Larger Than Life (1996)
Motivational Speaker Jack Corcoran is determined to get his career off the ground, but the biggest gigs he can get are the ones nobody wants. Then one day, he receives a telegram that his circus clown father has passed away, and has left a "huge" inheritance. When he gets there, he finds that his inheritance has come in the form of an elephant that was his father's pride and joy in circus acts. His main intention is to sell the pachyderm off. Jack must choose between loud and rude zookeeper Mo or attractive animal show owner Terry. As the two treks through the country Jack and the elephant develop a bond, and it changes his approach on life for the better.
Watch Trailer
Cast
Reviews
Did you people see the same film I saw?
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
Bill Murray plays a motivational speaker whose circus clown father passes away and leaves him an elephant. Now he's got to take a road trip with the elephant so he can sell it. Ridiculously far-fetched premise with a lifeless performance by Murray and a supporting cast that seems hellbent on outshining him, making themselves look like a bunch of hams in the process. Matthew McConaughey is especially bad. I mean he really stinks. Not really a family movie despite the corny animal buddy plot. Also not very funny for a comedy. I think I laughed out loud once the whole movie and chuckled maybe twice. If you're a big elephant fan you might get more enjoyment out of it. But for the rest of us it's pretty dull.
I remember back in 1996 when I saw the trailer and television commercials for LARGER THAN LIFE - just seeing them, I *knew* that this was going to be a box office bomb. And I was right. This was not a case of a good movie being horribly marketed - this was a case of the badness of the movie being shown all too clearly.What went wrong? Well, I think that the main problem of the movie centers around the fact that pretty much all the events of the movie center around an elephant. Elephants are slow creatures, and although they can be trained to perform some tricks, they are still far from being creatures with a real charismatic personality. (Maybe if they got a quicker, wittier creature like a chimpanzee or a dog, it could have worked.) As a result of this movie being weighed down by an enormously ungraceful creature, there is no energy here. Even Murray, who has been quick and funny in other movies, seems overwhelmed. He does well in the opening scene where he's a motivational speaker, because he has *humans* to work with. When he's paired with the elephant, the energy immediately fades away.One question that's never answered in the movie is: Why doesn't Murray's character just hire someone to take the elephant to the west coast? It would be a lot less hassle, and Murray's character wouldn't have to skip his lecture dates. The fact that Murray's character doesn't do the obvious thing helps point out that the premise this script had was deeply flawed even before writing began.
This was okay, but really a bit disappointing because I expected more laughs. Considering the storyline and the lead actor (Bill Murray), it should have been a lot funnier than it turned out to be. Only part of this made me really laugh, such as when Murray lost control of his semi and was speeding down the road at a weird angle. (You have to see it, to appreciate it.)The supporting cast was anything but likable people. Just look at a sampling of the names: Matthew McConaughey, Janeane Garofalo and Linda Fiorentino. Yecch! McConaughey's role in here as "Tip Tucker" was just downright annoying. He was the worst. Other that those people, the movie had some charming moments but overall it is not recommended. It's another Disney flop.
I beg you not to see this movie! This is the worst movie I have ever seen in my life. Bill Murray + an elephant + no script (was there a script? I can't remember because I was too busy crying in pain at this terrible excuse for a movie) = the worst time of your life.Don't pay to see this movie - don't even watch it for free at a friend/relatives house. If anyone suggests that you should watch it at some point in your life, shoot them and run. Run as fast as you can and don't look back. I didn't even see this movie by choice - I went with a group of friends for someone's birthday when I was 12. I curse that day and the time that this movie took away from me. This is a kid's movie but any self-respecting smart child would not want to see this inflammatory pile of elephant droppings.