Review of MVP: Most Valuable Primate

Jack, a chimp, has been trained by a college professor, Dr. Kendall (Lomax Study) to do various human tasks. Each week, a small gathering of adults and children come to a seminar to see his progress. But, alas, one night, the prof has a heart attack and passes away. The head of the department wants to sell him to the highest bidder, even if it means Jack will be subjected to experimentation. That cannot happen, so a janitor, Larry, smuggles Jack out of the lab and puts him on a train to California. That's where Jack's family resides. However, Jack oversleeps and ends up in British Columbia! There, a California family has just transplanted themselves as residents. The son, Steven (Kevin Zegers) is a hockey player who joins a young adult team. Of course, they give him grief for thinking a So-Cal guy can compete with Canadian players. Even in a worse situation is Steve's sister Tara (Jamie Renee Smith) who is deaf and has no luck making friends at her new school. It is Tara who finds Jack and takes him to her room. Before long, Jack is skating alongside Steven and gets himself "placed" on the team. Since the chimp can go through other skaters legs and perform other unusual feats, Steven's team starts winning big. But, with the college looking for their once valuable primate, will everyone's dreams be spoiled? This is a cute film with a funny script and a nice cast. It has a bevy of clichés, as to its story, but each one works enjoyably. No, a chimp would never be allowed on a team, but it doesn't matter. Only animal activists will frown at the flick so, unless you are one of those, get this MVP for your own Most Valuable Family.