D.J.'s Guilty Pleasure Review #2: "Rugrats Go Wild"

Welcome to another episode of my biweekly amateur review series, "D.J.'s Guilty Pleasure Reviews", where I can say out loud "You may hate this particular movie/show/episode, BUT I FOR ONE REALLY ENJOY WATCHIN' IT!!" I simply like to see the best of stuff that are not horrendously bad to the extent of, say...oh I can't even say the name! I'll give you a hint: Wayne Brady. Anyway, this week's movie review is another Nickelodeon Movie, Rugrats Go Wild. Do I really think it's an awful animated crossover adventure that makes The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones (which I never even watched all of) look like a Shakespearian masterpiece? Wait to find out my honest thoughts after I tell the story (spoiler-free, of course)!

The Long Story Told Short: So, the third and final movie in the Rugrats franchise, of course, establishes that Rugrats and The Wild Thornberrys share the same universe. Tommy Pickles and his imaginative friends are shown to be huge fans of the Thornberrys' nature show, hosted by Nigel Thornberry (or as those "dumb babies" call him, "Nigel Strawberry"). But mean ol' Angelica tells Tommy that he'll never be as strong and ambitious as Nigel, because all he is is a "backyard baby with a diaper full of dreams!" Witch! Way to lower your cousin's self-esteem! Anyway, the Pickles, Finsters, DeVilles, and Susie Carmichael all reluctantly travel to their vacation on a tacky little boat of Stu's. A rain storm prompts the families to abandon ship to a just as tacky raft, and they end up on a desert island. But they're not alone. The Thornberrys happen to be on that same island, hoping to catch footage of a Clouded Leopard named Siri. It wouldn't take too long for the characters from two different Klasky Csupo-produced Nicktoons to meet each other. Nigel gets bumped in the head and starts acting like he's three, bossy blonde brats Angelica and Debbie become friends (sort of), Chuckie switches roles with wild boy Donnie, and Eliza gets to talk to the Pickles' dog, Spike (voiced by Bruce Willis of all people)! Uh-huh, lots of wild wonders definately ensues in this...Swiss Family Robinson-esque thing.

My Honest Thoughts on This So-Called Bad Movie: First of all, I must note that while I've always liked Rugrats (though I've probably watched all three movies a little more than the series itself), I was never a fan of The Wild Thornberrys. I barely ever watched that show, though I do enjoy watching its 2002 movie annually every New Year's Day on APTN since 2013. Now, I'm trying to get into it by watching some episodes online through Funnier Moments.

Alright, so I don't think bring the Rugrats and the Thornberrys together has resulted into the pee stain of all animated crossovers. I remember getting the VHS in 2007 (I wish I still kept the "Odorama" scratch-and-sniff card) a few months after getting the last movie I reviewed Hey Arnold!: The Movie (which I enjoy a little more), and I instantly fell in love with this thing! To the point where I got rid of the other two Rugrats movies which more better-received that I owned on VHS (because I thought they were too ear-wormy), and kept this one! Yes, really! I basically shared Jim Ferguson of FOX TV's opinion that it's "Fantastic! Maybe the Best Rugrats Adventure Yet!"Indeed, there is plenty of fun and excitement occuring in the film! It has to be seen to be believed. The whole Nigel acting like a toddler is so silly it's funny. It kinda makes you imagine an actual toddler watching this, and finding it insulting to three-year-olds everywhere! And now, to talk about the main attraction of Rugrats Go Wild: Bruce Freaking Willis as Spike. He did a good job, a hilarious job, even. He sure did put some spunk into that average pooch! Just watch 'im:

Next, we have Angelica and her whole "Island Princess" phase, which is just typical spoiled Angelica! I absolutely think the interactions between her and Debbie (who's my least favorite Thornberry, BTW) are more or less spot on! Hey, throw in Dodie Bishop and Miranda Killgallen from As Told by Ginger, and we got ourselves Mean Girls meets Gilligan's Island! And the scene with the rain storm is pretty suspenseful, I loved that as well. Alright, guys! I'm sure that if you ever saw that scene, you might remember the little bit of Fanservice provided by Angelica's hot mom, Charlotte, when she rips off the bottom of her dress to...I kinda forgot why. BTW, I used to have (or maybe I still do have) a crush on Charlotte when I was younger. I think she's the most attractive woman ever drawn by Klasky Csupo! Switching gears, if there was one scene that I was totally turned off by was when the Rugrats were...mooning on the boat. *shudders* I felt Chuckie's disgust!

