The Wild Thornberrys Movie
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
  • Jeff McGrath
  • Cathy Malkasian
Written byKate Boutilier
Based onThe Wild Thornberrys
by Arlene Klasky
Gábor Csupó
Steve Pepoon
David Silverman
Stephen Sustarsic
Produced by
  • Arlene Klasky
  • Gábor Csupó
Starring
Edited byJohn Bryant
Music byDrew Neumann[1]
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • December 20, 2002 (2002-12-20)[1]
Running time
85 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25 million[2]
Box office$60.7 million[2]

The Wild Thornberrys Movie is a 2002 American animated adventure film based on the television series of the same name.[3] Directed by Jeff McGrath and Cathy Malkasian, the film follows Eliza Thornberry, on her quest to save a cheetah cub from ruthless poachers. It was produced by Klasky Csupo and distributed by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies. The film was released on December 20, 2002, to mostly positive reviews and grossed more than $60 million worldwide.

The film was also nominated for Best Original Song at the 75th Academy Awards, making it the only film based on a Nicktoon to be nominated. It is also the third film to be based on a Klasky Csupo series. A sequel to the film, and a crossover with characters from Rugrats titled Rugrats Go Wild, was released on June 13, 2003.

Plot

Eliza Thornberry is playing with a family of cheetahs in Kenya after their mother, Akela, puts her in charge of the cubs. When Eliza accidentally strays too far from the cheetahs, poachers in a helicopter kidnap one of the cheetah cubs, Tally. Eliza is determined to save the cub, causing her older sister Debbie to tell her family about Eliza's antics. This prompts her caring but straight-laced grandmother Cordelia to send Eliza to a boarding school in London for her safety - much to Debbie's dismay since Debbie wanted a normal life. Upon arriving, Eliza discovers that her pet chimpanzee, Darwin, is stowed away in her suitcase.

After having a dream in which Shaman Mnyambo tells her that Tally is alive and to go rescue him, Eliza convinces her roommate Sarah Wellington to buy plane tickets for her and Darwin to return to Africa. While taking a train from Nairobi, they encounter an injured black rhinoceros, who was shot at the river by the same poachers who kidnapped Tally. They jump off the train to save the rhino with the help of veterinarians Bree and Sloan Blackburn. Meanwhile, Debbie is left alone with her feral adoptive younger brother Donnie at their Comvee, while their parents, Nigel and Marianne, go to film a solar eclipse at Tembo Valley. Eliza returns to the Comvee for supplies and has a small confrontation with Debbie, who demands to know why Eliza ran away from London and gave up her chance for a normal life. Eliza locks her in a cage, but Debbie escapes and pursues her, Darwin, and Donnie using her parents' motorcycle. Cordelia and her husband, Colonel Radcliffe, try to find Eliza and take her back to London before Nigel and Marianne find out; however, they meet up with Nigel and Marianne to inform them of Eliza's escape. They also begin searching for Debbie, Eliza, Donnie, and Darwin.

Darwin, Eliza, and Donnie meet a gorilla who mentions seeing people setting up a fence across Tembo Valley. They then run into the Blackburns again, and Eliza concludes that the poachers are targeting the elephant herd traveling through the valley. The trio is invited to spend the night at the Blackburns' camp, but the next day, they find Tally inside the Blackburns' RV. The Blackburns reveal their true agenda as the poachers and capture them, revealing that the fence is electrified. Eliza and Darwin have a falling out, and when Darwin accuses Eliza of not knowing how to properly use her powers, Eliza angrily tells him to be quiet. Meanwhile, Debbie meets a local Mbuti boy named Boko, who assists her at the request of his village elders. The two reach the Blackburns' camp, but Sloan holds Debbie hostage after she reveals she is Eliza's sister. When Sloan threatens to kill Debbie if Eliza does not tell him how she discovered their plan, Eliza admits it was because of her ability to talk to animals. As Eliza has revealed her secret, something she was forbidden to do, a storm comes and takes away her powers while the Blackburns flee in their helicopter. Eliza, Debbie, Darwin, Donnie, and Tally escape by riding a log on the river.

After the storm, Eliza tells Debbie about her ability to talk to animals and that she lost it because she revealed her secret to the Blackburns, and is upset that she cannot apologize to Darwin for her harsh words earlier. Debbie is moved that Eliza gave up her powers to save her. They reach Tembo Valley in time to see the elephant herd heading for the electric fence. When Eliza becomes doubtful of herself, Debbie reminds her that she has been helping animals long before gaining her powers, restoring her confidence. When the eclipse begins, the Blackburns order their henchmen to set off explosives, scaring the elephants and making them charge toward the fence. Eliza triggers the fence's electricity prematurely using a medal that Nigel gave her, causing the herd to stop temporarily, then convinces the lead elephant to turn around. Infuriated, Sloan throws Eliza into a river and attempts to shoot the elephants, but they pull the Blackburns' helicopter out of the air by its rope ladder and destroy it, causing Sloan and Bree to fall. Eliza nearly drowns until Shaman Mnyambo saves her; he praises her for saving the elephants using her heart instead of her powers. As a reward, he returns her powers, on the condition that Debbie will also keep Eliza's powers a secret.

