#MOUSE HUNT

[film-favourites]

Mouse Hunt (1997)

[nine-frames]

"Mice don't mock. They don't have a sense of humor or irony. He's not sitting in his hole in a smoking jacket sipping cognac, and giggling to himself, "I left the pit!""

Mouse Hunt, 1997.

Dir. Gore Verbinski | Writ. Adam Rifkin | DOP Phedon Papamichael

[clairedelune-13]

I miss unhinged family movies like Mouse Hunt. Like, who decided “Yes, a murder rodent trying to kill two guys who inherited a house is perfectly fine for a child to watch.”

[localroyalroach]

Mouse Hunt 1997 Film

A really fun and strange movie mostly about two estranged brothers trying to deal with a very abnormal normal house mouse.

But to this day even with all the strange moments and scenes i can't stop thinking about the City Pound Scene where they go to get a mean cat is so...surreal weird how the pound is portrayed. almost like this horrifying underground SCP complex.

[2ndaryprotocol]

The slapstick sleeper hit ‘Mouse Hunt’ snuck into theaters this week 25 years ago. 🏚🐭🪤

“𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚠𝚎'𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚖𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚎.”

[lives-in-a-trash-can]

Hol on

Is that a

........

MOUSE HUNT!?

[ariel-seagull-wings]

Assista a "Mouse Hunt (1997) | (Almost) Cult Classics" no YouTube

[critical-chris]

Mouse Hunt (1997)

That's right, folks. Today we're talking Mouse Hunt.

I know what you're thinking. Why? When I've spent most of my reviews discussing recently released or relevant films, why would I suddenly take the time to watch and write about a forgotten 1997 comedy vehicle driven by Nathan Lane and Lee Evans?

Dollar, dollar bills ya'll. This is my first ever commissioned review, and the sick individual willing to cough up some cheese for Critical Chris had to hear my thoughts about Mouse Hunt. What an advertisement for my services.

I had never seen Mouse Hunt as a kid and frankly had never heard of the movie until college, when a friend of mine insisted that we take time out of our busy drinking hours to watch one of his beloved childhood movies. The same friend who spent prime weekend days clicking away at League of Legends, or whatever that stupid World of Warcraft ripoff is called, on his laptop at our kitchen counter. Like smart, intoxicated adults, we declined every time. Instead, we focused on finer films like Anchorman and Katy Perry: Part of Me. You know, classics.

I would classify myself as a Nathan Lane fan, but in the sense that what I've seen of his I have enjoyed and not that I've seen all of his movies. I loved him in The Birdcage, found him to be one of the only good parts of The Producers, fondly reminisce on the life he brought to Timon in The Lion King, and liked a few of his bit parts here and there. Lee Evans, on the other hand, I truly only remember from There's Something About Mary, but enjoyed his performance quite a bit in that movie.

For context on my state of mind going into this movie, I had just watched Aftersun for my upcoming blog on Oscar nominations and predictions, and was still wiping the remainder of the tears I cried at the ending when I decided I needed a pick-me-up. If you've seen Aftersun, and you should, you can understand that mentally I was in a very depressed space once the credits rolled. That movie kicks you in the gut when you least expect it. What better way to pull an emotional 180 than chase that film with a battle of wits between a couple bumbling buffoons and a rodent.

The setup for Mouse Hunt is simple enough: Two rather distant brothers reunite when their father, the proprietor of a string manufacturing company (because that's common), dies and leaves them not only the company but an aging and decrepit mansion. Oh, and he left them a piece of string. Nathan Lane plays a stubborn, indifferent renowned chef uninterested in his father's legacy unless it comes with a payout. Lee Evans plays a simple unemployed man with more of an emotional connection to his father who has recently been dumped by his controlling wife. Lane only desires to sell his father's company, while Evans sees an opportunity to continue the family business.

