Hes survived the most hostile and primitive land known to man. Now all hes got to do is make it through a week in New York.
Rating: 8/10
Running Time: 98 minutes
UK Certificate: 15
On DVD
The best thing about 'Crocodile Dundee' is that it has absolutely NOTHING to do with Dundee. A close second, however, is the startlingly good performance from weather-beaten Aussie Paul Hogan as the crocodile-battling bush-tucker man with a humongous knife and a way with the Sheilas.
Wild man Mick 'Crocodile' Dundee (Hogan) smells cash when a New York daily rag agrees to pay him big bucks to let ambitious journo Sue Charlton (Linda Kozlowski) traipse around the outback with him for a couple of days. But the adventure really kicks-off when the pair develop the hubba-hubbas for each other and Sue convinces our leathery-skinned hero to return with her to the Big Apple.
Unfortunately, back in NY her smarmy boyfriend Richard (Mark Blum) awaits, as do a string of convenient but extremely funny fish-out-of-water gags for the then-unknown Hogan to cut his Hollywood teeth on. 'Imagine 7 million people all wanting to live together,' muses Mick. 'New York must be the friendliest place on Earth.' So, in-between wooing the lady we all just know he's going to end up with anyway, he dishes out the Aussie charm treatment to pimps, muggers, ladies of the night and a bar-room admirer with a suspiciously-masculine jaw-line. It's all hugely predictable stuff, but the excellent script and hugely appealing plot make it impossible to dislike.
There's plausible chemistry between Hogan and Kozlowski which is just as well, considering 4 years after this movie's 1986 cinema release the pair got hitched. There's also an annoyingly-catchy didgeridoo-led musical score to accompany the movie's memorable train station climax.
It's Got: A hotel room with two dunnies. Or maybe one of thems for something else.
It Needs: Not to be confused with real-life equivalent Steve Irwin.
DVD Extras Strewth! Is one theatrical trailer all we get? Stone the flamin crows. DVD Extras Rating: 1/10
Summary
A funny and charming, if slightly predictable, comedy classic.