The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course

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The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course
Crocodile hunter collision course ver2.jpg
US Theatrical release poster by Drew Struzan
Directed by John Stainton
Screenplay by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Story byJohn Stainton
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDavid Burr
Edited by
  • Suresh Ayyar
  • Bob Blasdall
Music byMark McDuff
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • July 12, 2002 (2002-07-12)(United States)
  • July 26, 2002 (2002-07-26)(United Kingdom)
  • September 12, 2002 (2002-09-12)(Australia)
Running time
90 minutes
Countries
  • Australia
  • United States
  • United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$12 million [1]
Box office$33.4 million [1]

The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course is a 2002 adventure comedy film based on the nature documentary television series The Crocodile Hunter . It stars Steve Irwin, his wife Terri Irwin in her film debut, Magda Szubanski and David Wenham, and was directed by frequent Irwin collaborator John Stainton. Released in between the series' fourth and fifth seasons, Collision Course follows Steve and Terri attempting to save a crocodile from "poachers", unaware that the two men are actually American CIA agents on their trail as the crocodile has unwittingly swallowed a satellite tracking beacon. This was Steve Irwin's final film appearance before his death in 2006.

Contents

The film was theatrically released on July 12, 2002 in the U.S. by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and internationally by 20th Century Fox. It received mixed reviews but grossed $33.4 million on a $12 million budget.

Plot

In outer space, a United States-owned satellite blows up and one of the last remaining pieces, a beacon, is sent hurtling towards Earth. The beacon lands in Australia, only to be swallowed by a large crocodile. At the CIA, Agent Buckwhiler and Deputy Director Reynolds reveal that, in the wrong hands, the beacon can change the axis of power in the world, so they send two agents, Robert Wheeler and Vaughn Archer, down to Australia to retrieve the beacon. Department Director Ansell also secretly hires an operative of his own, Jo Buckley, to go and retrieve the beacon before Wheeler and Archer, so Ansell can take Reynolds' job.

In Australia, the crocodile that swallowed the beacon lives in a river next to the house of Brozzie Drewitt, a violent cattle station owner who is planning to kill the beast for preying on her cattle. Because of this, the Department of Fauna and Fisheries send one of its workers, Sam Flynn, to Brozzie's house. Sam attempts to convince Brozzie to hire some professionals to relocate the animal instead, since killing it would be illegal. Despite Flynn's suggestion, Brozzie attempts to kill the crocodile later that night, only to fail.

Meanwhile, the Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin and his wife Terri are filming an episode of their TV show on the "less loveable of Australia's wildlife" when they are hired by Flynn to relocate the crocodile that has been bothering Brozzie. After some difficulty, Steve manages to catch the crocodile and successfully gets it in his boat. Wheeler and Archer are nearby using GPS technology to track the beacon. When the two agents see Steve and Terri in their boat with the crocodile (and therefore the beacon) on board, they assume that the Irwins have found the beacon. They inform the CIA, who assume that the Irwins plan to use the beacon to pay for a multimillion-dollar expansion to Australia Zoo. Steve and Terri board up the crocodile in a crate and put it in the back of the truck to drive to a new river system. Wheeler and Archer follow them from behind in a Land Rover Discovery, and when Wheeler hops on the top of the Irwins' truck, Steve believes them to be poachers who want to steal the crocodile. Steve climbs up on the roof and, after a brief fistfight, manages to knock Wheeler off the truck.

When the Irwins reach the Thomson River, Steve opens the crocodile's crate and discovers that the beast has defecated. In the excrement, Steve sees a shiny metal object (the beacon) which he mistakes to be an improperly discarded children's spinning top toy. Steve and Terri successfully release the crocodile in the river, but Wheeler and Archer show up again in a boat, determined to get the beacon. Jo Buckley shows up in an ultralight and throws sticks of dynamite down on Wheeler and Archer's boat, destroying it and knocking the two agents in the river. Steve believes that he and Terri are caught up in the middle of a "poacher war" and, not wanting the dynamite to hurt the newly relocated crocodile, gets a rope out of the boat and lassoes the aircraft, causing it to crash in the river, though Buckley survives. She swims to shore to inform Ansell via a phone call that she failed to retrieve the beacon. Ansell informs Buckley that he is on the run from the CIA and the police for hiring her for the mission. He is found by police and is arrested for his crimes, ending the phone call.

Due to Wheeler and Archer's failure to retrieve the beacon, the CIA decides that it is time for drastic measures, so they call up American President George W. Bush in the White House to request permission to use military helicopters to find the Irwins and get the beacon. In Australia, Steve is ending his show and playing with the beacon, when the military helicopters arrive.

In the epilogue, Steve explains that he returned the beacon to the CIA without hassle, but remains oblivious to its significance. Brozzie becomes a volunteer for the Department of Fauna and Fisheries, while the CIA punish Wheeler and Archer for their failure by sending them to work at the Irwins' zoo as volunteers. All parties involved have trouble adapting to their new environments, but Steve assures the audience that he will help them.

