Directed by Eric Brevig. Starring Dan Aykroyd, Justin Timberlake, Tom Cavanagh, Anna Faris.

I’m old enough to remember watching Hanna-Barbera’s Yogi Bear cartoons when I was a kid and somehow I get the feeling I enjoyed those a whole lot more than this very cheap (inspite of the 80 million spent on it) film that merges CGI with real life (but very dull) actors.

It’s supposed to be a 3-D film but the producer-distributor decided to show it to us in regular 2-D probably because the effects weren’t exactly breakthrough stuff. I actually even thought the film was entirely animated before I watched it, which would have been a better idea considering this film’s real actors and scenery do nothing to liven it up. Sure, the token kids in the preview audience had a laugh or two at some of the slapstick ‘boo-boo’s’ by Yogi and Boo-Boo but they didn’t really seem too thrilled with it.

Tom Cavanagh plays Ranger Smith in charge of Jellystone National Park, home to the two walking-talking, and pic-a-nic basket stealing bears. But the evil Mayor has plans to shut Jellystone down and hand it over to loggers (the weakest attempt at a social message in a film I’ve seen in recent times, Rio and Rango were far more convincing) so he can balance the budget and run for Governor. Anna ‘Scary Movie’ Faris plays the love interest to the exceedingly bland Ranger Smith. Faris looks pudgy and haggard. The frog faced turtle that saves the day looks cuter than her!

Dan Aykroyd does a reasonable job of voicing Yogi with all the old catchphrases thrown in. Justin Timberlake as Boo-Boo is quite exceptional and the only good thing about this film.