LIKABLE `DEEDLES' GOES TO DOGS.Byline: Robert Philpot Knight Ridder Tribune News Wire If you've ever been stuck in tourist gridlock Gridlock A government, business or institution's inability to function at a normal level due either to complex or conflicting procedures within the administrative framework or to impending change in the business. while trying to see Old Faithful erupt, you might not think that shutting it down is all that bad an idea. But corking cork·ing Slang adj. Splendid; fine: a corking party. adv. Used as an intensive: a corking good story. the geyser geyser (gī`zər) [Icel.], hot spring from which water and steam are ejected periodically to heights ranging from a few to several hundred feet. is the evil plot at the heart of ``Meet the Deedles,'' a stupid comedy that almost gets by on good-naturedness. Almost. The movie takes too long to get to where we all know it's going, and provides too few surprises on the way and too little payoff at the end. It's harmless, but it's not exactly rewarding. The Deedles are 18-year-old surfer-dude twins Stew (Steve Van Wormer Steve Van Wormer is an American actor and comedian. He was born in Grand Blanc, Michigan, attended Michigan State University, and moved to Los Angeles, California upon graduation. ) and Phil (Paul Walker) who, through plot tissue it would be pointless to go into here, are mistaken for rookie park rangers. Phil, the marginally better-looking one, quickly falls for a pretty ranger (A.J. Langer); Stew, the marginally smarter one, sets to work trying to solve the park's prairie-dog problem. Oh yeah, the prairie-dog problem. Seems that the little critters are running rampant through Yellowstone, creating all sorts of havoc, and a head ranger wants 'em destroyed. You might think it's strange for a park ranger to want to get RID of wildlife, but apparently animatronic animals aren't on the endangered species endangered species, any plant or animal species whose ability to survive and reproduce has been jeopardized by human activities. In 1999 the U.S. government, in accordance with the U.S. list. Anyway, the p-dogs, as the Deedles call 'em, are just a front for a plot by a disgruntled dis·grun·tle tr.v. dis·grun·tled, dis·grun·tling, dis·grun·tles To make discontented. [dis- + gruntle, to grumble (from Middle English gruntelen; see ex-ranger (Dennis Hopper, who else?) to, um, geyser-nap Old Faithful. The Deedles work diligently to fight the park's foes, but can't avoid upsetting just about everyone, because, as you know, no good Deedle goes unpunished unpunished Adjective without suffering or resulting in a penalty: the guilty must not go unpunished, such crimes should not remain unpunished Adj. 1. . Van Wormer Wormer is a town in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Wormerland, and lies about 13 km northwest of Amsterdam. In 2006, the town of Wormer had 12566 inhabitants. The built-up area of the town is 16.88 km² (of which water: 4.19 km²). and Walker, who don't look much like twins, are likable enough guys, and screenwriter Jim Herzfeld (who in better days co-wrote ``Tapeheads'') gives them plenty of boss surfer dialogue. But the movie misses way too many bits: Why have Hopper (who does most of his acting sitting in a chair) essentially reprise his ``Speed'' role if you're not going to riff on it, and why have your surfers out of water if they so easily adapt to their surroundings? This kind of mind-wandering could be avoided if the movie were faster-paced and, well, funnier. It has a few laughs, but it's mostly content to plug in the same ol' formula holes other family movies plug in these days. As the Deedles might say, take a Pass-a-dena on this one. THE FACTS The film: ``Meet the Deedles'' (PG; language, sexual innuendo and situations, gross humor). The stars: Steve Van Wormer, Paul Walker, A.J. Langer, John Ashton and Dennis Hopper. Behind the scenes: Directed by Steve Boyum. Written by Jim Herzfeld. Produced by Dale Pollock and Aaron Meyerson. Released by Walt Disney Pictures. Running time: One hour, 34 minutes. Playing: Citywide. Our rating: Two Stars. |
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