Encino Man (1992)

Encino Man is the kind of high-concept comedy that doesn’t overthink itself: it takes one delightfully ridiculous idea and rides it with breezy confidence, turning suburban Southern California into a playground of slapstick, teen angst, and unexpected sweetness. The movie’s secret weapon is how likable the trio is—Sean Astin’s earnest awkwardness, Pauly Shore’s shameless goofball energy, and especially Brendan Fraser, who commits so fully to Link’s wide-eyed, physical performance that the laughs feel earned rather than forced. It moves fast, keeps the jokes coming, and captures that early-’90s mall-and-hair-gel vibe like a time capsule that still knows how to have fun. If you’re allergic to broad, silly humor or Shore’s particular brand of surfer-weirdo slang, it may not convert you—but if you want a light, consistently amusing crowd-pleaser, this one thaws out nicely.

Encino Man is trying to be a goofy, fish-out-of-water teen comedy where a thawed caveman becomes the ultimate shortcut to popularity, and it leans hard into early-’90s MTV energy to get there. The problem is the premise is funnier on paper than on screen: the plot is thin, the jokes often default to predictable high-school clichés, and the direction rarely finds a sharper or more imaginative angle than “wacky thing happens, everyone reacts.” If Pauly Shore’s hyper-specific persona isn’t your thing, this can feel like an extended sketch with a caveman prop, and you’ll probably check out before it finds a groove. That said, Brendan Fraser’s physical comedy is genuinely game, and if you’re nostalgic for low-stakes, dumb-sweet teen movies, it can still be an easy, painless watch.