Wolff rating: GOOD
Plot summary: Emperor of fanciful Peru finds himself a victim of an evil aide who tries to get him out of the way so she can seize power.
Biased, pithy comments: The crew of this animated film has clearly gone back and watched the Marx brothers' films as well as a few Bob Hope vehicles. The dialog is snappy, the pacing quick, the characters chock full of funny banter, and the plot ultimately disposable. Spade is given wide latitude with his lines, and although he's no Robin Williams's genie, he imbues his Emperor (and subsequent llama-y exterior) with some character and a few laughs, along with some of his trademark Saturday Night Live barbs (which seem strangely topical, and might make for a dated movie as Spade's already not-really-bright star fades). Still, Goodman, Kitt, Malick, and especially Warburton act as excellent straight men (and women) to advance the plot, and there is enough fun here that I snorted my popcorn a few times. Definitely good despite its dependence on Warner Brothers-style falling gags.
Other Notes: There is probably a small PhD thesis to be written on the use and misuse of real foreign and historical cultures as the basis for what can only be desribed as traditional Western storytelling; the fact that not a single Peruvian can be found pretty much anywhere in the crew list makes this a little odd. I'm not really complaining, exactly, but like Gilbert and Sullivan abusing Japan in ``The Mikado,'' you can definitely see where real Peruvians might be left scratching their heads.
How many times I have seen it: x1
Starring: David Spade, Eartha Kitt, John Goodman, Patrick Warburton, Wendie Malick.
Directed by: Mark Dindal