Posted in: Movies | Tagged: eddie murphy, hong kong phooey

Eddie Murphy Has The Voice Of Hong Kong Phooey, We Have A Clip From The Aristocats

Who is this superhero? Sarge? No. Rosemary the telephone operator? No. Henry, the mild-mannered janitor? Um… no, it's Eddie Murphy in the guise of a CGI version of Hong Kong Phooey, the latest cartoon character to get the star treatment as a way of squeezing the nostalgia dollar for all its worth.

Alcon Entertainment are producing a live-action/animation film based on the short-lived Hanna-Barbera cartoon series and have just signed the comedian and actor on to be the voice of the bumbling, karate-chopping dog detective.

I do like Eddie Murphy, though as a voice actor I don't know if I could hear him playing any part without immediately thinking of Donkey from Shrek. Not only that, but he'll be measured against the inimitable Scatman Crothers who was the original voice of Hong Kong Phooey and whose scratchy-dulcet tones also sang the classic theme song.

Heading up the project is director Alex Zamm, king of the unwanted sequel, whose previous credits include Doctor Dolittle 2: Million Dollar Mutts, Inspector Gadget 2, Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 and Tooth Fairy 2.

Live-action/animation big-budget versions of cult cartoons have so far run the gamut between bad and mediocre (I'm looking at you, Garfield, Yogi Bear and The Smurfs) but who knows – perhaps Eddie Murphy and Alex "2" Zamm will blow me away. Or perhaps instead I'll look up The Aristocats on Youtube and listen to Scatman Crothers singing Everybody Wants to be a Cat.

Take it away, Scat Cat.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNEraxj559Y[/youtube]

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