Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 10, 1995 TAG: 9506130018
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The result is a mixed bag: an action movie that's too profane and violent (despite its PG-13 rating) for kids, and too silly and cute at other moments for older viewers. That said, working from Michael Crichton's novel, writer John Patrick Shanley (``Moonstruck'') and director Frank Marshall (``Alive'') keep the pace quick and they never miss an opportunity to dust off a cliche - the lost city, hidden treasure, earthquakes, erupting volcanos, rivers of lava - or to create a new one - vicious killer hippos.
Our protagonists are Dr. Karen Ross (Laura Linney), an ex-CIA agent; Peter Eliot (Dylan Walsh) and his talking gorilla Amy (some guy in a furry suit); Herkimer Homolka (Tim Curry), the Romanian philanthropist; and Monroe Kelly (Ernie Hudson), the Great Black Hunter who leads them off into the jungle where mysteries and savage apes await. Why? They all have reasons that make precious little sense, even within the film's context.
Ernie Hudson is the only one who catches the true spirit of the piece. He adopts a tongue-in-cheek British accent that sounds like a cross between Leslie Howard and George Sanders. Tim Curry overdoes his comic relief. Everyone else on both sides of the camera seems to be playing it straight.
If the filmmakers had toned down the violence just a little and cut out the absolutely needless cursing, "Congo" would be fine summer escapism for young audiences. It avoids the racism of its predecessors from the 1930s, and has all of the flashy sound and visual effects that today's kids demand.
As it turned out, though, "Congo" is never involving or catchy enough to be good cinematic popcorn.
Congo
**
A Paramount release playing at the Salem Valley 8 and Valley View Mall 6. 103 min. Rated PG-13 for strong language, graphic violence.
by CNB