Meet the Deedles facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Meet the Deedles |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Steve Boyum |
| Produced by |
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| Written by | Jim Herzfeld |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Steve Bartek |
| Cinematography | David Hennings |
| Editing by | Alan Cody |
| Studio |
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| Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures |
| Release date(s) | March 27, 1998 (United States) |
| Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $24 million |
| Money made | $4.4 million |
Meet the Deedles is a 1998 American comedy film directed by Steve Boyum in his directorial debut, and starring Paul Walker, Steve Van Wormer, A. J. Langer, John Ashton, Robert Englund, and Dennis Hopper. This was the first live-action film from DIC Entertainment.
Plot
Fraternal twins Phil (Walker) and Stu (Van Wormer) Deedle live in Hawaii and enjoy a life of leisure living off of their father Elton’s (Braeden) hard earned wealth. After they are reported truant from school so they could enjoy a surf session on their 18th birthday, the school expels them. Frustrated with their laziness Elton enrolls them in a boot camp at Yellowstone National Park, to the horror of the boys.
Arriving on the mainland, they learn that the bootcamp has been shuttered due to lawsuits and the former owner, Major Flowers (Gainey), intends to give them survival training on his own. En route to their camp he accidentally drives them over a cliff, ejecting them from the vehicle. Believing he killed the brothers, Flowers disappears into the forest. Phil and Stu steal clothing from a nearby campsite and proceed downhill by luge to the nearby ranger station. After a collision with the park sign, the responding park rangers misidentify the brothers by the names “Mel” and “Mo” written on clothing tags that they took earlier.
The brothers awaken in the hospital and assume the identities they had been given, learning that Mel and Mo were expected by the station as two highly-touted naturalist recruits to the National Park Service. As they adjust to life at Yellowstone they struggle to adopt Mel and Mo’s apparent foraging lifestyle, while also feebly attempting to accomplish their job as best as they can. Along the way, Phil develops a mutual attraction with Jesse (Langer), a Lieutenant at the station and the stepdaughter of the park’s commanding ranger Captain Pine (Ashton), earning both the brothers Pine’s ire.
Eventually the brothers discover that a disgruntled former park ranger, Frank Slater (Hopper), has masterminded a plan to divert the hydrologic process of Old Faithful through a series of underground pipes into an extinct geyser on land that he owns, ultimately creating a new park that would rival Yellowstone. Slater intends to implement his plan during an anniversary celebration for Old Faithful in hopes that he publicly humiliates Pine in the process.
Later the real Mel (Gasteyer) and Mo (Cavanagh) arrive at the ranger station after being waylaid by various mishaps, and they expose the Deedles as imposters. This upsets Jesse and Captain Pine, leading to the brother's expulsion from the park. Despite this, they still set out to stop Slater from going through with his plan and attempt to infiltrate his base. When they parachute onto his land, they are immediately taken underground to Slater. There, with the help of a prairie dog they befriended earlier, they don protective heat suits and halt the diversion of superheated water to Slater’s geyser “New Faithful” and restore Old Faithful. This incidentally causes a reaction that creates an explosion on Slater’s land, creating a natural wave pool where visitors can surf.
Slater and his henchmen are arrested for their crimes, Phil reconciles with Jesse and the brothers are reinstated into the Park Service. Elton arrives and expresses his pride in their accomplishments, and the brothers along with Jesse go surfing in the newly-created park attraction.
Cast
- Paul Walker as Phil Deedle
- Steve Van Wormer as Stew Deedle
- A. J. Langer as Lt. Jesse Ryan
- John Ashton as Capt. Douglas Pine
- Robert Englund as Nemo
- Dennis Hopper as Frank Slater
- Eric Braeden as Elton Deedle
- Richard Lineback as Crabbe
- M. C. Gainey as Major Flowers
- Ana Gasteyer as Mel
- Megan Cavanagh as Mo
- Hattie Winston as Jo-Claire
- Bart the Bear as Circus Bear
The film also features cameos from former Oingo Boingo members Steve Bartek, Johnny "Vatos" Hernandez, Carl Graves, and Sam "Sluggo" Phipps as the band at the luau.
The film marked the last feature film appearance of the original Bart the Bear, who became ill in 1998 and died in 2000.
Soundtrack
The original music for the film was composed by former Oingo Boingo member Steve Bartek. Most of the songs featured on the soundtrack were from third-wave ska bands, as the genre was at the peak of its popularity at the time of the film's release.
- "Wrong Thing Right Then" - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
- "Lady Luck" - Dance Hall Crashers
- "Seems Like Yesterday" - Goldfinger
- "Dr. Bones" - Cherry Poppin' Daddies
- "I Can't Wait" - Hepcat
- "Psycho Gremmie" - Gary Hoey
- "For You" - Save Ferris
- "Go Where You Go" - Geggy Tah
- "Failing and Leaving" - Radish
- "American Girls" - Homie
- "Hawaii Five-O" - Perfect Thyroid
- "Who Are Those Guys?" - Steve Bartek
