Mouse Hunt

Movie review by Scott G. Mignola, Common Sense Media
Mouse Hunt Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 8+

Clever slapstick with cartoonish violence, profanity.

PG 1997 97 minutes
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Parents say

age 12+

Based on 16 reviews

Kids say

age 9+

Based on 15 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Mouse Hunt is a 1997 movie filled with unrelenting comedic pratfall-style violence. The two lead characters use a variety of implements to try to kill a mouse, including a shotgun and a nail gun. The mouse fills the house with gas later and blows the brothers sky-high. In the opening scene, the two brothers drop their father's coffin at the top of the church stairs, resulting in the corpse flying out of the coffin and into a manhole. There are some moments of inappropriate humor: The two lead characters are covered in excrement after accidentally destroying the sewer line with a vacuum, and the exterminator they hire ends up flat on his back with the mouse defecating on his mouth. This same exterminator eats a piece of mouse excrement to determine its diet. Early in the film, the mayor vomits a cockroach while eating in a fancy restaurant. There also are some moments of subtle and not-so-subtle sexual innuendo: A character talks of "making love like in nature films," the greedy wife of one of the lead characters appears in his office in lingerie, and the pursuit of the mouse leads to the two lead characters sticking their hands down the dresses of two women, and, later, unzipping the fly of one of the characters as he screams "Get it out!" There's also occasional profanity ("hell," "son of a bitch," "bastard").

Community Reviews

wibcon
wibcon Adult
July 27, 2021
age 5+

My 5yo enjoyed it and so did I

The movie does get a little risque as mentioned, but I watched it with my 5yo and we all liked it. She liked the over-the-top antics, and the humor/plot wasn't bland enough to put me to sleep. I don't think the mildly sexual segments will ruin my kids future.
rjstrickland23
rjstrickland23 Adult
August 3, 2019
age 13+

Inappropriate PG movie

Too many curse words, too many non kid-friendly scenes (sexual innuendo). I wouldn't have let my 5 year-old watch it if I knew these things.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 16 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In the vivacious 1997 movie MOUSE HUNT, Nathan Lane and Lee Evans are hapless brothers out to rid their house of a very shrewd mouse. Anyone who's dealt with mice on the loose in a home knows how pesky they can be. That's part of what makes Mouse Hunt fun; you can't help pitying the poor Smuntz brothers, who go to wild extremes trying to rid themselves of an elusive rodent. Kids will side with the mouse, of course, because it's cute and furry and performs some spectacular stunts (thanks to convincing and sparingly used computer-generated effects).

Is It Any Good?

Although something of a Home Alone retread, Mouse Hunt has far more brains, heart, and style, which will endear it to adults as well as young viewers. Take heed of the PG rating for excessive cartoon-style violence. About two-thirds of the way through it takes an excessively cruel turn, when the mouse floods the house with gas fumes and blows the brothers sky-high. Kids will eat it up, but parents may wince.

Casting Christopher Walken as an exterminator is just one of many inspired touches that gives this movie its adult appeal. William Hickey is also fine -- in one of his last performances -- as frail old Rudolph Smuntz, whose somber portrait keeps changing expression after he passes on.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about cartoonish violence. How is it used for the sake of humor in this movie? Is it effective?

  • Why do you think slapstick violence is considered to be funny for some? What would the real-life consequences of this violence be?

  • Did the humor feel gratuitous to you? Why, or why not?

Movie Details

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