I'VE always been a fan of the TV series, but like so many others, I was disappointed with the first movie, writes Richard King. So I'm glad to say that while this is still nowhere near as funny as the cartoon it is a million miles nearer than Flintstones the Movie was, and then some.

Not only does Viva Rock Vegas feel like a real life cartoon it is a lot closer in tone than its predecessor with a story that could have been torn from the archive of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera itself.

The Great Gazoo is sent from his native hermaphrodite planet to observe the reproduction habits of earthlings. On his arrivals he is confronted by two "dum dums", Fred (Mark Addy) and Barney (Stephen Baldwin). In the meantime Wilma Slaghoople (Kirsten Johnson) has abandoned her life in the lap of untold luxury and her engagement to Chip Rockerfeller (Thomas Gibson) for a taste of real life and the city.

On her arrival at Bedrock, she is immediately befriended by Betty O'Shale, (Jane Krakowski) who mistakes her for a homeless (sorry caveless) person and takes her in. Cue the girls working at the roller burger joint together when Fred and Barney show up with Gazoo, looking for girls. Love and courting ensues. Following a disastrous attempt by Wilma to win favour for her new friends with her mother (Joan Collins) the foursome are invited by Chip to enjoy a complimentary weekend at his new casino in Rock Vegas. Of course he has hidden agenda -- namely to get rid of Fred, win back Wilma and her fortune and get some particularly nasty debt collectors off his back.

What makes VRV work is the pace. Like its cartoon cousin it never hangs around enough for you to lose interest and therefore ensures the quick-fired delivery of the original 25-minute episodes. The script is episodic so it plays like two or three episodes strung together and there are enough interesting characters to fill out each section handsomely.

Alan Cumming does a great double as both the Great Gazoo and Mick Jagged of the Stones with Harvey Corman (the original voice of the Great Gazoo) as Colonel Slaghoople demonstrating that even at the age of 73 he hasn't lost any of his comic timing one jot.

So by no means perfect but by no means bad. It's as entertaining a piece of nonsense that you're going to be able to treat the kids to this summer. Rockin!