Both brothers are shocked to learn their father owned a mansion that is now passed down to them, and even more astonished that it ends up being the work of a historically renowned architect. The brothers cannot believe their luck as several magnates descend upon them offering fat checks and millions of dollar, dollar bills ya'll. There's just one issue, the house is occupied by a sneaky, relentless mouse. Oh, did the title give that part away?

There were some really brutal uses of outdated CGI effects through the film that reminds you the quality of movie you are watching. The setup of Nathan Lane inadvertently serving the overweight mayor a lavish meal with a cockroach inside, which had been hiding out in Lane's father's cigar box, was decent enough, but the cockroach itself looks like something made for Jaws 3D or a clay-mation project for film school.

However, I found Mouse Hunt to be funnier and better made than it had any business being. The opening joke of Nathan Lane criticizing his brother for not owning a black suit to wear to his father's funeral, and the subsequent gag of dropping the casket and sending their pops' corpse flying into a manhole, set the tone for the film. There were a handful of funny, well-executed gags and some good back and forth ridicule volleyed between Lane and Evans.

The joke of Lane and Evans rigging an insane number of mousetraps and accidentally trapping themselves in the same room hints at the gag to follow, and the mouse sending a cherry flying to set off every trap on the brothers is another great moment.

The scene where Evans is firing a nail gun into the walls in an attempt to kill the mouse in his territory, and seeing the grand interior destruction and mouse dodging the seemingly massive metal spikes, was fantastic. It not only has you sympathizing with the mouse, but gives some great disaster movie-esque effects. The same can be said towards the end of the film when Lane attempts to 'flush' the mouse out during their mansion auction by stuffing a running hose into one of the mouse's holes in the wall.

I had a funny feeling that we may have a surprise cameo in this move as well, and when CHRISTOPHER WALKEN enters this thing as a crackpot exterminator with an assortment of gadgets, it sent me over the moon. Walken is cranking up his schtick to an eleven, and has a funny moment when analyzing mouse droppings as he subsequently eats one. He, of course, is outsmarted by the mouse as well, but I loved his addition to the movie.

The other side characters are fine. Evans' wife, portrayed by Vicki Lewis, plays her part okay, leaving him at his lowest only to come back into the fray once she hears of his potential payout from the mansion, only to leave again when the mansion crumbles to dust. Maury Chaykin plays an eccentric millionaire obsessed with the famed architect offering absurd checks to Lane who dismisses him in favor of an auction to drive up their earnings. Everyone else is in the movie just for moments or are forgettable.

The ending was fairly cheesy (pun intended) as well. After the mansion crumbles and the brothers are seemingly left with nothing, they enlist the help of the mouse to convert their father's string factory into a string cheese factory. I suppose they had to come up with some happy ending, but I thought it was kind of a cop out to go with a play on string cheese. However, I probably couldn't think of anything better in 5 minutes, which I assume is how long the writer spent drafting the closing scene.

I don't want to praise the movie too much because, at the end of the day, it is a goofball comedy that is far from a classic. The laughs and gags provided do make it a much better comedy than you would expect by the cover photo and title, but don't go in expecting to find your new favorite laugh riot. Fans of Nathan Lane, however, should be pleasantly surprised.

In conclusion, thank you to my first ever paying fan for sprinkling a handful of singles into my bank account so I could take 90 minutes out of my evening to sit back, turn off my brain, and indulge in this comedy. I'd also like to mention that I was correct for all those years in college and beyond, and this was not a classic movie we were dismissing in favor of watching other movies or drinking our nights away in its place.

Mouse Hunt - 6.3/10

[aharonov-bohm-affect]

Lord of the Rings: Mouse Hunt

[morimementa]

I thought about MouseHunt for the first time in 20 years.

And I have a theory that Catzilla was Fluffy all along. After he survives the Smuntz house ordeal out of sheer spite, he returns to the little girl. Her mother comes into the backyard to find him purring in her daughter's lap and giving her a look that says, "If you ruin this for her, I am going to leave dead animals and poop in every corner of your yard until you die."

