Idiocracy
Rated: R
Runtime: 1 hour, 31 minutes
Directed by: Mike Judge
Starring:
Luke Wilson - Pvt. Joe Bowers
Maya Rudolph - Rita
Dax Shepard - Frito
Terry Crews - President Camacho
David Herman - Secretary of State
I can't believe I just saw Mike Judge's Idiocracy. My incredulity comes not from the film's quality (it's mediocre) nor from any special priviledge (although I suppose some may say it's a privilidge to see a film that's only playing in 125 theatres). No, my disbelief stems from the film being borderline-vapor. The film has been done for years. I remember when it was still called 3001 (which is the film's original setting, now it's 2505; gosh, you don't think they meant to release this in 2005, do you?). The film received almost zero promotion. I was startled to see an ad for it in today's paper. Even after I bought my ticket, I didn't believe I'd actually see the film. From the studio executives right down to the projectionist for my theatre, no one gave any mind to Idiocracy (I actually had to fetch an assisstant manager to get the film started).
This film had been on my radar for some time (that's how I know the original title). It was Mike Judge's first film since the cult hit, Office Space, and had a fairly clever premise--an unspectacular army private (Luke Wilson) and a hooker (Maya Rudolph) sign up for a one-year cryostasis in a top secret military project and through a series of unfortunate events, wake up almost five-hundred years in the future only to find that they're the smartest people on the planet. Office Space and Judge's TV show, King of the Hill, both show off the writer/director's skill for satire while never seeming hateful. Here, I can only assume there was some mix-up over at the DGA and a different Mike Judge made this film.
Actually, although I have no insider information to back this theory up, I believe that the film was hacked into its final form by test audiences and empty-headed studio executives. The dubious release combined with the heavy use of an omniscient narrator lead me to this conclusion. This just doesn't seem like a film Judge would make. For a guy who left Beavis and Butthead behind a long time ago, it seems odd that he would try to fill a world with Beavi and Buttheads and leave that as its humor. The stupidity on display here isn't that of Homer Simpson or, for a more apt comparison, Phillip J. Fry of Futurama. This theoretical future has simply de-evolved and given us a world of cavemen but with more corporate branding. This ends up wasting talented comic actors like Terry Crews, David Herman, and most of all, Dax Shepard. I laughed more at one of Shepard's lines in the Employee of the Month trailer before the film ("This is an 81 Honda! How dare you!") than anything Shepherd did in Idiocracy, which, like most of the future residents, consists of having a dumb look on his face and grunting. Also, having Maya Rudolph as the comedic female lead? No. Just no in so many ways.
Idiocracy seems like the kind of film the writers of the Scary Movie franchise would come up with on their best day. It's full of jokes stolen from other sources and every joke used seems like the first one that came to mind. Unfortunately, the first joke that comes to mind is usually the easiest and most obvious one available. When you reach the punchline before the film, then how can the film be memorable? Even the climatic scene's reference to The Running Man feels more obligatory than satirical. The only remotely clever thing about the film is how it makes fun of dumb people and yet uses primarily dumb humor (although I'm not sure if it's "clever" if the irony is unintentional).
Still, there's nothing so terrible about Idiocracy that Fox would dump the film. Hell, with only 125 theatres, the release seems more like a contractual obligation than something Fox would do to make money. While I know that prints are expensive, Idiocracy is fairly expensive-looking film. I'm betting that the costumes, sets, and special effects probably ran the film into the $40 million range. And the film isn't so terrible that people wouldn't see it. It's even passable for most sensible critics (who I imagine would give it around a 'C'). If Warner Bros. can give a wide release to Pluto Nash, then Fox can certainly do the same for Idiocracy.
I have a feeling Idiocracy was once a good film. I'm betting that before test audiences and studio executives didn't get it, Judge made a fairly clever satire. But I guess we'll never know (or at least I'll probably never know). This film will go unnoticed this weekend and because it isn't very good, will probably go unnoticed on DVD, giving no reason for Fox to release a director's cut.
If you're a student of film like me (pretention preferred but not required), then Idiocracy makes for an interesting case study. But if you're just a general admirer of film and want to see something hilarious this weekend, I think you can do better. Actually, I know you can do better. Go see Beerfest.
Words by
Matt Goldberg
9.1.06