Anyway, like the last two Rugrats movies, Rugrats Go Wild is a musical, more so than Rugrats in Paris, but probably less so The Rugrats Movie. The only musical numbers I enjoyed seeing and hearing were "Island Princess" by Angelica and Susie, and the hilarious "Big Bad Cat" by Bruce Willis-I mean Spike-I mean Bruce Willis! Seriously, it's John McClane in a dog's body! I haven't even watched Die Hard yet! I don't like the "It's a Jungle Out Here" scene because the Rugrats can't sing to save their lives (though I'll still excuse the fact that they're toddlers), and the less said about Angelica's pointless covers of "Dresses and Shoes" and "The Morning After", the better!

However, as much as I like this exciting adventure, there are some less nice things to say. Now, I blame Rugrats Go Wild for weakening Klasky Csupo's thunder in the animation industry, because of its failure at the box office. After this thing came out, they haven't succeeded in creating anything new for Nickelodeon. And saying that the studio founded by one married couple were already so busy with five shows at the time (Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, Rocket Power, Ginger, and that ...spin-off All Grown Up!) isn't even sound close to an excuse! So, Rugrats Go Wild may not be dog-poop-terrible of an idea, but I question why Klasky Csupo couldn't just stick with their original idea of producing it exclusively for TV. Yeah, they wanted it to be made-for-TV (simliar thing with Hey Arnold!: The Movie ), but for some reason they thought it had big-screen-worthy quality. Bad idea, you guys. Poor Klasky Csupo!

Well, there's not much more I can say about Rugrats Go Wild other than that it may be one of the reasons why Klasky Csupo is barely doing any significant in recent years, but it still an okay vacation adventure in its own right. Also, I say it's less pointless of an animated crossover than the Phineas and Ferb/Marvel one, or the Jimmy Timmy Power Hour trilogy. It's also kinda better, in my opinion, than those episodes of Lilo & Stitch: The Series crossing over with different other Disney Channel

cartoons like Recess and The Proud Family. Seriously, why the hell did those exist? What I'm trying to say is there are worse, less necessary animated crossovers out there than Rugrats Go Wild.

But, of course, there are slightly better ones than it like last year's "The Simpsons Guy".

What's next, Nick and K-C? As Told by Ginger meets All Grown Up!? Nah, that won't be possible.

Oh, wait, that's great! I just gave you, reader, a good fanfic idea!

How Recommendable Is It?: If you love both Rugrats and The Wild Thornberrys no matter what, then you'd probably like to check this movie out. If you're only a fan of only either one of these shows, chances are you might not be entertained by the characters from the other shows.

My Rating: 3/5

Basic Film Info:

Released: June 13, 2003

Starring: E.G. Daily, Nancy Cartwright ( I do sense a hint of Bart in Chuckie's voice), Kath Soucie, Cheryl Chase, Cree Summer, Tim Curry, Lacey Chabert, Tom Kane, Bruce Willis

Directed by: Norton Virgien and John Eng

Studio(s): Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Klasky Csupo (I liked their rooster logo at the beginning and end; less freaky than that "Robot" thing)

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 41% (two stars)

Metacritic Rating: 38% (two stars also)

Next time: Teen Titans Go!

What animated movie is your guilty pleasure? Post your answer in the comment box. Remember, it has to be a movie that's consider by many people to be mediocre or just plain bad, yet you find it to be amusing. So, please don't mention films that are actually acclaimed by most people, like Frozen.