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critics consensus

Encino Man isn't the first unabashedly silly comedy to embrace its stupidity and amass a cult following, but whether or not it works for you will largely be determined by your tolerance for Pauly Shore. Read critic reviews

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Encino Man Photos

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Movie Info

California teen Dave Morgan (Sean Astin) is digging a pit for a pool in his backyard when he happens upon a caveman frozen in a block of ice. Aided by his goofy friend Stoney (Pauly Shore), Dave transports their discovery to his garage, where the Neanderthal thaws and is revived. When Dave and Stoney find the living and thoroughly bewildered caveman, they attempt to pass him off as a foreign exchange student named Link (Brendan Fraser), resulting in many misadventures.
  • Rating:
    PG
  • Genre:
    comedy
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Les Mayfield
  • Producer:
    George Zaloom
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $40.0M
  • Runtime:
  • Production Co:
    Hollywood Pictures, Encino Man Productions
  • Sound Mix:
    Surround, Stereo

Cast & Crew

Sean Astin
Dave
Brendan Fraser
Link
Pauly Shore
Stoney Brown
Megan Ward
Robyn Sweeney
Robin Tunney
Ella
Michael DeLuise
Matt Wilson
Patrick Van Horn
Phil, Matt's Thug 1
Mariette Hartley
Mrs. Morgan
Richard Masur
Mr. Morgan
Les Mayfield
Director
George Zaloom
Producer
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News & Interviews for Encino Man

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Critic Reviews for Encino Man

All Critics (34) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (5) | Rotten (29)

View All Critic Reviews (34)

Audience Reviews for Encino Man

  • Mar 04, 2012
    Bland and formulaic. "Encino Man" delivers what's expected and does nothing more -- or better -- than that. Plus, Pauly Shore is unnecessarily annoying.
    Stephen E Super Reviewer
  • Aug 25, 2011
    Honestly, one of my fave movies of all time, although I always knew it as California Man. A very young cast of actors who became more famous than I am sure any of them thought they would be when cast in this little known gem, I genuinely enjoy the chemistry between the three main characters and think that this movie has provided me with some gnarly one liners that I still say to this day. Hilariously original.
    Unknown H Super Reviewer
  • May 28, 2011
    The first cinematic outing by Pauly Shore is a half decent comedy. Though fun, and comical at times, Encino Man is not a great film. I see it as an a borderline effort in the genre, and one that can actually be quite forgotten. Encino Man gave us the taste of Pauly Shore, and what was to come with one good comedy and three other bad, repetitive comedy. In Encino Man, Pauly Shore plays a surfer type dude who he duplicated in the many films that followed. The plot is simple, two friends find a caveman in their backyard and use him to gain popularity. Encino Man is a fun film, but it's nothing knee slapping hilarious. Whats funny to me though is how Pauly Shore has faded into darkness and how Brendan Frasier, Sean Astin and Robin tunney managed to all have pretty good careers. Encino Man is a average film with a few laughs throughout, but also you have to keep your expectations low. Nothing really good happens. The films plot is simple, even by comedy standards and the acting of course isn't great. Along with Son in Law, Encino Man manages to be one of the few Pauly Shore films thats watchable. But the film is really a one trick poney with Shore acting like the Weasel. Oh well, at least he made two decent films before being overly repetitive. Encino Man is a comic film with a few decent gags, but it's nothing to write home about.
    Alex r Super Reviewer
  • Oct 01, 2010
    Dumb is just not a strong enough word to describe this film, but oddly enough, this films plot is so stupid, that I had already forgotten about it 20 minutes in, because the actors really made something of their characters and I ended up enjoying this movie. Sure it's humour is dated, as it was trying to keep up with the trends of the early 90's, but you can easily out yourself back into that time period, as it was not that long ago. Frozen for thousands of years, a caveman is thawed in the 20th Century and must adapt and learn to speak. There are a lot of obvious gags, but others that I really did enjoy. It may be a mad movie overall, but I have no problem saying that I enjoyed watching it. "Encino Man" is worth a watch if you like dumb humour.
    KJ P Super Reviewer
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