IN THE beginning, there was nothing. Then, Harold Ramis had an idea. I was thinking about two things in comedy that I love, says the writer-director-producer. One was Mel Brooks Two-Thousand-Year-Old Man, and the other was an improvisation I stage

IN THE beginning, there was nothing. Then, Harold Ramis had an idea.

"I was thinking about two things in comedy that I love," says the writer-director-producer.

"One was Mel Brooks' Two-Thousand-Year-Old Man, and the other was an improvisation I staged 35 years ago with John Belushi and Bill Murray.

"Bill played a Cro-Magnon man with a completely hip and contemporary vibe, and John played a Neanderthal Man as an idiot. For this movie, I had those inspirations in mind when I thought it would be really interesting to put someone with a contemporary consciousness in an ancient setting."

That's when he hit upon the idea for YEAR ONE (12A).

In his words: "Two innocent, know-nothing Paleolithic hunter-gatherers, Zed and Oh, get kicked out of their Garden of Eden paradise and begin a search for what life is all about."

Jack Black and John Cera star.

Black says: "I liked the script's attitude - nothing is sacred. It doesn't take anything seriously."

Hank Azaria, Vinnie Jones are among the supporting cast.