Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie Review

"Dundee:" Australian for 80s.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 12, 2014

Paramount has released the fan-favorite films "Crocodile" Dundee and "Crocodile" Dundee II together in one convenient two-pack. It's currently the only way to own and enjoy both films on Blu-ray. Reviews for each individual film, as well as additional screenshots, may be found here and here.

Little does Dundee know that the phone line has been disconnected...

"Crocodile" Dundee
Score: 4.0/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee. It's a name that's synonymous with a decade, one of the 1980's most widely seen and enjoyed films and still one of the most lovably harmless, albeit relatively simple, Romantic Comedies of the past thirty years. The film made a star of leading man Paul Hogan and a name for its female lead, Linda Kozlowski. The affable picture puts their characters in contrasting environments in which they discover that shared roots aren't required when it comes to matters of the heart. The film never proves to be a technical or thematic standout but instead works on its simple premise, charm, and first-rate execution from its leads. It's a classic crowd pleaser, a film of limited ambition but a rather large heart, of basic characterization but complex emotions, of simple roots but legendary status.

New York-based Writer Sue Charlton (Linda Kozlowski) finds herself intrigued by the urban legend of a rough-and-tumble Australian whose leg was bitten clean off by a crocodile. It sounds like a tragic but otherwise uninteresting story until she also learns that he supposedly crawled through the bush for a week before finally finding help. She travels to Australia to meet the notoriously reclusive individual and hear a firsthand account of his incredible story. She arrives to find the story largely a myth. The real "Crocodile" Dundee (Paul Hogan) is a rather outgoing type with both legs and only a nasty scar where he was, indeed, once mauled by a croc but not to the extent that urban legend claims. He shows her around the brush, and the two form a bond. When she proposes he return with her to New York, he agrees, only to find that his potential Mrs. Right is already being courted by another man.

"Crocodile" Dundee is a film of two distinct halves but one complete story. It takes the classic "fish out of water" story and doubles it, spending the first half following a city slicker reporter in Australia and its second half a rough-and-tumble bushman in the urban jungle of New York. The film earns plenty of humor from both ends of the spectrum, but its success comes in its cadence, in its refusal to dumb down its characters in order to make a futile effort at increasing the humor. Sue never devolves into Willie Scott from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. She's not outback material, but she's not helpless, either, capable of at least holding her own and understanding her environment, not falling to pieces when things get a little rough around her. On the other hand, Dundee carries himself well in New York, sticking out like the proverbial sore thumb but showing the skill to adapt to his environment without losing sight of who he is. Both characters fall into funny scenarios and the film certainly plays on their efforts to adapt to their environments, but never does it devolve into mindless slapstick. Instead, it's a surprisingly tight yet still light film, an enjoyable romp that earns jokes at the characters' expense but not at the cost of believability.

More, the film never tries to be something other than a light affair. There are no deeper themes beyond the idea that love need not be shared only between two people of a similar background. The rest of the movie is largely concerned with having fun with its characters, inviting the audience into their own worlds and finding the humor in their interactions in alien environments. The humor is frequently subtle and almost always character-driven. Observations are never empty and there's always a purpose to every shot, whether character building or light humor. The final scene builds on several key ideas introduced throughout, not only the romantic angle but the dichotomy between the bustling city and the intimacy between neighbors. Dundee observes, as he arrives, that so many people living together must mean that there's a large degree of peace and harmony and friendliness. He later shares a story of how psychology works in the outback, where everything is exposed to the open world and problems vanish amongst the people. That end scene ties these ideas together into the happily-ever-after that everyone knows is coming, but don't expect to work so well in the film's greater story and character context.

"Crocodile" Dundee II
Score: 2.0/5.0

There's an unwritten rule of thumb in the world of movie sequels: top the first one by making the second a bigger, more involved version of the first. Nobody knows that better than James Cameron, whose sequels Aliens and Terminator 2: Judgment Day are proof of the theory's validity. They're two of the finest sequels ever made, arguably better than the originals, and they blend together precision filmmaking and focused storytelling with audience-pleasing action. "Crocodile" Dundee II gets it half right. It's a significantly bigger film than its predecessor, but it's nowhere near as good and, more, almost nothing like the original. Aside from keeping the primary actors and building on their characters and their relationship from the original, the sequel looks and feels completely different. That's not a death sentence -- the movie is somewhat fun at face value -- but it's a far cry from the charming simplicity that made the first such a huge success.

It's been about a year since Michael J. "Crocodile" Dundee (Paul Hogan) made waves in The Big Apple. He's stayed behind and made something of a life for himself, living with squeeze Sue Charlton (Linda Kozlowski) and passing the time by dynamiting fish in the waters around New York. He's ready to settle into a job and make something more of his time in the city, but little does he know his time will soon be occupied by danger and adventure. When Sue's ex-husband runs afoul of some Colombian drug lords and photographs an execution, he goes on the run and mails the photographic evidence to Sue. She's in turn kidnapped. Dundee secures the letter and sets out to rescue his girl before she meets a violent fate.

The film's larger scope is met with a slower pace. It's emphasis on action and danger is met with a decline in humor and heart. "Crocodile" Dundee II sacrifices everything that made the original a memorable, lasting, almost infinitely viewable little gem and squanders it on what amounts to a light Action movie with almost no value beyond the surface. The film keeps the two leads from the original and reverses the chronology -- here starting in New York and winding up back in Australia rather than vice-versa -- but is otherwise almost completely unrecognizable from the first, particularly when it comes to tone. The film still finds a little bit of humor here and there as Dundee maneuvers through the city, but the emphasis quickly shifts once the driving force action is set into motion. Expect a few decent stunts and several moments of manufactured tension but little in the way of heart and character development.

To further aggravate the tonal shift, the cast seems almost fully disinterested. There's hardly any life to the performances and certainly none of the charm that helped shape the original into a borderline classic of casually fun cinema. Here, the film's serious air removes all of those, and other, qualities in favor of the action. Paul Hogan robotically maneuvers through the part, handling the role's physical requirements nicely enough but failing to recapture the charisma that made his character one of the standouts from the 1980s. Linda Kozlowski likewise seems content to go through the motions. The villains are stiff and completely forgettable. It's a rather dull, uninspired film all around, as much of a disappointment as the first film was a pleasant surprise.

Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

"Crocodile" Dundee
Score: 3.0/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee features a somewhat uneven but generally pleasing 1080p transfer. The film begins with a segment that looks smoothed over and very flat, inorganic and poorly detailed. Fortunately, it picks up -- considerably, at times -- to reveal a positive, film-like texture, accentuated by a rather even grain field. Here, detail can be rather striking on everything from beater cars to clothes, from wood grains to facial features. That said, there's an unmissable fuzziness around the edges; shelved liquor bottles are little more than a blur during an early movie bar sequence, for example. The transfer displays the same attention to the urban jungle details as it does some of the weathered bush and back country shots from its first half. The New York City half also produces a much more vibrant color palette than the fairly earthy and drab outback scheme. Black levels can display heavy crush, at times, particularly in dark nighttime exteriors. On the other hand, flesh tones seem mostly even and true. The print carries a good bit of dirt and debris with it, but not enough to distract from the overall experience. While not the refined and remastered transfer fans might want, this is a good HD image that serves the movie well.

"Crocodile" Dundee II
Score: 3.5/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee II arrives on Blu-ray with a good, though somewhat flawed and aged, 1080p transfer. Unlike the first film's Blu-ray transfer, this one's a little more evenly presented, lacking the smoother stretches and softer edges in favor of a sharper image. Grain is slightly spiky but consistent in texture. It helps establish a rather pleasing film-like surface and accentuate finer details around the frame. Paramount's transfer reveals with rather good attention to detail all of the clothing intricacies to be seen on Dundee's outback-style attire. City textures and earth terrains are also well defined. Colors are bold and bright, whether light blue police paint or lush green vegetation. Black levels are fine, and skin tones don't appear to betray natural shades. The transfer does contains quite a bit of wear and tear, showing a good bit of debris and light speckling throughout. Light noise and a few minor edge halos crop up from time to time as well. Overall, it's a good transfer, certainly not one on the cutting edge but a solid effort for something of a budget catalogue title release.

Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

"Crocodile" Dundee
Score: 3.0/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee arrives on Blu-ray with a fairly flat but generally active DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack. The track offers fair front end spacing in all areas, particularly in its music and ambient effects. The former plays with adequate volume and clarity, lacking nuance and punch but providing a rather good basic presentation. Atmospherics, too, are nicely defined, including crashes and footfalls on wooden planks at an Australian bar and more hustle-bustle type sounds once the action shifts to the city. There's very little energy, effort, or presence to the sounds of a jet engine, disappointing considering it represents the single biggest opportunity for a dynamic sound in the entire movie. Dialogue does play smoothly and evenly from the center. All in all, a decent enough track that gets the job done but accomplishes little more.

"Crocodile" Dundee II
Score: 3.5/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee II features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack, unlike its predecessor's 2.0-channel affair. Paramount's presentation is nothing extraordinary, but the added sense of space and somewhat heightened clarity help make the experience a bit more enjoyable. Musical delivery won't dazzle but it's solid enough, presenting decent spacing and clarity. Ambient sound effects, too, help define various environments, including a shopping mall, city exteriors, and Australian brush. The scene with Dundee and a man contemplating suicide in chapter four is a particularly good example of the track's ability to nicely immerse its audience into the world. Action sound effects are suitably strong, including several instances of gunfire. Dialogue plays evenly and clearly from the center. It's not a showstopper, but this soundtrack carries the nearly three-decades-old film nicely enough.

Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

"Crocodile" Dundee
Score: 0.5/5.0

All that's included in this Blu-ray release is the "Crocodile" Dundee Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2:40).

"Crocodile" Dundee II
Score: 1.0/5.0

"Crocodile" Dundee II contains the following two supplements:

• Behind-the-Scenes Featurette (SD, 5:25): On-set footage combined with talent interviews snippets.
• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 1:55).

Crocodile Dundee / Crocodile Dundee II Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Both films feature fair video and audio. "Crocodile" Dundee II's technical presentation is a little better all-around, and its supplements double that of the first. Recommended.