Under Wraps

You wouldn't expect a story like this to work as well as it does. Three friends in middle school named Marshall (Mario Yedidia), Gilbert (Adam Wylie), and Amy (Clara Bryant) find, and accidently reanimate a mummy they dub Harold (Bill Fagerbakke). Harold breaks loose and runs around their small California town and the kids have to find him before Harold is caught by these mobster type villains who want to sell him on the black market. My describing the plot makes it seem like a really lazy set up but it's done surpringly pretty well. It's actually a pretty fun movie. The three main characters were all really enjoyable to watch, almost reminding me of E.T. or The Goonies. They don't swear or do anything like that but they act snarky to each other, they call each other loser, they act like real kids. It's obviously aimed for a child audience but (personally) I think there are things that can appeal to adults as well.

This kid flick was shot in my hometown of Chico Ca. When my mom had heard that a Disney movie would be filming in Chico, she immediately signed her and myself up as extras. I just have a small part at the school scene, but it was fun nonetheless. And, we were both paid for our services! It was fun, and I'd do it again! The movie turned out to be okay, (as far as kiddie Disney movies go). I've only seen it twice, if that, but it's fun to see parts of Chico on film, (even though the original Robin Hood was shot around here as well). I hope Chico can still be considered a market, even for small and low budget films. Its's a beautiful town!

A Halloween classic. It's tragic that this isn't on Disney+. The score to this movie is phenomenal, especially when they are saying goodbye to Harold. It's up there with "Test Drive", "He's a Pirate" and "Time".

Good thing the full movie is on YouTube.

Best Character: Harold Best Quote: "I don't wear pajamas, I sleep in the nude." - Amy Best Scene: Saying Goodbye.

Note: Amy is hilarious. She has some really witty one-liners.

Note 2: The fact that Harold is voiced by Patrick Star is amazing! Once you hear it, you can't un-hear it.

I've seen the 2021 movie "Under Wraps", which apparently was a remake of this 1997 movie, though I didn't know that, as I haven't watched the 1997 version before now in 2024.

Writer Don Rhymer put together an enjoyable script which actually proves wholesome for the entire family. So there is something for everyone to enjoy here, and that made the movie rather enjoyable. I was genuinely entertained throughout the course of the 95 minutes that the movie ran for.

The movie has a good cast, and there are some familiar faces on the cast list, with the likes of Corinne Bohrer, Ken Hudson Campbell, Ed Lauter and Bill Fagerbakke. The young leading cast, which was Adam Wylie, Mario Yedidia and Clara Bryant definitely carried the movie quite well.

Visually then the movie was actually fair. Keep in mind that it is a family movie, so you're not in for a spectacle of ghastly effects. But the mummy was actually quite nicely made.

"Under Wraps" is well-worth sitting down to watch, and it still holds up today. And it could very easy be a movie that the family could sit down and enjoy for Halloween.

My rating of director Greg Beeman's 1997 movie "Under Wraps" lands on a six out of ten stars.

I thought that I hated Under Wraps but, as it turns out, I was thinking of a completely different Disney Channel Original Movie. My mistake. Under Wraps isn't that bad. Yes, this is absolutely geared towards kids and no, it's not scary at all, but there's something endearing about this corny Halloween story. It's a gateway movie for young children and those that don't enjoy horror, introducing the concept of mummies in a safe & silly environment. And, truthfully, it's one of the better mummy movies out there. Most of them aren't that good. I'm glad I finally unraveled my feelings on Under Wraps.