Light, Spacey, Goofy Fun With The `Jetsons'

XXX ``Jetsons: The Movie,'' with the voices of Mel Blanc, George O'Hanlon, Tiffany. Directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, from a script by Dennis Marks. Alderwood, Aurora Village, Bay, Broadway Market, Everett Mall, Factoria, Gateway, Kent, Kirkland Parkplace, Oak Tree, Overlake, Parkway Plaza, Snohomish. Rated ``G''.

Outergalactic!

Reviving Hanna-Barbera's 1962 cartoon space-age family for the big screen may seem an odd idea for the 1990s. With its flat cardboard cut-out look, ``The Jetsons'' television show didn't exactly change the face of animation. And how could its aw-shucks wholesomeness, so rooted in its era, possibly work 28 years later?

Well, it works just fine, thanks to a clever script and some eye-catching computer animation.

The time is the late 21st century (real-estate signs read, ``Century 2200''). Industrialist Cosmo G. Spacely (the voice of the late Mel Blanc) is having trouble at one of his sprocket plants on the outer edge of the universe.

Four company vice-presidents have come and gone trying to solve the plant's problems, but to no avail. Spacely needs a troubleshooter who's ``totally loyal, willing to work for peanuts, not too bright, and entirely expendable'' to send to the fringes of his industrial empire. His candidate: loafer-on-the-job George Jetson (the late George O'Hanlon).

The Jetsons are upset about the move at first, but soon adapt to their new life in Intergalactic Garden Estates. For George, it offers escape from the smog and gridlock of his daily commute. For wife Jane (Penny Singleton) and daughter Judy (pop singer Tiffany), there's a mall to shop in. For son Elroy (Patric Zimmerman), there's a spaceball team to join. Rosie the Robot (Jean Vanderpyl) would kvetch no matter where she was. And Astro the dog (Don Messick) is happy anywhere.

Besides, the neighbors are interesting. Some of them are blue. Others aren't human. All of them watch ``All My Androids,'' which features lines like: ``Oh, Galaxiana! Just because I'm a robot doesn't mean we can't have children.''

The suspense comes from George's battle with the mysterious creatures who are sabotaging Spacely Sprockets. Who are they? (Think of the outer space equivalent of the spotted owl, and you've got your answer.)

The environmental message is skillfully handled and couched in a humor that's silly and winning. The color-scheme strikes just the right note of tacky psychedelia. The jet-age gadgets - spacemobiles, hologram gardens - allow for plenty of visual fun. And the movie's gentle satirization of ordinary people who own no end of extraordinary gadgets is as tart and appealing as ever.

Tiffany fans can look forward to new tunes by her on the soundtrack. (Rap-group XXL steals the show from her, however, with their closing number, ``We're the Jetsons.'')

Even viewers put off by the old Hanna-Barbera animation style may want to give this one a chance. The figures are as bland as ever, but the computer-enhanced universe they inhabit couldn't be more lively. Light, goofy, fun to watch, it's a perfect summer movie for the little kids and the adults who accompany them.