MVP: Most Valuable Primate  (1999)

Theatrical Release Information:
MVP: Most Valuable Primate

A chimp learns the blue lines rules of hockey (which is more than can be said for many fans) in this family oriented comedy from the creative team behind Air Bud. Jack is a three-year-old chimpanzee who has been the subject of a long-term experiment by Dr. Kendall (Lomax Study), a researcher who been teaching Jack to communicate through sign language. Jack, however, has not been making progress fast enough for Dr. Kendall's sponsor, Dr. Peabody (Oliver Muirhead), who has cut off his funding and sold Jack to a medical research lab. Afraid of what could happen to his simian friend, Dr. Kendall sneaks Jack out of his home in the lab; however, Jack is accidentally sent to Canada, where he gets loose and is discovered by Tara (Jamie Renee Smith), a deaf girl who recognizes Jack's sign language. Jack has an even bigger surprise for Tara's older brother Steven (Kevin Zegers); Jack scrambles onto the ice in the midst of practice for Steven's junior league hockey team, and he and his teammates discover the monkey has a natural talent for the game. With Jack on the team, Steven's team is on their way to a league championship, but Jack's notoriety attracts the unfortunate attention of Dr. Peabody, who are determined to send Jack back to his new owners. Jack is played on screen by three different chimps, Bernie, Mac, and Louie; the suppoirting cast also features former SCTV regular Dave Thomas. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide