Review by Stuart O'Connor
Stars Brendan Fraser, Brooke Shields, Matt Prokop, Ken Jeong, Ricky Garcia, Skyler Samuels,
Angela Kinsey, Eugene Cordero, Patrice O'Neal, Jim Norton | Written by Michael Carnes & Josh Gilbert
UK certification PG | UK RRP £22.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 91 minutes | Directed by Roger Kumble
On the message board For Furry Vengeance at IMDb is a thread headed: "I'm guessing Brendan Fraser lost a bet." That – or a huge tax bill, or a producer in possession of compromising photos of him – can be the only explanation for Fraser's appearance in this inept, vile, dire and unfunny excuse for a comedy.
The filmmakers seem to think that green credentials can overcome all manner of flaws. Sorry guys, but no. And humour that mainly involves a guy being hit in the testicles stops being funny when your age hits double figures. The guy in question is Dan Sanders (Fraser), the construction manager for a “green” housing development. Well, a "green" company that is actually setting about destroying a forest. And so, led by a raccoon, all the forest critters set about doing what they can to save their homes. And that mainly involves inflicting as much pain and discomfort on Dan as they can.
It's impossible to describe in words just how bad this film is. A rather chubby Fraser spends much of the film being clawed or bitten in the nads, shat upon from great height or sprayed in the face by a skunk. This abuse-by-animal happens behind the backs of his long-suffering wife and son – Shields and Prokop – who would rather be living anywhere but where they are. Dan's overbearing, greedy boss is played by Ken Jeong, who seems to be Hollywood's current go-to guy to play Asian characters (see The Hangover, Role Models, Couples Retreat, All About Steve, The Goods...). And all the animals are played, for the most part, by actual trained animals – with a little CGI help in the mouth department to anthropomorphise them. There are a few scenes, though, where the animals are completely CGI – and it's the cheapest, shoddiest CGI that I have ever seen.
I like Brendan Fraser. He's not a bad actor, as he proved in Crash, and Gods and Monsters. I didn't mind him in Encino Man, George of The Jungle or the Mummy films (except the terrible third one). And for me, one of the best performances of his career was in the TV show Scrubs. But if he keeps turning up in trash like this, his career won't last much longer. Furry Vengeance is trying to be slapstick, but the people who made it clearly need a good slap. It's feeble, unfunny and frankly forgettable.
EXTRAS ★★★ Audio commentary with director Kumble and stars Fraser and Brooks; four deleted scenes, with an optional commentary from Kumble; the 10-minute featurette The Pitfalls of Pratfalls, which examines all the silly stunts in the film; the eight-minute featurette Working With Animals: A Profile of Ken Beggs; and a four-minute gag reel, which mainly consists of actors screaming.