Oct 031997
 
two reels

Three kids, Marchall (Mario Yedidia), Gilbert (Adam Wylie), and Amy (Clara Bryant), accidentally awaken a mummy by exposing it to moonlight shortly before Halloween.  Harold, the Mummy, is a kindly and child-like monster who needs to be back in his sarcophagus before midnight on Halloween or he will lose his soul.

An unimaginative, but harmless kids film, Under Wraps is just palatable for adults, but should be great Halloween fun for the under-twelve set—the more under, the better.  If you have seven and eight-year-olds, cuddle up on the couch for some family time.  There’s plenty to share with those who haven’t developed discerning taste.  If you don’t have any rug rats, this one isn’t for you.  Some family films can be enjoyed by Mom, Dad, Grandma, weird Uncle Louie, teenaged Mary, and little Harry who is just learning to read—all together or individually.  Think: The Adventures of Robin Hood.  This isn’t one of those.

It’s a Disney flick, so it’s no surprise that the production is uninspired, but competent.  This is cheap stuff, just above half-hour weekly series quality, which is still a step up from the average low-budget fright-fest.  The mummy makeup/costume isn’t embarrassing, and shouldn’t frighten a two-year-old.  The casting of the three kids, the only ones who have enough lines to matter, is a notch above what I’ve come to expect from Disney’s second (or third) tier projects.  Mario Yedidia and Clara Bryant acquit themselves well, but then they have the well written characters who horde the clever dialog.  Bryant’s Amy has some one-liners that work and Marchall is an amiable heroic straight man.  Poor Adam Wylie is stuck with the stereotypical cowardly dweeb.  He does as good a job as anyone could in a role best removed from the picture.

There’s nothing new, thoughtful, or daring in Under Wraps.  You won’t remember it a week after seeing it nor will you morn that fact.  But for a Halloween afternoon with the kids, it will do nicely.

 Halloween, Mummies, Reviews Tagged with: