Austin360 blogs > Austin Movie Blog > Archives > 2006 > September > 01 > Entry
‘Idiocracy’ — not half bad
Three things to establish right up front:
1) I love Mike Judge. “Beavis and Butt-head” and “King of the Hill” are among my favorite things on this earth, and I’m pretty fond of “Office Space.”
2) “Idiocracy” will not rank with those works.
3) Still, there is absolutely no reason (and I just held myself back from writing that in all caps) that Fox should have hidden this little movie away like it was Suri Cruise.
I checked out “Idiocracy” this morning at the early, early show at Barton Creek Square (the movie did not screen in advance for critics, so we were not able to review for today’s Life & Movies section in the Statesman). There were about 10 people in the theater, which I found pretty impressive for 10:05 a.m. on a weekday. And many of those people laughed out loud during the movie.
“Idiocracy” is uneven, but it is very, very funny in places. You’re probably familiar with the premise: Luke Wilson plays an average guy who becomes the subject of a government hibernation experiment. He wakes up 500 years in the future and discovers that he is the smartest man in a dumbed-down world.
Like Peter Gibbons in “Office Space,” Wilson’s character, Joe, is trapped in a world ruled by the inept where nothing makes sense or works right. The problems go a little deeper than TPS sheets, though. At a hospital, for example, the lobby is strewn with trash and filled with slot machines. Patients line up to be diagnosed by a machine attended by a guy who mixes up which sensors go in your mouth and which ones go … somewhere else. And all of this costs billions of dollars.
The way that “Office Space” tapped in to our universal loathing of workplace nonsense, “Idiocracy” touches the raw nerve of how much, well, idiocy we have to deal with on a daily basis. Judge imagines a society where every interaction is like your absolute worst experiences with bad service or shabby manners (everything is loud, vulgar and sexualized in the future — we’re a nation of K-Feds).
Wilson’s character is a bit underdeveloped but he projects a sweet, everyman quality as the rest of the cast revels in playing dumb. The movie represents a new pinnacle in achievement for blank stares. Dax Shepard, who was such a nice surprise in “Zathura,” is a hoot as Joe’s dim lawyer, and Terry Crews is funny as the president, who punctuates his speeches with machine-gun fire.
But — and you knew this was coming — there are problems. The occasional voiceover narration seems tacked on to try to smooth some narrative problems. It’s annoying and not at all helpful. Maya Rudolph’s character — a hooker who’s frozen along with Joe and also wakes up in the future — is borderline disastrous. She’s written as a stereotype and she adds nothing to the plot. The plot doesn’t meander as much as “Office Space’s,” but the pacing could have been punched up.
The main thing that bothered me, though, is that you can tell the movie is unloved. While I liked “Idiocracy’s” inventive vision of the future, the film looks cheap and rushed, especially some special effects. I have a feeling that Judge could have done a lot more with a bigger budget.
I keep coming back to the question of why the studio isn’t even trying to promote the movie. Even a little money spent on marketing could have made it a niche hit.
If you’re a Judge fan, “Idiocracy” is worth checking out. It won’t wow you, but it won’t break your heart, either, and you’ll get some good laughs. I hope there’s at least a little bit of vindication out there for Judge and this movie.
Comments
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By Max
September 14, 2006 11:03 PM | Link to this
WOW!!! Although I got the point Mike Judge was trying to convey in this movie…and I can see the validity and potential humor in it…I can honestly say this is the worst movie I have every seen, and I actually feel this movie made me a part of the society Mike Judge was trying to make fun of and warn against by watching it. What Gary Larson could have accomplished in a one caption “Far Side” cartoon with more affect, Mike Judge did in an 1h 24 min movie of complete and total “tardness.” Picture the worst “B” movie you have ever seen and now imagine it winning an academy award for best picture if “Idiocracy” was it’s only competition. Beevis and Butthead could have written and directed a better movie. I love “Office Space”, I love “King of the Hill”, maybe my hopes were too high, but to put it into perspective, I never read reviews because what one person says is a horrible movie can easily be someone else’s “Dumb and Dumber.” After watching this movie I felt compelled to write this solely on trying to save someone from thowing away $7.75 to see it, and that’s if you’re lucky and go by yourself and not make someone else suffer through it with you. That was in fact one of the two things that actually made me laugh at this movie: 1.That I actually spent the money to see it, and 2. Watching the credits at the end and seeing how many people it took to make such a bad film and then allowed it to go to the theaters. This is one that should have skipped the theaters and went straight to VHS. It doesn’t even deserve to be on DVD because I can’t imagine wanting to sit and watch the stuff Mike Judge decided to cut out of it. That’s my opinion…take it how you choose to.
By soleil
September 5, 2006 9:36 AM | Link to this
i laffed my bootay off
By soleil
September 5, 2006 9:33 AM | Link to this
i rarely laugh outloud at movies……i expected this to be a pathetic attempt at comedy…..i was pleasantly surprised and laughed out loud often…..mike judge has provided a cleaver concept of the direction of america…..the editing is rough, but the movie works……it is funny………..think this will go the way of “office space” one of my favorite flicks……..my son worked crew on idiocracy……
By Talking Books Warehouse
September 2, 2006 2:44 PM | Link to this
Hey, if you want to see the interior of the Talking Books Warehouse (the big building over on Shoal Creek between 38th and 45th) go check out this film. A small part of it was filmed there. The green things on the shelves are the boxes the Talking Books come in (they are cassette tapes.)
By austinmoviefan
September 2, 2006 1:20 PM | Link to this
I think it will find a following on video just as Office Space did. My husband and I saw it last night at Regal Gateway, and as the reviewer said there were many laugh-out-loud moments. It was not too long and though there were a lot of sexually-suggestive references, I did not find it vulgar at all. Judge’s big mistake I believe is in his honesty. There are so many jabs at big corporate names in this movie, the studio was probably just afraid to offend all the fat cats!! See it Austin!!!
By Austinite
September 1, 2006 11:09 PM | Link to this
I was involved with the making of this movie, and even sat in on some of the filming. It is definitely no “Office Space”, but is very funny and undeserving of the mistreatment it has received by TCF. You will see more of Stephen Root than you ever wanted to, Luke Wilson gets pelted with hotdogs and milkshakes in a mobile jail cell, and Judge’s vision of futuristic buildings and public services designed and run by moron’s is very creative. You won’t raise your IQ seeing this flick, but it will tickle your funnybone plenty. Now, if you think Idiocracy’ is juvenile, just wait to you see the movie of the future!