Cast

Production

Due to the series' immense popularity, director/producer Stainton had developed an idea for a feature-length Crocodile Hunter film in 1999 while shooting a documentary in Africa. [2] He wanted to make a good film, but, at the same time, make it easy for Steve who was not used to acting, believing that Irwin should only play himself. It was Stainton's idea to film Steve and Terri doing a traditional nature documentary in the Australian Outback and film these scenes in a 1:85 screen ratio. In fact, nothing for the "documentary" scenes were ever scripted, and when the actors (from the scripted dramatic scenes that use a 2:40 screen ratio) entered the Irwins' world for a few brief scenes, Steve (who did not know anything about the script or plot) was informed by Stainton what was about to happen so Irwin could prepare and ad-lib as much as he wanted or needed. Cheyenne Enterprises, a film and television production company owned by Bruce Willis and producer Arnold Rifkin, showed interest in producing and helping finance the project. MGM then showed interest in distributing the film worldwide, and principal photography began in November 2001 after having filmed the non-scripted documentary segments for well over a year. The Irwins came across hundreds of animals for the filming of the documentary scenes, but only a few—the kangaroo, the perentie, the bird eating spider, and two snakes—made it into the film. The animals they encountered were re-written into the script by Holly Goldberg-Sloan for the dramatic scenes when Wheeler and Archer encounter the Irwins' truck.

The film is also known for its "special shoot" teaser trailer, set in the MGM logo, with Steve interacting with Leo the Lion, MGM's mascot. [3]

Film aspect ratios

Collision Course was shot in two film aspect ratios, 1.85:1 for the scenes with Steve and Terri and 2.35:1 for the plot about the Australian farmer and the CIA and their efforts to find the tracking drone. In theatres and on DVD, the 1.85:1 image appears with pillar boxing, a format usually reserved for 1.33:1 ratio content appearing within 1.85:1 or 2.35:1 frames.[ citation needed ] On the fullscreen versions, the windowboxing (mostly in the scenes with Steve and Terri and the finale) is not present due to the fullscreen process cropping the widescreen image to the 1.33:1 ratio, causing the windowboxing borders not to be shown, even when shown on a widescreen television if the image is stretched as per fullscreen programs usually are.

Reception

Critical reaction

The film holds a 53% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 88 reviews. The site's consensus states: "Aside from the unnecessary plot about a downed US spy satellite, there's not much difference between the movie and the TV show." [4] Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars, stating "You see a couple of likable people journeying through the outback, encountering dangerous critters and getting too close for comfort, while lecturing us on their habits and dangers and almost being killed by them." [5] Robert K. Elder of the Chicago Tribune said, "Irwin and his director never come up with an adequate reason why we should pay money for what we can get on television for free." [6] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. [7]

Box office

The film made $28.4 million at the American box office, with a worldwide gross of $33.4 million, [1] which against the production budget of $12 million, makes the film a considerable box office success.

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryResult
2003 Young Artist Award Best Family Feature Film - ComedyWon

Home media

The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course was released to VHS and DVD in the United States on December 17, 2002. A soundtrack album was released at a similar time. The movie's soundtrack would later appear on The Crocodile Hunter coin-operated kiddie ride, manufactured by Kiddy Rides Australia, as background audio. [8] [9] The film was released on Blu-Ray Disc on April 25, 2023. [10]

Soundtrack

No.TitleLength
1."Crocodile Rock" (Baha Men)3:50

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Crocodile Hunter</i> Australian television program (1996–2007)

The Crocodile Hunter was a wildlife documentary television series hosted by Steve Irwin and his wife, Terri. The show became a popular franchise due to Irwin's unconventional approach to wildlife. It spawned a number of separate projects, including the feature film The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course and two television spinoffs: Croc Files and The Crocodile Hunter Diaries.

Crocodile Hunter or crocodile hunter may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terri Irwin</span> American-Australian zoologist (born 1964)

Terri Raines Irwin is an American-Australian conservationist, television personality, author and zookeeper who is the owner of Australia Zoo in Beerwah, Queensland. She is the widow of Steve Irwin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australia Zoo</span> Zoo located in the Australian state of Queensland

Australia Zoo is a 700-acre (280 ha) zoo in the Australian state of Queensland on the Sunshine Coast near Beerwah/Glass House Mountains. It is a member of the Zoo and Aquarium Association (ZAA), and is owned by Terri Irwin, the widow of Steve Irwin, whose wildlife documentary series The Crocodile Hunter and his family's new show Crikey! It's the Irwins made the zoo a popular tourist attraction.

The Jeff Corwin Experience is an American wildlife documentary television program that premiered on the Animal Planet cable channel in 2000. It was hosted by actor and conservationist Jeff Corwin, who previously hosted Disney Channel's Going Wild with Jeff Corwin.

John Stainton is an Australian film and television producer and director. He was close friends with the late naturalist Steve Irwin. Stainton also created Irwin's popular nature documentary television series, The Crocodile Hunter, in which he also directed and executive produced every episode, as well as the spin-offs, Croc Files and The Crocodile Hunter Diaries, and the feature-film, The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course.

