The Flintstones (1994)

The Flintstones (1994) ** (out of 4)John Goodman as Fred Flintstone, Elizabeth Perkins as Wilma Flintstone, Rick Moranis as Barney Rubble and Rosie O'Donnell as Betty Rubble. In this live adaptation of the animated television show, Fred finally gets the job that he's always dreamed of but it's going to come at a cost he might not be willing to pay.If you're old enough then you probably remember having to live through the dark years of theatrical movies. You remember back in the early 90s when various television shows were being put on the big screen. One of the most anticipated ones was THE FLINTSTONES, which came out of nowhere, became a hit and even got a sequel but I don't think there's much to defend here as the film is quite bland.There are a lot of problems with this film but I will say that they got one thing right and that was the casting of Goodman as Fred Flintstone. This here was the perfect choice for the role and Goodman does a terrific job with it. The only problem is that he isn't given anything to work with as the screenplay is quite bland and poor without too many original ideas or laughs.The biggest problem is that the screenplay doesn't have much to do. Fred is given this new job, it causes problems at home, he fights with Barney and then we get to the conclusion. The film certainly looks qutie good as the prehistoric scenery is quite believable but it's all eye candy with nothing to support it. Halle Berry as well as a certain cameo are also good but more of this was needed.

If there's such a thing as a perfect movie, The Flintstones is it. It's absolutely hilarious, with no downtime and no dated jokes. If you've seen the original Hanna Barbara cartoon, you'll probably pee from laughing so hard, and if you haven't, well, you'll still probably pee from laughing so hard. I saw this movie in the theaters when I was a little girl and laughed my head off, thinking it was the first movie to ever make caveman jokes. Just last week, I watched my DVD for the hundredth time and laughed just as hard.John Goodman as Fred Flintstone, Rick Moranis as Barney Rubble, Elizabeth Perkins as Wilma, and Rosie O'Donnell as Betty are all totally perfect. The original song is included at the start and end of the film, and all the throwbacks to the cartoon are side-splittingly funny. Modern touches are incredibly clever and tie in seamlessly to the setting. For example, the Flintstones go to the drive-in movies to watch "Gorge Lucas's Tar Wars", and the band The B-52s guest star in a swanky nightclub as "The BC-52s".In the film, Fred and Wilma help their best friends adopt a child, and in return, Barney helps Fred get a promotion at work. But, as the incredibly dumb Fred moves up the corporate ladder, he just might get duped by the slippery smooth Cliff, played by Kyle MacLachlin, and his secretary, a young Halle Berry who gets her own theme music whenever she walks in the room.It's silly and lovely, and best of all, Elizabeth Taylor puts the finishing touch on the film in her role as Wilma's mom. It's my favorite of her performances; pretty much every one of her lines has become a permanent phrase in my household. If only she'd been given more screen time! But, as she says in the movie, "Let's not let a little thing like that spoil the party—Conga line!"

The Flintstones (1994): Dir: Brian Levant / Cast: John Goodman, Elizabeth Perkins, Rick Moranis, Rosie O'Donnell, Elizabeth Taylor: Here is a huge opportunity to create movie magic and instead a celebrated cartoon is turned into a pathetic showcase. It is claimed that over thirty writers were assigned to the screenplay but I have read instruction booklets that regarded how to put batteries in appliances that were more artistic than this film. Fred Flintstone assists his friend Barney Rubble in adopting Bam Bam and he repays him by switching aptitude tests that will determine who will be Vice-President at Slate Enterprises. This leads to a conspiracy that costs workers their jobs and has Fred on the run. Horrible translation by director Brian Levant whose best asset is the prehistoric production. The screenplay throws in aptitude tests, embezzlement, office politics, fraud, and adoptions that will not interest the intended audience. With that said the characters are given little of a plot. John Goodman and Elizabeth Perkins give it a welcome attempt as Fred and Wilma, but Rick Moranis fails to project Barney's mannerisms, and Rosie O'Donnell hardly looks like Betty although she did deliver on the famous giggle. Elizabeth Taylor as Fred's mother-in-law is another horrible miscast. Thirty writers could not prevent this from becoming an embarrassing prehistoric failure. Score: 3 / 10

Far from the worst movie I have ever seen, but still a missed opportunity, and not really that good.Plot In A Paragraph: Jurassic Jollies all around as we get the first live action version of "The Flintstones" in which there is trouble at the Quarey as Senior Executive Cliff Vandercave (Kyle MacLachlan) and secretary Miss Sharon Stone (Halle Berry) plan to swindle the company of its vast fortune and flee, but they need a stooge to take the fall for it. Enter a promotion for Fred. The film stars John Goodman as Fred Flintstone, Rick Moranis as Barney Rubble, Elizabeth Perkins as Wilma Flintstone, and Rosie O'Donnell as Betty Rubble, along with Kyle MacLachlan as an executive-vice president of Fred's company, Halle Berry as his seductive secretary and Elizabeth Taylor, in her final theatrical film, as Wilma's mother.Visually it's impressive, and a lot of the fun things to see are usually little things, often in the background. Goodman is the perfect Fred, whilst Moranis is great as Barney, elsewhere Halle Berry literally steams up the screen she is that hot. Sadly Kyle MacLachlan is in full pantomime villain mode and it's just as well this was Liz Taylor's last movie as she over acts horribly.