Encino Man

Two Southern California teenagers, Dave Morgan and Stoney Brown, are digging a pool in Dave's backyard when they unearth a block of ice containing a prehistoric man who has stayed frozen for thousands of years. Once thawed, the caveman is named Link, and the boys pass him off as a foreign exchange student. Their plan is to use his novelty to raise their standing at school, but Link draws attention in ways they did not plan for, especially from Robyn Sweeney, the girl Dave is interested in.

Les Mayfield directed the film, his second feature after Roger Rabbit and the Secrets of Toon Town, working from a screenplay by Shawn Schepps and producing with George Zaloom. Sean Astin plays Dave, Brendan Fraser plays Link, Megan Ward plays Robyn, and Pauly Shore plays Stoney, with Mariette Hartley and Richard Masur as Dave's parents among a credited cast of 58. The production, made by Hollywood Pictures with Touchwood Pacific Partners 1, cost about 7 million dollars and returned roughly 41 million dollars worldwide, a strong multiple on its budget.

On IMDb the film sits at 5.9 out of 10 from around 48,000 votes, and on TMDB at 5.8 from 743 votes, while a critics' rating of 3.7 out of 10 from 36 reviews places it well below the audience scores.