The cat and the girl live happily ever after. Plus or minus a couple dead animals.

[cinema-hallucinations]

Prompt: Generate a movie concept for a 2020s remake of Mouse Hunt

Title: Clickbait Critters

Tagline: They're hungrier than your feed

Logline: In the age of influencers and viral fame, two down-on-their-luck siblings, a tech-savvy gamer and a struggling musician, inherit a seemingly unremarkable farmhouse. Little do they know, their new home is also home to a family of hyper-intelligent mice with a penchant for social media manipulation and a taste for the finer things in life.

Characters:

Alex Thompson: A disillusioned tech whiz who lost his job at a social media giant. He relies on his gaming skills to make ends meet and harbors a grudge against the manipulative tactics of the online world.

Melody Thompson: A talented but struggling musician burdened by student loans and dwindling dreams of stardom. She yearns for a fresh start and a chance to focus on her music.

The Click Pack Mice: A family of genetically modified mice with exceptional intelligence and a mischievous streak. Led by the charismatic but scheming Smarty, they use social media to their advantage, manipulating humans for food, luxury items, and online fame.

Victoria Luxe: A ruthless social media influencer obsessed with maintaining her perfect online persona. She becomes unwittingly entangled in the Click Pack's schemes.

Plot:

Alex and Melody inherit their late uncle's farmhouse, hoping for a chance to escape the pressures of city life. However, their dreams of a peaceful retreat are shattered when they discover the resident family of mice are no ordinary rodents.

These mice, the result of their uncle's secret genetic experiments, possess an uncanny knack for technology and social media manipulation. Led by the cunning Smarty, they've formed the "Click Pack," a group of anonymous online influencers who use their intelligence to garner sympathy and manipulate humans into providing them with food, luxury goods, and even online fame.

Alex, with his tech background, recognizes the Click Pack's tactics all too well. Melody, despite initial fear, is intrigued by the mice's creativity and resourcefulness. A reluctant alliance forms between the siblings and the Click Pack as they work together to achieve their own goals.

Alex uses his skills to help the Click Pack create even more elaborate online personas, while Melody teaches them about music and self-expression. The Click Pack, in return, help Alex and Melody gain a following for their own talents – Alex's gaming skills go viral, and Melody's music attracts a devoted online audience.

However, their success attracts the attention of Victoria Luxe, a ruthless influencer threatened by the Click Pack's rise to fame. Victoria exposes their operation, leading to a hilarious social media showdown. The climax involves a live-streamed event where the Click Pack, with the help of Alex and Melody, must expose Victoria's manipulative tactics and reclaim their online narrative.

Themes:

The dark side of social media and its impact on society.

The importance of authenticity and genuine connection in a world obsessed with online personas.

Finding unexpected allies and working together to achieve common goals.

Humor:

The antics of the mischievous and technologically savvy mice.

The Click Pack's hilarious attempts to navigate the human world and social media trends.

The contrast between Alex and Melody's personalities and their unlikely bond with the mice.

2020s Twist:

The film heavily incorporates social media platforms, influencer culture, and the concept of "clickbait" as a central theme.

The Click Pack uses sophisticated AI and deepfakes to manipulate online narratives.

The film explores the ethics of technology and its potential misuse even by well-meaning characters like Alex and the Click Pack.

[scum-belina]

Who gave Nathan Lane the right to look so fine in Mouse Hunt (1997)??? got dam. Bout to make me act up!!!

[mindblowingscience]

When hunting for mice in winter, red and Arctic fox are known to plunge headfirst at speeds of 2–4 meters per second, but their sharp noses reduce the impact force in snow and protect them from injury, according to a new Cornell University study. The fundamental research sheds light on the biomechanics of the unique hunting behavior (known as mousing), advances our understanding of animal adaptations and offers insights into snow injuries people experience during snowboarding or skiing. The study appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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