, Furry Vengeance Flops". IndieWire. Retrieved 2022-07-25.
- ^ Staunton, Terry. "Furry Vengeance". Radio Times. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
- ^ Whipp, Glenn (April 30, 2010). "Movie review: 'Furry Vengeance'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Perez, Susanne (May 7, 2010). "'Island' offers nice blend of silly, sweet". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Hale, Mike (April 29, 2010). "Brendan Fraser Battles a Forest of Animals". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Wilonsky, Robert (April 27, 2010). "Furry Vengeance, a Movie with a Message-and Not Much Else". The Village Voice. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Jenkins, Mark (April 29, 2010). "'Furry Vengeance': Skunks Aren't All That Stink". NPR. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
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- ^ Seibert, Perry. "Furry Vengeance (2010) – Roger Kumble". AllMovie. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Tsai, Martin (April 30, 2010). "'Furry Vengeance' movie review: Brendan Fraser stars in uninspired man-vs.-animal tale". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- The Associated Press. Archived from the originalon December 13, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- Screen Daily. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ "» Cute Racoons? Think Again! Racial-Ethnic Stereotypes Abound in Furry Vengeance Intercultural Talk: Stereotypes in Advertising, Intercultural Communications, Multicultural Parenting". interculturaltalk.org. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
- ^ Koplinski, Chuck (May 6, 2010). "Furry a bit mangy". Illinois Times. Archived from the original on May 28, 2010. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
- ^ Hunter, Allan (May 7, 2010). "Furry Vengeance: film review and trailer". Daily Express. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ Linden, Sheri (October 14, 2010). "Furry Vengeance -- Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ French, Philip (May 8, 2010). "Furry Vengeance". The Observer. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ Bradshaw, Peter (May 6, 2010). "Film review: Furry Vengeance". The Guardian. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ Tobias, Scott (April 29, 2010). "Furry Vengeance". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- ^ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (April 30, 2010). "Furry Vengeance". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
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Works cited
Videos
- Laufer, Bonnie (May 27, 2013). Brooke Shields & Brendan Fraser (Furry Vengeance) – Interview (2010). Tribute. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
- Parsons, Jeremy (2010). Furry Vengeance – Interview. Reelz. Retrieved December 12, 2019.