Following the eclipse, the Blackburns have survived the fall and end up getting arrested by rangers. Eliza reconciles with Darwin and she reunites with her family, who decide not to send her back to boarding school since she saved the elephants. Boko returns to his village, keeping Debbie's watch as a memento. The lead elephant returns Eliza's medal to her and expresses her gratitude. The Thornberrys return to Savannah, where Eliza reunites Tally with his family. Eliza tells Debbie she will turn into a baboon if she reveals Eliza's secret, much to her anger, and in the process frightens a group of olive baboons Nigel and Marianne are filming. One of them activates the radio, which plays music that the Thornberrys and the baboons dance to.

Voice cast

  • Lacey Chabert as Elizabeth "Eliza" Thornberry, an 11-year-old girl who talks to animals.
  • Tim Curry as Sir Nigel Thornberry, the world famous host of nature program. Nigel Thornberry's Wild World. The husband of Marianne and father of Debbie, Eliza, and Donnie and son of Col. Radcliffe Thornberry and Col. Radcliffe Thornberry, Cordelia Thornberry's husband and Nigel's father.
  • Jodi Carlisle as Marianne Thornberry, the wife of Nigel, mother of Debbie, Eliza and Donnie and the camera operator/editor of their nature show.
  • Danielle Harris as Deborah "Debbie" Thornberry, Eliza's older sister who has the longest hair like any other Thornberry.
  • Flea as Donald Michael "Donnie" Thornberry, a Thornberry who doesn’t talk very much.
  • Tom Kane as Darwin Thornberry, a chimpanzee.
  • Lynn Redgrave as Cordelia Jasmin McGold Thornberry, Col. Radcliffe Thornberry’s wife and Nigel's mother.
  • Rupert Everett as Sloan Blackburn, a male poacher.
  • Marisa Tomei as Bree Blackburn, a female poacher.
  • Brock Peters as Jomo, a safari park ranger.
  • Alfre Woodard as Akela, a full-sized female cheetah who lost her cub, Tally, by the poachers.
  • Kimberly Brooks as Tally, a cheetah cub.
  • Cree Summer as Phaedra, the lead elephant.
  • Brenda Blethyn as Mrs. Alice June Fairgood, the headmistress of Lady Beatrice's boarding school.
  • Obba Babatundé as Boko, a Mbuti boy.
  • Kevin Michael Richardson as Shaman Mnyambo.
  • Melissa Greenspan as Sarah Wellington, Eliza's roommate.
  • Alexandra Boyd as Victoria, one of Sarah's friends.
  • Moira Quirk as Jane, one of Sarah's friends.
  • Tara Strong, Hynden Walch, and Mae Whitman as The Schoolgirls, three British teenaged schoolgirls.
  • Roger L. Jackson as Reggie, a British squirrel and Thunder, a Scottish horse.
  • Jeff Coopwood as Park Ranger Tim, a park ranger that the Thornberrys met.
  • Billy Brown as Mr. Rhino, a male black rhinoceros who was shot at the river by the same poachers who kidnapped the cheetah cub, Tally.
  • Keith Szarabajka as Poacher
  • Earl Boen as Gorilla, a mountain gorilla.

Reception

Box office

The film opened in the U.S. box office on December 20, 2002, and finished at #6 for the weekend, with only $6 million for 3,012 theaters, for an average of only $1,997 per venue.[4] The film ended up with a modest $40 million domestically, partly because the film came out on the same week as The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. But, in light of generally favorable reviews, it managed to out-gross its holiday animated feature behind Treasure Planet, which only grossed about $38 million domestically.[5]

It is one of only fourteen feature films to be released in over 3,000 theaters, and still improve on its box office performance in its second weekend, increasing 22.5% from $6 million to $7.4 million.[6]

Critical response

Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 80% of 89 critics gave the film a positive review; the average rating is 6.7/10. The site's consensus states: "The Wild Thornberrys Movie brings its beloved clan to the big screen for an animated adventure that should prove entertaining for all ages."[7] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[8] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[9] Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper both praised the film and gave it “Two Thumbs Up” on their television show.

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called it "a witty and delightful Christmas present for the entire family". Thomas said it "balances some honest heart-tugging with a sophisticated sense of humor", making it rare among children's films.[10] Writing for The New York Times, Dave Kehr described it as an "extended Saturday morning cartoon" that is "bland but harmless", comparing it negatively to Disney's The Lion King.[11] In USA Today, Claudia Puig rated it 3/4 stars and wrote, "The Wild Thornberrys will no doubt brighten the day of parents looking for family activities during the holidays."[12] It was also reviewed by Boston.com[13] and Film4.[14]

Accolades

The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Father and Daughter" by Paul Simon, but lost to "Lose Yourself" by Eminem for 8 Mile.[15]

Home media

Paramount Home Entertainment released on VHS and DVD on April 1, 2003.[16]

Video game

A video game based on the movie was released by THQ for the Game Boy Advance[17] and PC.[18] The game's story mode puts players in the role of Eliza in scenarios loosely based on the events of the movie, and contains mini-games that allow the player to control other members of the Thornberrys.[18]

