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The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee

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The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Written byRobert Mond
Dean Murphy
Produced byNigel Odell
Dean Murphy
Starring
CinematographyRoger Lanser
Edited byPeter Carrodus
Robert Mond
Music byJohn Foreman
Production
companies
Clock Sounds Productions Pty
Kathy Morgan International
Piccadilly Pictures
Salt Media & Entertainment
Distributed byTransmission Films
Release date
  • 17 July 2020 (2020-07-17)
CountriesAustralia
United States
LanguageEnglish

The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee is a 2020 Australian comedy film directed by Dean Murphy, written by Robert Mond and Dean Murphy, and starring Paul Hogan, Rachael Carpani, Jacob Elordi, Charlotte Stent, Nate Torrence, Chevy Chase, John Cleese, Olivia Newton-John, Reginald VelJohnson, Shane Jacobson, Wayne Knight and Kerry Armstrong.

Paul Hogan is reluctantly thrust back into the spotlight as he desperately attempts to restore his sullied reputation on the eve of being knighted. The title pays homage to Hogan's famous role of Crocodile Dundee.

It was released on Amazon Prime Video on 17 July 2020,[1] and was the final film Olivia Newton-John starred in before her death in 2022.

Plot

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Aussie Paul Hogan, 'Crocodile Dundee', has been happily retired in Brentwood, California for decades. He is reluctantly thrust back into the public spotlight by his agent, who tells him the queen wants to give him a knighthood for his services to comedy.

Paul sits a meeting with a young, modern production company that would like to do a reboot of Crocodile Dundee by introducing Will Smith as his son. When he points out the obvious, that the actor being African-American isn't logical as both he and his screen partner are Caucasian, they label him a racist.

Paul attempts to return to his tranquil life at home, living with his son Chase, doing the daily crossword, spending time with his dog and enjoying regular calls from his 10-year-old granddaughter Lucy in Sydney.

Walking through Hollywood studio lots, Paul meets up with his long-time friend Reggie and explains how the production studio was quick to label him as a racist over his disapproval of casting Smith. They run into fellow Aussie Olivia Newton-John, who invites him to a charity event on the following Wednesday where John Travolta is meant to do a Grease duet with her.

On the way home, not liking the behavior of an ill-mannered Dundee impersonator on Hollywood Boulevard, Paul calls him out for it. In retaliation the man sicks his costumed kids on him. Many snap pictures, which are broadcast on the TV news, making him out to be the aggressor.

Paul insists he's not interested in the knighthood so, much to his agents' chagrin, turns down the offer. However, no sooner does she cancel it, but Lucy calls; she has excitedly told kids at her new school that her granddad has been offered a Knighthood. They didn't believe her and laughed at her. So, Paul realises he needs to get the Knighthood to help salvage her reputation. He does much begging and pleading, his agent reluctantly agrees to contact the Palace and gets the Knighthood back on.

Although Paul is always trying to do the right thing and salvage his quickly diminishing reputation, he keeps on being misunderstood and it seems as if life is conspiring against him. On his way to Olivia's "Grease" charity event, where has to step in for no-show John Travolta and sing a duet with her, not only does he wrongly almost enter a black performers' event but also enrages the die-hard "Grease" fans. One of them throws a bottle at him, which he throws back, inadvertently knocking out a nun.

The media are having a field day as they broadcast story after story, all negative headlines about Paul. He's now a regular punchline on talk shows. Paul's simple life has become hell for him, where he can't go out in public without being criticised.

Paul finds himself in a car with a mediocre paparazzi photographer with John Cleese, a most unexpected Uber Driver. John ends up running from the law, as he doesn't have a driver's license nor owns the car. He dumps them at Paul's, abandons the car, and leaves. The chase is televised, and the police tackling Paul and the photographer is shown live.

Paul manages to restore his sullied reputation on the eve of being knighted by foiling a car thief. His agent goes to England without him, accepting the knighthood on his behalf. Paul has moved out of his LA home and returned to Australia to be near his granddaughter, and has started seeing a friend of Olivia's.

Cast

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Production

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Filming took place in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Los Angeles, California, USA in 2018.[2]

Release

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The film was originally scheduled to be released in Australian cinemas on 30 April 2020, but had its theatrical release cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee was released exclusively on Amazon Prime Video on 17 July the same year.

Reception

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This new film has been summarized by Penelope DeBelle in Adelaide Now as "the latest in a long line of old man movies... Crocodile Dundee was 34 years ago, followed two years later by Crocodile Dundee II. Not even surgical uplifts and impeccable veneers can alter the fact that Hogan is now 80 years old. ...the idea of Hogan trying to revive the warmth and affection we had for his younger self seems a forlorn hope, just as casting a creaky Harrison Ford as a man living off the land seems an unnecessary stretch."[3]

The film has mostly negative reviews, with one and two-star reviews from ArtsHub,[4] Screenspace,[5] The Sydney Morning Herald[6] and The Guardian.[7] The Australian newspaper's Stephen Romei gave it one star: "The kindest comment I can make about Paul Hogan's new movie, The Very Excellent Mr Dundee, is that it includes John Cleese's worst performance ever (and, yes, I have seen Fierce Creatures from 1997)."[8]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 14% based on 21 reviews, and an average rating of 3.9/10.[9] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 24 out of 100, based on 4 critics.[10]

Accolades

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Award Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Golden Raspberry Awards Worst Supporting Actor Chevy Chase Nominated [11]

References

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  1. ^ "The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee, July 17th, Amazon Originals". Amazon Prime Video Official YouTube. 29 June 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  2. ^ Kaye, Ben (12 June 2018). "Paul Hogan to star as himself in The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  3. ^ Debelle, Penelope (23 May 2020). "Paul Hogan's The Very Excellent Mr Dundee just the latest in a string of old man movies". The Adelaide Advertiser. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  4. ^ Morris, Anthony. "Film Review: 'The Very Excellent Mr Dundee' is a trainwreck". ArtsHub Australia.
  5. ^ "THE VERY EXCELLENT MR. DUNDEE - Reviews - Screen-Space". screen-space.squarespace.com.
  6. ^ Byrnes, Paul (16 July 2020). "Paul Hogan retains his charm but has forgotten how to be funny". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  7. ^ "The Very Excellent Mr Dundee review – Paul Hogan tries to not get cancelled in confused film". The Guardian. 17 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Paul Hogan's Mr Dundee is worse than bad. It's embarrassing". www.theaustralian.com.au. 31 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  9. ^ "The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  10. ^ "The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  11. ^ Kreps, Daniel (12 March 2021). "'Dolittle', Sia's 'Music', '365 Days' Lead 2021 Razzie Awards Nominees". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 12 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
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