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Encino Man

Play trailer Poster for Encino Man PG 1992 1h 29m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
18% Tomatometer 33 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
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.
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Encino Man

Encino Man

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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.

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Critics Reviews

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Hugo Davenport Daily Telegraph (UK) Jun 6, 2023
The warp factor of Shore's customized Californian dialect goes well beyond Wayne's World. In fact I found it as inscrutable as the reason why anyone at all should go see this movie, save for Brendan Fraser's lumbering enthusiasm as Link. Go to Full Review Sheila Johnston Independent (UK) Nov 13, 2017
The film, school of Bob and Ted and Wayne and Garth, but inferior in all regards, illustrates the Theory of Reverse Evolution. Go to Full Review Lawrence Cohn Variety Apr 30, 2008
Low-budget quickie is insulting even within its own no-effort parameters. Go to Full Review Branyan Towe Loud and Clear Reviews Jul 29, 2024
3/5
The plot is nonsensical, with more telling the audience rather than showing, especially when it comes to the arcs of the characters. With that said, I had quite a bit of fun with this nonsense Go to Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews May 9, 2021
2.5/4
...watchable yet somewhat disappointing... Go to Full Review Malcolm L. Johnson Hartford Courant Apr 10, 2018
The strongest contender imaginable for the worst picture of the summer. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jeff D @Username99999 Oct 21, 2026 This movie is a 90s pop culture icon for a reason. Everyone watched it back in the day for a reason. It’s fun! It’s original and it makes you smile, what more could you want? Everyone said it was a stupid movie back then, everyone also recommended watching it back then. It’s just a silly movie designed to make you tune out with a grin on your face for an hour and half. It works too. See more Ryan T @Astronautullis Sep 7, 2026 For it's time it had everything a family comedy needed, unique story, great actors and the 90s! Definitely deserved more love. See more Ola G @Ollie1972 Aug 12, 2026 I haven't seen this film since I came out, and it was hardly a treat to re-see this stupidity channeling Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Wayne's World and Beavis & Butthead. The teen movie clichés are a plenty and the idea of defrosting a caveman and make him some sort of high school poster boy to win popularity is just beyond idiocy to me. Pauly Shore's performance won him the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star at the 13th Golden Raspberry Awards. Well deserved. The only thing that does work for this film is the great soundtrack. The rest needs to be placed in the trash bin. See more Freddy V @RT18427309 Aug 9, 2026 Still funny and charming See more Jamie-Lee L @JLoveBuzz Aug 3, 2026 Scoring this 5/5 to annoy all the people who take life too seriously. Chill-ax and get wheezy greezy bu-u-dy! Stupid 90s comedy gold!! 100% bringing back Paulry Shores unique one liners See more Diana T @RT74126296 Jul 6, 2026 This movie is such a classic with so many good one liners! See more Read all reviews
Encino Man

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Cast & Crew

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Les Mayfield

Director

Sean Astin

Dave

Brendan Fraser

Link

Pauly Shore

Stoney Brown

Megan Ward

Robyn Sweeney

Robin Tunney

Ella

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Encino Man

Encino Man (1992) Encino Man (1992) Encino Man (1992) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis 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.
Director
Les Mayfield
Producer
George Zaloom
Screenwriter
Shawn Schepps
Production Co
Hollywood Pictures, Encino Man Productions
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 22, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$40.0M
Runtime
1h 29m
Sound Mix
Surround, Stereo
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