Product Description

A 5-star hotel turns into a 3-ring circus when an orangutan named Duston checks in. Jason Alexander ("Seinfeld"), Faye Dunaway ("Network") and Eric Lloyd ("The Santa Clause") star in this hilarious romp about an orangutan who gets loose in the elegant Majestic Hotel on the eve of the social event of the season. Dodging his jewel-thieving owner and the frantic hotel manager, Dunston is befriended by the manager's ten-year old son, Kyle, who is determined to help his new friend escape. Filled with laughter and comic high-jinks, DUNSTON CHECKS IN is "a steady stream of giggles for those who get a kick out of monkey business." (Henry Sheehan, Orange County Register).

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #34459 in DVD
• Released on: 2002-05-28
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French, Spanish
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 88 minutes

Amazon.com
High society gets a dose of monkey business in this family-friendly bit of simian slapstick. Less foul and more fun than Clyde from the Clint Eastwood comedies, Dunston is the practical-joking orangutan partner of foppish jewel thief Rupert Everett. Making his escape in a five-star New York hotel, Dunston lands in the protective care of 10-year-old Eric Lloyd, the high-spirited son of harried hotel manager Jason Alexander, and together they turn the snooty social event of the year into a zoo. Faye Dunaway is Alexander's overbearing boss just aching for a comic comeuppance, and Paul "Pee-wee Herman" Reubens dons a mauve tuxedo as Buck La Farge, animal-control specialist. Would you believe the monkey upstages them all? Though hardly the smartest comedy around, this is a cute, cuddly little barrel full of monkeyshines just made for the younger crowd. Rated PG for one (yelled) word. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

A fun movie
You might expect "Dunston Checks In" to be a kiddy or cutesy show, and in a way it is, but it can also be a good family movie for anybody who likes comedies. A manager of a 5-star hotel in New York, Mr. Grant (Jason Alexander), has a great job, but he has to watch every step he takes because if he makes one mistake in the eyes of the owner, Mrs. Dubrow (Faye Dunaway), he could lose his high paying job and go from living in a 5-star hotel to something not so nice. Mr. Grant has two kids to raise, but things just might go haywire when an orangutan starts hanging out at the hotel.

But not to fret, not only is the orangutan named Dunston real smart, he can also make simple things hilarious. "Dunston Checks In" isn't a groundbreaking comedy and it's not that original, but it is fun to watch, and it can be funny. I recommend anybody who likes comedies that feature an animal as the main star to at least rent "Dunston Checks In," if not buying it.

Dunston = Brilliance
Ah, the simple pleasures in life. Monkey movies are getting to be few and far between, with the bad ones overtaking the good. (Did anyone see Ed with Matt LeBlanc, yeah, i didn't think so) All those that feel that the genre of monkey movies is almost dead should see the brilliant Dunston Checks In. This film has it all: a monkey that wreaks havoc in a swanky hotel, and Jason Alexander really overacting. Jason, lighten up bud! you are in a monkey movie! The real pleasure comes in knowing that this film was an attempt to breath life into the monkey movie genre, a field that has been over looked by the Oscars for numerous years. The only problem with this film is that it is far too short. When will filmakers realize that monkey films should be epics, not 90 minute comedies. Give me an epic monkey movie over the same old Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy garbage anyday. Dunston, i think i speak for everyone when i say: I love you!

Great family fun!
"Dunston Checks In" is great family fun. The plot involves a chimp who wreaks havoc in a five-star Manhattan Hotel and befriends the manager's young sons in the process. Warm-hearted, funny, and quite entertaining for ages 4 and up. The chimp and his antics are adorable and the acting is quite good, featuring performances by Jason Alexander (as the hotel manager), Faye Dunaway (as a Leona Helmsley-like hotel owner), Rupert Everett (as Dunston's owner), and Pee-Wee Herman.