Team America' hilariously skewers all political sides
In "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut," Trey Parker and Matt Stone made great fun of traditional Hollywood musicals while turning their foul-mouthed pack of 8-year-olds loose on the big screen.
In "Team America: World Police," the vulgar, politically incorrect satire is aimed at vulgar-in-their-own-way, overblown, formulaic, Jerry Bruckheimer-produced blockbusters such as "The Rock," "Con Air," "Armageddon" and, especially, "Pearl Harbor."
Stringing together cliche after cliche with hilarious but perfect dialogue, Parker and Stone skewer the bloated Bruckheimer vehicles and, by extension, most of what passes for Hollywood action entertainment.
They're doing it in a framework that feels like an extended episode of "Thunderbirds," the old sci-fi adventure show that used marionettes. You can see the strings on the puppets, and their herky-jerky movements add to the fun of the picture, especially in the fight scenes.
Oh, yeah, "Team America: World Police" is also a scathing political satire.
Although anyone who watches "South Park" should know better, many anticipated that "Team America: World Police" would be yet another cinematic blast at President Bush and his go-it-alone foreign policy.
That's obviously the basis for the terrorist-fighting team that shoots first and asks questions later. The America-centric point gets made as our heroes blow up the Eiffel Tower and the pyramids in Egypt in pursuit of the bad guys.
But the wimpy left gets skewered just as effectively. Targets include filmmaker Michael Moore (called a "giant socialist weasel") and a squad of actors led by Alec Baldwin and including Sean Penn, who's been dumb enough to protest the movie. Baldwin, at least, shows he's got a sense of humor.
Politically incorrect to the core, "Team America: World Police" abuses every foreign culture it contacts through stereotyped images and gibberish language and takes a passing shot or two at gays.
It's also a musical. The opening number is "Everybody Has AIDS," a cheery little tune from the Broadway musical "Lease" (another satiric shot). It's sung by Gary Johnston (voice of Parker), who is being recruited by Spottswoode (voice of Daran Norris), the controller of Team America, which is down one member because an Arab terrorist gunned down one of the heroes during the destruction of Paris.
While reluctant to join, Gary is lured to the team by the lovely Lisa (voice of Kristen Miller), the psychologist who was the girlfriend of the dead squad member. He's welcomed by leader Joe (Parker again) and Sarah (voice of Masasa), an empath from Berkeley who uses her powers for good. But martial arts expert Chris (voice of Stone) doesn't want to have anything to do with the actor.
Sent to Egypt to use his talent to infiltrate the terrorist network, Gary apparently succeeds. But a massive bombing takes place, and it becomes clear that the mastermind behind the plot is pint-sized North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il (who sounds like Eric Cartman of "South Park" Parker's voice once again).
The whirling dervish story feels like a James Bond movie as it hops continents all locations identified by their distance from America and retreats to a secret headquarters inside Mount Rushmore. But Bond movies have never had scenes of repeated projectile vomiting and nonstop profanity, plus 007's adventures in the sack pale next to an extended scene of puppet sex that almost got "Team America: World Police" an NC-17 rating.
There are a couple of slow spots in the picture. But they're more than made up for by the high points, which include some great songs. "This Is a Montage" makes great fun of the hack filmmaker's favorite time-saving cliche, and "Pearl Harbor Sucked" includes inspirational lines such as "I miss you more than Michael Bay missed the mark when he made Pearl Harbor/I need you like Ben Affleck needs acting school."
A note of local interest: Parker and Stone continue their lampooning of Nebraska in "Team America: World Police." In "South Park," Cartman's highly dysfunctional extended family resides in the Cornhusker State. In the movie, team leader Joe, a rather vacant all-America quarterback, is from Nebraska and wears a red shirt when he's not in uniform and there are, of course, cornfield jokes.
"Team America: World Police" doesn't reach the level of perfection of "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut." But it comes pretty close. That makes it the funniest adult movie of the year and one very effective satire, equally puncturing the right, the left, Hollywood and middle America with filthy glee.
Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com.
Team America: World Police
***½
Director: Trey Parker
Stars: Voices of Parker, Matt Stone, Kristen Miller, Masasa
Rated: R (graphic crude and sexual humor, violent images, strong language, all involving puppets)
Now Showing: Plaza, Edgewood
The Reel Story: The "South Park" guys make vulgar but hilarious fun of action movies and politics in this satire done with marionettes.
