Dunston Checks In

High society gets a dose of monkey business in this family-friendly bit of simian slapstick. Less foul and more fun than Clyde from the Clint Eastwood comedies, Dunston is the practical-joking orangutan partner of foppish jewel thief Rupert Everett. Making his escape in a five-star New York hotel, Dunston lands in the protective care of 10-year-old Eric Lloyd, the high-spirited son of harried hotel manager Jason Alexander, and together they turn the snooty social event of the year into a zoo. Faye Dunaway is Alexander's overbearing boss just aching for a comic comeuppance, and Paul "Pee-wee Herman" Reubens dons a mauve tuxedo as Buck La Farge, animal-control specialist. Would you believe the monkey upstages them all? Though hardly the smartest comedy around, this is a cute, cuddly little barrel full of monkeyshines just made for the younger crowd. Rated PG for one (yelled) word. --Sean Axmaker