October 16, 2004

Critic's Corner

I've read a few reviews of Team America, and the reviewers all seem to be trying pretty hard to persuade themselves that the movie isn't all that funny. Well, I just saw it and here's my review: it is very, very funny. Favorite bits: Susan Sarandon and the song "Pearl Harbor Sucked and I Miss You."


UPDATE: Oh, yeah, and Tim Robbins's speech about The Corporations is pretty great, too, as is the Rent parody.

Gary Farber points out this NYT review, which says, with regard to the movie's climactic speech:

Because of its graphic (though metaphorical) discussion of human anatomy, I can't quote any of the speech here, but it is one of the more cogent — and, dare I say it, more nuanced — defenses of American military power that I have heard recently.

That's actually quite true, and very well put. I'm sure this guy was like me and all the other people in the cinema where I saw the film: halfway through the speech, we all started giggling semi-hysterically, almost in spite of ourselves, which only made it funnier. By the end many in the audience were actually engaged in a form of howling. I guess that's how South Park is, too, though I don't know that I'm sufficiently sophisticated to agree or disagree with the Slate reviewer's claim that he likes SP because it "brilliantly distills and exteriorizes its makers' Weltanshauung."

For me, the greatest moment in Team America is after the speech, when Gary turns to the love interest puppet to make a final plea for her affection and she interrupts, in true, perfect, action movie style: "shh... you had me at..." Well, I won't "give it away" for those who haven't seen it yet.

I have a hard time believing that Roger Ebert and all the other reviewers weren't secretly giggling hysterically along with everyone else. The weird thing is, though, they all seem a little pissed off about that.

UPDATE II: Roger L. Simon liked it, too.

Posted by Dr. Frank at October 16, 2004 02:57 AM | TrackBack
Comments

I can't getr passed the fact that THEY'RE PUPPETS!!!! I'm not old enough to have been a Thunderbirds fan, so I don't get the whole superhero marionnette thing. Now Muppets, I can comprehend. Anyhow, I'm continuing my ban of the $9 movie theaters with their $4 sodas and bottles of water. I'll check it out when I can get it from Blockbuster or Hollywood for a thrifty $3.99 and drink my $0.35 beverage.

Posted by: Zaphod at October 16, 2004 03:48 AM

matinee.

Posted by: Rude Girl Terry at October 16, 2004 05:23 AM


i don't know...i can't really say because i haven't seen it,but it doesn't sound that interesting. i mean,i don't know if it's the same style but i know it's done by the South Park guys,which is kinda so five years ago for me.

i already tire of them.

i'm looking forward to the The Incredibles myself.
Pixar has recreated the Fantastic Four. Yeah!!!

Posted by: just me at October 16, 2004 06:35 AM

Dunno if you saw the reviews quoted here, or my comments.

Posted by: Gary Farber at October 16, 2004 09:52 AM

Oh, right.

Here: http://amygdalagf.blogspot.com/2004/10/i-blame-canada.html

Posted by: Gary Farber at October 16, 2004 09:53 AM

That's spelled *Weltanschauung," thanks very much.

Don't know whether to blame you or Slate, but my money is on Slate.

Posted by: llivermore at October 16, 2004 06:25 PM

Yeah, Larry: spelling /sic/, as they say.

Posted by: Dr. Frank at October 16, 2004 06:36 PM

I checked out the comments at IMDB, and many of the commenters were saying, in effect, "Dude, they're making fun of *liberals*! What's up with that? Making fun of progressives can't be funny! What were they thinking?"

I always had mixed reactions to the Thunderbirds. The puppets weren't very convincing, so that really put me off the stories. But the sets and props were *great*, and I sometimes wished they'd stop distracting me with that stupid "plot" thing, and just let me look at it.

Posted by: Angie Schultz at October 16, 2004 07:45 PM


i don't know,i prefer plot over eye candy and one-liners anyday. that's what i liked south park for
when i did. if it's even a bit much like that,i just don't think i care anymore. although i'm on ebert's side,it doesn't piss me off it just seems kind of pointless. yesh i know,you guys like pointless,however i do not. it makes me care even less when they try to make add some kind of point to it to beef up the true lack of depth and character. therefore i'm not going to waste almost 10 bucks on it.

Posted by: just me at October 17, 2004 12:39 AM

My own favorite Gerry Anderson was "Captain Scarlet," but I strongly suspect most Gerry Anderson preferences are strongly linked to precisely which series came out when one was the Perfect Age, which was probably 7 or 8 or so.

Posted by: Gary Farber at October 17, 2004 09:04 AM

on that last update...i don't know...maybe its
almost valid as satire,but dated satire just isn't my thing. i like a movie that'll matter ten years from now. i'm telling you,this one won't.

Posted by: just me at October 17, 2004 05:59 PM

Damn, just, that's a pretty high standard.

Posted by: Dr. Frank at October 17, 2004 06:12 PM

I thought it was great, very clever. Just look at how they walk, just that will crack you up.

Posted by: Matt Morris at October 17, 2004 06:14 PM


and almost all of them quality films...

I would add Close Encounters of The Third Kind,The Dark Crystal,Nightmare Before Christmas
Edward Scissorhands,Say Anything...really don't get me started. The list goes on,and then of course the old black and white classics or old Disney movies which anyways I understand not everyone likes so I'm not even counting that stuff. Yes it is a high standard,I admit that,but such is my background with which i agree.

One of my favorite steals was that i found the Grease soundtrack in a little dollar box at this one music store. Two bucks,just because it didn't have the liner notes.

Posted by: just me at October 18, 2004 04:39 AM

Matter, shmatter, I don't remember ever laughing as hard at a moive as when the Uncle-Fucker song came on in the South Park movie. Maybe it'll be hard to catch me that off-gaurd this time, but its worth 9 buck to finds out.

Posted by: josh at October 18, 2004 03:38 PM

one of the funniest movies ever made.
The left-wing sites seem the most offended, though I suppose a few right-wing sites may have listed their objections and I just haven't seen them.
As for mattering in ten years, I think it's actually got a shot. As Gary mentions, they take the preeminent public policy debate of the past 15 years and wrap it into a hilarious satire of action movies. If people have forgotten about it in ten years, then that says more about us then the movie. "Oh, debates about the proper role of military power in a unipolar world? Nah, I'm kinda over that. I want to see a movie about how fat we've all become."

Posted by: marc w. at October 18, 2004 05:26 PM

Another movie that has mattered 10 years later and probably forever: Indiana Jones (my 2nd fav. of all time next to the Star Wars movies, well excluding that Phontom Menace POS).

Posted by: Zaphod at October 18, 2004 05:45 PM

oh yuck,my parents got me that movie thinking i
would like it. its just TOO cheesy for me,much as
there are movies i can appreciate for bad's sake.
MST3k stuff and such you know,nonetheless that movies was promptly given away.

that said i'm a little more partial to the bowling song myself.

i think its a special kind of person that loves
anything Tim Burton too.

indiana jones indeed!!!how can you forget!

Posted by: just me at October 18, 2004 07:33 PM


well...i'm not that bad. i just have the soundtrack and the movie. though last halloween i tried to watch them in sync,almost worked too.

Posted by: just me at October 18, 2004 11:32 PM

Close Encounters of The Third Kind,The Dark Crystal,Nightmare Before Christmas
Edward Scissorhands,Say Anything..


how could you enjoy 'close encounters' on the same level as all the dreck you listed afterward?
sweet crap those are bad...

Posted by: captin krunchy at October 19, 2004 06:24 PM


i'm my own dork that's how...

*snif*...making me sad...

i don't like movies that make people sad,is
that so wrong? *snif*

Posted by: just me at October 19, 2004 08:15 PM


okay,that was exagerrating a bit...

my point is this,if they really want to make a point they should write a book for peoplpe to learn from,that's how its been done for hundreds of years. A good movie(in my opinion)need not be fiction but should be epic and long standing and
worth putting in the theater. I don't want there
to be a movie that a "wait for video" kinda film.
That's my high standard and I'm sticking to it.

Posted by: just me at October 19, 2004 10:45 PM

i'm down with that, just. back in the early -mid seventies the top release films were what now are considered "art" films. five easy peices, taxi driver, the last detail, mean streets . these were major productions back then. now they would be playing at one theatre in each city. today we have hollywood feeding us "spy kids" and the accompanying drink cup to go with it. pah-tet- ic

Posted by: captin krunchy at October 19, 2004 11:44 PM

ah yes,the time when i was born,and but a child.
i think those are before my time. though i know enough to have heard of them,i've never seen them.


p.s. yes i know i mistyped people after saying i never mispell,just in case you're keeping track.
you start talking movies,i get a little excited.
i've never been a film student(one class maybe)
but it quickly becomes more and more my token interest these days.

Posted by: Just(me) at October 20, 2004 05:43 AM

well you should see those movies. everyone should. shake off your MTV malaise, people! No-one cares where your car is , DUDE!

Anyway, i saw "Team America" it was funny in parts, overall just more gross out jokes. Not very witty, really. I think Waynes World is much more effective form of satire. Anyway, i think Team America is an example of self indulgence, with some humorous payoffs. Most notably the washington dc sequence ("what would yow dow..")

Posted by: captin krunchy at October 22, 2004 08:38 AM

yes indeedy,the only mtv movie(other than wayne's world,which was technically SNL)i will admit to seeing and loving was joe's apartment.

you gotta admit that was great,gross but great.
i still have a indulgent hope that it was my idea
and someone went through trash on that one.

not bloody likely to be true,but i wrote a horrible poem about singing roaches a long time ago. all that said,glad i was right,self-indulgence is not an excuse for making movies!

Posted by: just me at October 22, 2004 05:16 PM

i wonder what franz kafka would have thought of joe's apartment? that's heavy.... yeah.
hey you should send me your singing roach poem!

Posted by: captin krunchy at October 23, 2004 08:07 AM


alas,i realized it was stupid many years ago and
it is trashed. however if you still desire something equally fun and not so stupid,i can send you my poem about a sock revolution.

Posted by: just me at October 24, 2004 05:51 AM

revolutional socks? bring it on!!

Posted by: captin krunchy at October 25, 2004 07:07 AM