In "Team America: World Police," the vulgar, politically incorrect satire is aimed at vulgar-in-their-own-way, overblown, formulaic, Jerry Bruckheimer-produced blockbusters such as "The Rock," "Con Air," "Armageddon" and, especially, "Pearl Harbor."
Stringing together cliche after cliche with hilarious but perfect dialogue, Parker and Stone skewer the bloated Bruckheimer vehicles and, by extension, most of what passes for Hollywood action entertainment.
They're doing it in a framework that feels like an extended episode of "Thunderbirds," the old sci-fi adventure show that used marionettes. You can see the strings on the puppets, and their herky-jerky movements add to the fun of the picture, especially in the fight scenes.
Oh, yeah, "Team America: World Police" is also a scathing political satire.
Although anyone who watches "South Park" should know better, many anticipated that "Team America: World Police" would be yet another cinematic blast at President Bush and his go-it-alone foreign policy.
That's obviously the basis for the terrorist-fighting team that shoots first and asks questions later. The America-centric point gets made as our heroes blow up the Eiffel Tower and the pyramids in Egypt in pursuit of the bad guys.
But the wimpy left gets skewered just as effectively. Targets include filmmaker Michael Moore (called a "giant socialist weasel") and a squad of actors led by Alec Baldwin and including Sean Penn, who's been dumb enough to protest the movie. Baldwin, at least, shows he's got a sense of humor.
Politically incorrect to the core, "Team America: World Police" abuses every foreign culture it contacts through stereotyped images and gibberish language and takes a passing shot or two at gays.
It's also a musical. The opening number is "Everybody Has AIDS," a cheery little tune from the Broadway musical "Lease" (another satiric shot). It's sung by Gary Johnston (voice of Parker), who is being recruited by Spottswoode (voice of Daran Norris), the controller of Team America, which is down one member because an Arab terrorist gunned down one of the heroes during the destruction of Paris.
While reluctant to join, Gary is lured to the team by the lovely Lisa (voice of Kristen Miller), the psychologist who was the girlfriend of the dead squad member. He's welcomed by leader Joe (Parker again) and Sarah (voice of Masasa), an empath from Berkeley who uses her powers for good. But martial arts expert Chris (voice of Stone) doesn't want to have anything to do with the actor.
Sent to Egypt to use his talent to infiltrate the terrorist network, Gary apparently succeeds. But a massive bombing takes place, and it becomes clear that the mastermind behind the plot is pint-sized North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il (who sounds like Eric Cartman of "South Park" Parker's voice once again).
The whirling dervish story feels like a James Bond movie as it hops continents all locations identified by their distance from America and retreats to a secret headquarters inside Mount Rushmore. But Bond movies have never had scenes of repeated projectile vomiting and nonstop profanity, plus 007's adventures in the sack pale next to an extended scene of puppet sex that almost got "Team America: World Police" an NC-17 rating.
There are a couple of slow spots in the picture. But they're more than made up for by the high points, which include some great songs. "This Is a Montage" makes great fun of the hack filmmaker's favorite time-saving cliche, and "Pearl Harbor Sucked" includes inspirational lines such as "I miss you more than Michael Bay missed the mark when he made Pearl Harbor/I need you like Ben Affleck needs acting school."
A note of local interest: Parker and Stone continue their lampooning of Nebraska in "Team America: World Police." In "South Park," Cartman's highly dysfunctional extended family resides in the Cornhusker State. In the movie, team leader Joe, a rather vacant all-America quarterback, is from Nebraska and wears a red shirt when he's not in uniform and there are, of course, cornfield jokes.
"Team America: World Police" doesn't reach the level of perfection of "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut." But it comes pretty close. That makes it the funniest adult movie of the year and one very effective satire, equally puncturing the right, the left, Hollywood and middle America with filthy glee.
Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com.
Team America: World Police
***½
Director: Trey Parker
Stars: Voices of Parker, Matt Stone, Kristen Miller, Masasa
Rated: R (graphic crude and sexual humor, violent images, strong language, all involving puppets)
Now Showing: Plaza, Edgewood
The Reel Story: The "South Park" guys make vulgar but hilarious fun of action movies and politics in this satire done with marionettes.
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