The Crocodile Hunter Diaries is a wildlife documentary television series first aired on cable TV channel Animal Planet. It was created as a spin-off to the original The Crocodile Hunter series hosted by Australian naturalist Steve Irwin and his wife Terri Irwin. In the UK it was aired on ITV. In Australia it was aired on Network Ten.

Croc Files is a wildlife documentary television series focusing on crocodiles first aired on cable TV channel Animal Planet. It was created as a spin-off to the original Crocodile Hunter and The Crocodile Hunter Diaries series hosted by Australian naturalist Steve Irwin and his wife Terri Irwin. Unlike its predecessor, the series was less hands-on in nature and was geared more for children. In the UK it was aired on ITV. In Australia it was aired on Network Ten.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wes Mannion</span> Australian television personality

Wes Mannion is an Australian television personality, best known from the series The Crocodile Hunter as Steve Irwin's best friend and the former director of Australia Zoo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Irwin</span> Australian zookeeper, conservationist and television personality (1962–2006)

Stephen Robert Irwin, known as "The Crocodile Hunter", was an Australian zookeeper, conservationist, television personality, wildlife educator, and environmentalist.

Robert Eric Irwin is an Australian naturalist, animal conservationist, former zookeeper, and a herpetologist known for his conservation and husbandry work with apex predators and reptiles. He is the founder of the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park. His son was the conservationist and well-known international television personality Steve Irwin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bindi Irwin</span> Australian television personality and conservationist (born 1998)

Bindi Sue Irwin is an Australian television personality, conservationist, zookeeper and actress. She is the elder of the two children of conservationist and television personality Steve Irwin and his conservationist wife, Terri Irwin, who is currently the owner of Australia Zoo. Bindi's younger brother is Robert, a television personality and photographer, and she is the granddaughter of naturalist and herpetologist Bob Irwin.

Bindi the Jungle Girl is a children's television nature documentary series, presented by Bindi Irwin, the daughter of Steve and Terri Irwin. The series was produced and shot in Queensland by The Best Picture Show Company for Discovery Kids and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Ocean's Deadliest is a 2007 nature documentary hosted by Philippe Cousteau Jr. and Steve Irwin. It was the final documentary made by Irwin before his death, which occurred during filming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windowbox (filmmaking)</span> The often undesirable combination of letterboxing and pillarboxing

Windowboxing in the display of film or video occurs when the aspect ratio of the media is such that the letterbox effect and pillarbox effect occur simultaneously. Sometimes, by accident or design, a standard ratio image is presented in the central portion of a letterbox picture, resulting in a black border all around. It is generally disliked because it wastes much screen space and reduces the resolution of the original image. It can occur when a 16:9 film is set to 4:3 (letterbox), but then shown on a 16:9 TV or other output device. It can also occur in the opposite direction and a few films have been released with this aspect ratio — one example is The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, which had numerous scenes with Steve & Terri Irwin using widescreen pillar boxing.

Collision course refers to one opposing object or philosophy moving towards another expecting to collide.

My Daddy, the Crocodile Hunter is a one-hour television documentary film that is hosted by Bindi Irwin and details her life and growing career and also serves as a memorial for her father, famed naturalist and conservationist Steve Irwin, better known as The Crocodile Hunter who died in 2006. She has inherited his legacy and continues his work.

On 4 September 2006, Australian zookeeper, conservationist, and television programmer Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray while filming in the Great Barrier Reef. The stingray's barb pierced his chest, penetrating his thoracic wall and heart, causing massive trauma. He was at Batt Reef, near Port Douglas, Queensland, taking part in the production of an underwater documentary Ocean's Deadliest. During a lull in filming caused by inclement weather, Irwin decided to snorkel in shallow waters while being filmed in an effort to provide footage for his daughter Bindi's television program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Irwin (television personality)</span> Australian television personality and conservationist (born 2003)

Robert Clarence Irwin is an Australian conservationist, television personality, zookeeper, wildlife photographer and actor. He is the son of Steve Irwin, and is often noted by fans to share similarities with his late father. Irwin hosts Robert's Real Life Adventures, a program on his family zoo's internal television network. He co-hosted the Discovery Kids Channel television series Wild But True and co-created the book series Robert Irwin: Dinosaur Hunter. He starred on the Animal Planet series Crikey! It's the Irwins with his mother, Terri, and sister, Bindi, from 2018–2022.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course (2002)". The Numbers. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  2. ↑ Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, The: Production Notes retrieved: 31 August 2012.
  3. ↑ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course (2002) - Official Trailer". YouTube .
  4. ↑ "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course". Rotten Tomatoes . 12 July 2002. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  5. ↑ Roger Ebert (12 July 2002). "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course" . Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  6. ↑ Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course – Movie Reviews – Yahoo Movies
  7. ↑ "Find CinemaScore" (Type "Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, The" in the search box). CinemaScore . Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  8. ↑ "The Crocodile Hunter Collision Course Used VHS 027616880550 - eBay". eBay. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  9. ↑ "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course". IGN. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  10. ↑ "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course Blu-ray". Blu-ray.
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