I can't even begin to imagine the pitch for this one. Aqua Teen Hunger Force, an 11 minute cartoon shown liberally on the Adult Swim network, expanded to feature film length with the same quality of animation and featuring most of the best-loved characters. It's a risky proposal alright, but for the most part it works. I love the show personally, though many of the episodes are beyond ridiculous and subsequently difficult to fathom from a humour perspective. The idea of taking that and stretching it, well, I doubt anyone else could have pulled it off even half as well.
It's not brilliant by any means mind, long portions of it passed without a titter from the (intensely) loyal audience I viewed it with. The plot is as bafflingly unnecessary as ever, but seems to revolve around Shake finding a 70,000 year old exercise machine that has the power to destroy the world. All the old favourites return, Err and Ignignokt, Emory and Oglethorpe, The Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future. Carl obviously. In a surprising turn of event Err and Ignignokt are surprisingly subdued, and not the scene-stealing bastards they normally are. Quite a lot else is revealed however, and lets just say that Dr Weird makes a much larger appearance than normal...
I can't recommend the film highly enough to fans, but if you've never seen the show before, stay away! Maiellaro and Willis live on their own crazy planet and without a serious induction (it took me a few viewings of the first series to 'get' it) you're going to be left behind. The plot is always secondary to the predictable actions of the central characters, and frequently takes unexpected turns. A talking slice of watermelon. Abe Lincoln driving a VW Beetle and talking like a teenage stoner. TWO drum solo's. It's crazy stuff. Unsurprisingly I don't expect it to be released at any cinema outside of the US (and probably not most of that), so wait till it comes out on DVD folks! And for God's sake, watch the show a lot first. |
