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If you're keeping score, Paramount has about a 50-50 chance of cranking out a good Star Trek movie. As of Friday the 13th Part 8, they're no longer responsible for such dreck, since New Line has now taken over that waning cash cow. Then Paramount virtually destroyed the Beverly Hills Cop series, and Eddie Murphy's career, with number three. (Yes, apparently Beverly Hills Cop IV: The Apology is in development.) Even The Godfather has a bastard stepchild in the form of Godfather Part III, which is admittedly five times better than most sequels, but considering its predecessors...

Anyway, that brings us to Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, which marks the return of Australia's greatest tour guide, Paul Hogan as "Crocodile" Dundee. Having already filmed the fish out of water episode (the original) and "Dundee whups some bad guys" (part deux), I personally didn't think the series had any new direction to go in. But here we are: Sue (Linda Kozlowski), Dundee's life-mate (both on and off camera) has been asked to head the LA bureau of her father's newspaper after the recent death of the previous chief. Sue wants to take the job, but not without Dundee's permission. Mick gamely approves of the idea, mostly because he's becoming bored in Walkabout Creek, Australia, which has become nothing more than a tourist attraction.

After the cutesy opening, we're off to LA,, where Sue follows up on a story about a new studio in town called Silvergate Pictures. Arnan Rothman (Jere Burns) and Milos Drubnik (Jonathan Banks), are the movie moguls who have dreams of building an international film empire. Rothman is the idea man, while Drubnik is a Yugoslavian connection with money to burn. Mick is convinced that the studio is a front for something illegal, while Sue is beginning to worry that he's been watching too much TV. Approximately halfway through the film, Mick decides to become Sue's mole in the studio and is hired on as a crew member, where he works to unravel the mystery of Silverline Picture.

Simon Wincer, best known for directing Lonesome Dove, Free Willy and many episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, takes the helm for this latest Dundee adventure. Wincer had previously worked with Hogan on the theatrical bomb Lightning Jack, but their poor track record isn't the problem this time. Quite simply, it has been over a decade since Hogan portrayed the "no worries" Dundee, and it shows. Hogan looks tired; there are some nice moments of dead-on Hollywood satire, but unfortunately the writing isn't as sharp as with the first two films. Dundee in LA comes off more like an exaggerated TV sitcom than a full-fledged movie. In many ways, this sequel reminds me of the Beverly Hills Cop III debacle, where the story became too silly and cartoonish to be taken seriously. Even Dundee fans will likely be underwhelmed, though this is decent enough family fare, and ultimately good natured and inoffensive.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles differs from the other two films in the series in a couple of ways. First, and most notably, Croc III was shot flat (1.85), instead of in the panoramic 2.35:1 aspect ratio of its predecessors. Of course, like the first two DVDs (also just out from Paramount) this is anamorphically encoded as well. The overall cinematography is better than part II, and leap and bounds ahead of part I. From the Australian outback to the streets of LA; the picture is very sharp and clean. The details of the images are much nicer than on Croc I and II, with colors that seem very natural with more accurate fleshtones, which seemed to veer towards the reds in the first two installments. The blacks are rock solid, though contrast is only decent, making the image a tad bit flat in spots. Of the three films, Croc III contains the least amount of edge enhancement, plus there were no signs of digital artifacts. This is the best of the bunch.

Audio: How Does the Disc Sound?

As with the video, the audio here is also the most impressive of the three discs. Presented in both English Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 surround, both mixes are much better realized than Croc I and II. The mix contains stronger low-end than the first two, though again surround use is largely confined to Basil Poledouris' score (who all but abandons the original themes by Peter Best). The stereo separation between the fronts is good, with strong left to right pans and decent imaging among all channels, with surrounds reserved for more subtle ambiance. The only fault of the soundtrack lies early in the film, where dialog is slightly strained.

Aside from the included English Closed Captions, the are no additional languages or subtitles.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

As with the other two Dundee films, there's not much included in the way of supplements. The original theatrical trailer is provided in widescreen surround sound, but without anamorphic enhancement. I have a feeling the Cast and Crew Interviews are simply regurgitated EPK material created for theater owners. Hogan, Kozlowski, Simon Wincer and other member of the cast and crew recall their enjoyment of shooting the film, but overall it is just the standard promo stuff, that doesn't add much to our enjoyment or understanding of the film.

Parting Thoughts