Steve Irwin, The Crocodile Hunter, and his wife Terri work to save the animals of the Australian outback. An US satellite beacon has fallen out of the sky and landed in Australia. It gets swallowed by a crocodile. CIA agents are sent to retrieve it. American agent Jo Buckley is also sent to get the beacon to use in inter-agency politics. Cattle station owner Brozzie Drewitt is also looking the kill the croc on her lands. Australian Government Fisheries worker Sam Flynn tries to relocate the croc by hiring the Irwins before Brozzie shoots it.

Steve Irwin has an infectious charm. His act is great. There is a natural magnetism about him. Sadly, this movie decides to tie him to this silly international spy stuff. Then the movie adds the terribly broad Magda Szubanski. The whole thing is schizophrenic. I'm perfectly happy to watch Steve wrestle a crocodile. Somebody needs to make a good movie around him. This is not that movie.

SE's 2020 Data Recorder from a satellite that exploded in space (inside a metal beacon) heads towards Earth. Landing in Northern Queensland, of Australia, two CIA agents are sent to retrieve it. Meanwhile Steve Irwin (May he rest in peace) takes the time to talk with us about various creatures in Australia (crocs, snakes, kangaroos, spiders, etc.). Collision Course was criticized for the imbalance that exists in terms of the beacon's recovery and Irwin's Crocodile Hunter television show host presentation. While Irwin's show was of definite interest to me (and popular with viewers on Animal Planet) during its run prior to his unfortunate death, whether or not it is worth a cinematic film with an ongoing story arc surrounding him is up for debate. Included with the CIA agents and the Aussie local assigned to assist them on the hunt for a beacon is a disgruntled local farmer, enraged with crocs eating her cattle and remaining close to her land (the wildlife/fisheries expert tries to encourage her to stop being so difficult and allow him to relocate the croc(s) in the vicinity, but she isn't interested). Irwin and his wife, Terri, are the ones called to relocate the croc elsewhere.

Irwin's infectious enthusiasm is appealing/endearing, and his wife, the "straight man" to his act, offers some information herself, confirming to us that they were a wonderful team. Rozzie, the farmer hunting the croc, is used as comic relief mostly, while the agents on trail of the beacon are a boring lot (this subplot has little inspiration to it). The beacon is located in the belly of a croc, and so the story lines might eventually converge. Irwin's addressing the camera at all times, even when action involves the agents (eventually the Aussie female agent turns on them, wanting to retrieve the beacon herself),could be considered ill-advised (to be cinematic, you'd think those involved would want to shy away from resembling the television show too much). Irwin, action hero, is a bit odd, especially when looking at the camera while a chase scene happens, or disallowing and preventing violence towards the croc (it eventually craps out the beacon) by using a snake and rope to stop them.

I think fans of Irwin can get the goods shown in the film on his show (plus more),in reruns or renting them, with Collision Course taking highlights and implanting them within a blah story that services only as a diversion from what most care about…Irwin's interaction with species and his knowledge about them shared with us. Standing on top of his jeep and fending off an agent seems surreal, particularly when Irwin tells us that these blokes are really dangerous and could be poachers wanting the croc they are transporting to a safer environment (a different river on the other side of a mountain). Probably the best part of the film is Irwin and Terri securing a dangerously aggressive (and seriously angry) croc; it's a real large croc, too, and the capture/roping process looks positively scary and exhausting. I think what this film does is remind us of what the world has lost: a man who joyfully presented his love of creatures great and small, and did so with an aplomb and care for all life that continues to live on even if he himself has sadly been taken from us.

The movie has several story lines that follow several different characters. The different story lines don't feel like one whole complete piece which makes this comedy a very incoherent one and gets even annoying to watch at times.

It may sound weak and cliché but it's true; You're way better of watching the Crocodile Hunter series on the Discovery channel with Steve and Terri Irwin. It's more fun and even more hilarious than this movie is. I'm sure both cast and crew had lots of fun making this movie but the movie doesn't give us the viewers much pleasure. For a comedy it simply isn't funny enough and Steve and Terri Irwin just aren't good actors, not even when they play themselves! Their antics are simply not good enough to make an entire movie around and their scene's feel long, distracting and unnecessary and even annoying at times.

The movie had quite some potential, I mean Steve Irwin is one character that in a strange way is both intriguing and hilarious to watch, so when I first heard that they were making a movie about 'the crocodile hunter' my first reaction was; brilliant! The movie however heavily suffers from its weak story and the incoherent story lines with uninteresting and unfunny characters. The movie does has a certain entertainment value, at least enough to make this movie watchable for at least once but still, I must certainly wouldn't recommend this movie.

Watching this movie felt like a waste of time. Still this movie might be watchable just once, when it gets on TV, on a rainy afternoon. It does has some good moments but the story lines really completely ruin the movie and its potential.

4/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/