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Idiocracy
Directed by: Mike Judge
Starring: Luke Wilson
Genre:
Sci-Fi/Comedy
Run Time: 84
min.
Release Date:
September 2006
On The Web:
Unofficial Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by
Byron Merritt |
Coming from the creators of
Beavis and Butthead, you should realize immediately the level of
sophisticated comedy you’re in for. That is to say, bottom-rung funnies.
This isn’t horrible, just something you should prepare yourself for when
slipping IDIOCRACY into your DVD player.
More of a 1984 for Dummies, Idiocracy has a great premise with poor
execution. The premise is that intelligent people (those with an IQ
above an amoeba) don’t procreate as much as those who live in trailer
parks, have questionable dental hygiene, and believe the height of
entertainment is watching a monster truck rally.
The stars are Luke Wilson (MY
SUPER EX-GIRLFRIEND) as Private Joe Bowers and Maya Rudolph as
Rita. Joe is average. So average that the military decides to pull him
from his job (doing nothing) and inter him in a cryogenic coffin for one
year as a test to see how far they’ve come with freezing people. They
also need a female to round out the study so pull a prostitute named
Rita from the streets and put her in a cryo-coffin next to Joe.
Supposedly they’re to be reawakened in one year. But the leader of the
project is arrested and the project forgotten. The building where Joe
and Maya lay cryo-sleeping is bulldozed, and their resting places
vanish.
Fast-forward 1,000 years and we find a massive garbage pile that
suddenly falls, causing a landslide. Joe’s coffin is ejected from the
heap and he quickly wakes up. What he discovers is a society so dumbed-down
that he’s the smartest person on the planet (he’s the only one who knows
that watering plants causes them to grow). Maya’s coffin reopens, too,
and she returns to plying her trade but discovers she no longer needs to
spread her legs, as only promising to do so gets her money.
Joe is later elevated to the position of Vice-President of the United
States (and eventually President), and he has to make the tough decision
to stay 1,000 years in the future or to return to his own time via
something called “The Time Machine.” We later learn, too, that the time
machine is simply a Disneyesque ride through a very jumbled and
inaccurate world historical account.
The premise definitely is intriguing, as some of what is touched upon
can be seen in society already. But the poor acting, terrible sets, and
weak screenplay make this comedy flick a definite pass.
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Image from Idiocracy
DVD cost: $22.38
Purchase:
Barnes and Noble.com
Film Review Stew
Favorite? No.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy: Idiocracy was released in theaters without any trailers
and without an official poster. Apparently, Fox was trying to ignore or
kill the film even before its release.
Movie Quote: "I'm
the smartest guy in the world? Says who?"
Other Actors/Actresses
from Idiocracy
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