Music

Soundtrack

The Wild Thornberrys Movie: Music from the Motion Picture
Soundtrack album by
Various Artists
ReleasedNovember 26, 2002
Recorded2002
GenreHip hop, world music, teen pop, rock
Length58:07
LabelJive Records
Nick Records
Zomba Music
ProducerVarious Artists
Singles from The Wild Thornberrys Movie: Music from the Motion Picture
  1. "Father and Daughter"
    Released: 2002
  2. "Dance with Us"
    Released: 2002
  3. "Happy"
    Released: 2002

An original soundtrack for the film was released on November 26, 2002, on compact disc and audio cassette by Zomba Music, Jive Records, and Nick Records.[19] The executive producer was George Acogny.[20] Paul Simon's "Father and Daughter", written for the film, was released as a single. It went on to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song,[15] as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.[21]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[20]
No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Father and Daughter"Paul Simon4:10
2."Iwoya"Angélique Kidjo featuring Dave Matthews3:47
3."Dance with Us"P. Diddy and Brandy featuring Bow Wow4:56
4."Animal Nation"Peter Gabriel7:20
5."Happy"Sita4:06
6."Motla Le Pula (The Rainmaker)"Hugh Masekela5:35
7."Monkey Man"Reel Big Fish2:36
8."Don't Walk Away"Youssou N'Dour featuring Sting4:42
9."Accident"Baha Men2:48
10."End of Forever"Nick Carter4:05
11."Shaking the Tree ('02 Remix)"Peter Gabriel and Youssou N'Dour featuring Shaggy5:08
12."Get Out of London"The Pretenders3:11
13."Africa (Ila Ra Waisco)"Las Hijas del Sol3:56
14."Awa Awa"Wes4:27
Total length:58:07

Score

The Wild Thornberrys Movie: Original Motion Picture Score
Soundtrack album by
Drew Neumann
ReleasedApril 8, 2003
Recorded2002
GenreSoundtrack
LabelSilverline Records/Nick Records

The score was released on April 8, 2003, from Silverline Records, and includes the theme song "Bridge to the Stars", music by Randy Kerber (who composed the additional music for the score) and J. Peter Robinson, with lyrics by Maribeth Derry and performed by Tracey Amos and Lisa McClowry. The album is currently out of print.

Sequel

A sequel and a crossover with Rugrats (another series from Klasky Csupo), titled Rugrats Go Wild, was released on June 13, 2003.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Detail View of Movies Page". Afi.com. Archived from the original on 2021-05-19. Retrieved 2016-08-20.
  2. 1 2 "The Wild Thornberrys". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2018-06-21. Retrieved 2016-06-06.
  3. ↑ Mallory, Michael (2002-12-16). "Thornberrys Movie Plan: Pretend Series Never Existed". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2012-11-03. Retrieved 2010-11-10.
  4. ↑ "Two Towers Rules US Box Office". The Age. Melbourne. 2002-12-23. Archived from the original on 2012-11-06. Retrieved 2010-10-30.
  5. ↑ "Treasure Planet". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2018-12-15. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  6. ↑ "Smallest Second Weekend Drops". boxofficemojo.com. Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Wild Thornberrys Movie". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on 2019-04-18. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  8. ↑ "The Wild Thornberrys Movie". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2018-10-22. Retrieved 2018-11-07.
  9. ↑ "Find CinemaScore" (Type "Wild Thornberrys" in the search box). CinemaScore. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  10. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (2002-12-20). "Serengeti Surprise: A Delightful Family Film". LA Times. Archived from the original on 2012-10-26. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  11. ↑ Kehr, Dave (2002-12-20). "Film Review; Cartoon Characters Are at Home, Home on the Veldt". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  12. ↑ Puig, Claudia (2002-12-20). "Cute, Spunky 'Thornberrys'". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2005-12-31. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  13. ↑ Burr, Ty (2002-12-20). "'Thornberrys' Is Fun, but Gets a Little Too Wild". Boston.com. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  14. ↑ "Wild Thornberrys'". Film Four. Archived from the original on 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  15. 1 2 "Eminem Builds on Oscar Buzz". BBC. 2003-02-14. Archived from the original on 2022-08-18. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  16. ↑ Beierle, Aaron (2003-03-26). "Wild Thornberrys Movie". DVD Talk. Archived from the original on 2016-07-01. Retrieved 2016-06-06.
  17. ↑ "Boys' Life". Boy Scouts of America, Inc. 2003-09-01. Archived from the original on 2023-08-20. Retrieved 2023-08-20. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  18. 1 2 Hollingshead, Anise. "The Wild Thornberrys Movie". KidZone. Archived from the original on 2006-11-06. Retrieved 2023-08-20.
  19. ↑ Ball, Ryan (October 21, 2002). "Wild Thornberrys To Swing Into Record Stores". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on May 5, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  20. 1 2 https://www.allmusic.com/album/r613491
  21. ↑ Rick Lyman (December 20, 2002). "'Chicago' and 'The Hours' Lead Golden Globes Race". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2017-06-27. Retrieved 2019-06-16.
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