Reviewer's Rating 2 out of 5
Kangaroo Jack (2003)
PG

Jar Jar Binks, Scooby-Doo, Dobby the House Elf - our screens are awash with CGI characters these days. To that list add Jackie Legs, the manic marsupial at the centre of this brainless comedy from the director of "Coyote Ugly".

Co-written by Steve Bing, presumably between paternity suits, it's a thin, tedious caper only notable for its impressive Outback locations and a cameo from Christopher Walken that proves the word "no" isn't in his vocabulary.

New York hairdresser Charlie Carbone (Jerry O'Connell) and best friend Louis (Anthony Anderson) land themselves in hot water when a routine act of petty larceny leads the cops to a lock-up owned by Charlie's mob boss stepfather, Sal Maggio (Walken).

To make up for their blunder, Charlie and Louis are told to deliver $50,000 in cash to one of Sal's associates Down Under.

Their problems start when they (inexplicably) dress a dead kangaroo in Louis' jacket, only for the creature to come alive and hop off into the Bush with the money in his pocket.

If you swallow this preposterous premise, you'll have no trouble following the chase that follows as our bumbling heroes go in search of the animal - with a little help from a drunken pilot (Bill Hunter), a beautiful wildlife expert (Estella Warren), and a pair of flatulent camels.

But even the most gullible infant will quickly tire of the frenetic action, while Jackie's coarse and aggressive antics are a world away from Skippy.

Tie this kangaroo down, sport - before he makes a sequel.

End Credits

Director: David McNally

Writer: Steve Bing, Scott Rosenberg, Barry O'Brien

Stars: Jerry O'Connell, Anthony Anderson, Estella Warren, Christopher Walken, Marton Csokas

Genre: Comedy, Family

Length: 89 minutes

Cinema: 16 May 2003

Country: USA

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