Synopsis
Disgraced and cast out of his tribe for lusting after Lana, the mate of the tribe's head muscle man, Atouk stumbles along gathering other misfits and learning a bit about the world outside of his cave. Eventually he and friends Lar and Tala learn the secrets of fire, cooked meat, and how to defend themselves from the brutal, yet very stupid dinosaurs.
Your Movie Library
Cast
- Ringo StarrAtouk
- Dennis QuaidLar
- Shelley LongTala
- Jack GilfordGog
- Barbara BachLana
- Carl LumblyBork
- John MatuszakTonda
- Avery SchreiberOck
- Richard MollAbominable Snowman
- Cork HubbertTa
Recommendations
- 75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
A happy surprise, a sweet and silly combination of the cheesy special effects of Japanese sci-fi movies and the witty slapstick of American silent films. [20 Apr 1981] - 70
The New York Times
The movie is nicely whimsical, and elaborate in a way that no fantasy film this side of outer space has lately been. It's dopey, but it's also lots of fun. - 70
The New Yorker
A funky, buoyant farce. The picture doesn't have the dirt or meanness or malice to make you explode with laughter, but it's consistently enjoyable. - 50
TV Guide Magazine
Relying mostly on slapstick visual humor (only 15 words are spoken, otherwise the dialog is all grunts and groans), the action quickly becomes madcap. - 50
Washington Post
As burlesque, Caveman lacks the good-natured yuks necessary to balance out the lechery. As straight comedy, it's far too salacious a movie to park the kids at on a Saturday afternoon. [17 Apr 1981, p.19] - 50
Washington Post
Priceless it ain't, but if the kids are determined to enjoy it, the brain damage should be minimal. [18 Apr 1981, p.D3] - 38
Chicago Sun-Times
Caveman seems more in the tradition of Alley Oop, crossed with Mel Brooks's Two Thousand Year Old Man. But the only artistic cross-reference it can manage is from the opening scene of Stanley Kubrick's 2000.
