Review: The Flintstones In Viva Rock Vegas

The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas opened on this date in 2000. The Amblin Entertainment comedy was directed by Brian Levant and starred Mark Addy, Stephen Baldwin, Kristen Johnston and Jane Krakowski.

Synopsis:

The Flinstones in Viva Rock Vegas is a prequel to the 1994 film, The Flintstones. Both films are based on the classic cartoon series. Viva Rock Vegas centers on how Fred Flinstone meets the love of his life, Wilma. Fred & Wilma, along with their best friends, Barney & Betty, travel to Las Vegas and are faced with obstacles that threaten to destroy their relationship.

Positives:

• The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas does a good job of honoring the cartoon series that it is based on. The look, tone and style of the film are very consistent with the The Flintstones series.

Negatives:

• There are a lot of jokes in Viva Rock Vegas and very, very few are successful. The biggest problem with the film is it just isn’t funny.

• The actors don’t do a very good job of bringing the cartoon characters they are playing to life. They resemble and sound like the characters, but lack their charm. They are not nearly animated or charismatic enough to capture the spirit of a cartoon.

• The film looks very cheap and lacks the visual flair it needs to bring a cartoon to life. The special effects, camera work and the color palette that are used don’t pop the way a cartoon film should. Everything looks right for a Flintstones film, but it does not look impressive enough for a live action version.

In Closing:

The Flintstones In Viva Rock Vegas is a big step down from the first Flintstones film. That is a huge problem because The Flintstones was an average comedy at best. Viva Rock Vegas is a humorless and lackluster attempt to keep a franchise alive.

Rating: D