Plot: What’s it about?
A lot of chimps end up inside research labs, but very few are as talented as Jack. You see, Jack is very intelligent and thanks to his sign language skills, he has been purchased by a research lab for who knows what. But Jack doesn’t use his smarts for nothing and soon enough, he cracks an escape plan and leaves the lab in the distance. Now Jack is lost in the cold landscapes though, with little hope to find a new home, since he has no idea where he is or where he should go. But when he meets a couple youngsters and discovers he has some hockey skills, Jack finds himself in the middle of a new home. So Jack and his new friends have fun out on the ice, but with the lab officials on the trail of the talented chimp, the reign on the rink might come to an end soon. Can Jack help his team win the playoffs, get the townsfolk behind him, and then somehow stay out of his former lab home?
I think it is unfair to judge MVP by the usual scale, as it is a film about a chimp that plays hockey and as such, doesn’t even attempt to be a traditional motion picture. This one is aimed at a younger audience and of course, animal flick fans and by that standard, MVP is a solid and humorous little movie. I mean, I know some people might not be down with a chimp on ice, but as for myself, I think it’s a terrific premise. Do I think all movies should be like this one? No, but heck, why not have one in there just for kicks, right? After a plethora of monkey movies back a couple decades, it seemed like the genre was forgotten, until such flicks as Ed and Dunston Checks In breathed some life back in. So now a little down the road of time, we have MVP and in the end, I think it carries the torch with pride for the monkey movie genre as a whole. The antics are hilarious at times, but unless you’re into humor of this type, most of the jokes will fall short for you. I recommend this film to those who like animal flicks and as far as discs go, this is a pretty good one and worth the asking price. I do wish the movie was in widescreen, but aside from that, I have little to complain about here.
If you’ve seen the three Air Bud movies, then you’ll recognize Kevin Zegers (Shadow Builder, Komodo), who has a similar role in this movie. I wouldn’t bank on Zegers’ skills outside of animal flicks, but he manages in these movies and as such, I have no issues with his work here. And in truth, it can’t be too easy working with animals as costars, even with as much experience as Zegers has in that field. The rest of the cast is good too and includes Philip Granger (Masterminds, Bad Dreams), Jamie Renee Smith (Dante’s Peak, Midnight Man), Ingrid Tesch (Wrongfully Accused), Russell Ferrier (Breaking Point, Crying Freeman), Trevor Roberts (Scary Movie), and Rick Ducommun (The ‘burbs, Groundhog Day). This film was directed and cowritten by Robert Vince, who also served as producer on a couple of the Air Bud flicks.
Video: How does it look?
MVP is presented in a full frame transfer, which seems to be an open matte of the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. I am unsure why Warner chose to bypass a new anamorphic transfer, but the excess space the top and bottom of the frame gets annoying after a while. I also think the new anamorphic transfer would erase the frequent edge enhancement found here, which can also get on your nerves at times. But the basics seem in proper form here, as colors, flesh tones, and contrast are all up to the task. So this isn’t a bad transfer, but the lack of an anamorphic widescreen edition forces me to lower the score somewhat.
Audio: How does it sound?
I don’t think the speakers in your home theater will need much of a rest after this disc, but the included Dolby Digital 5.1 track is a solid one. The music and sound effects use the surrounds to some point, but not to the extent of more action driven audio tracks. No balance problems seem evident in the mix either, as I never had to fiddle with the volume to keep the elements in proper levels. I heard no issues with the dialogue either, as the vocals seem crisp and well placed, with no harshness in the least. This disc also includes a Spanish stereo surround track.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes a seven minute behind the scenes featurette, some talent files, an informative audio commentary track with director Robert Vince and several others, and the film’s theatrical trailer. I am pleased to see a nice selection of bonus materials included on a title like this, I hope to see future animal flicks given the same solid treatment.
