Team America: World Police

Links
—Overview by Chris Utley
—Roundtable Discussion
—Trailers, Photos
—About this Film

Team America: World Police

[SPOILERS INCLUDED THROUGHOUT THIS REVIEW]

Lock your windows! Shut your doors! Hold on to your popcorn buckets! Those South Park boys (Trey Parker and Matt Stone) are back to terrorize your multiplex in Team America: World Police. Rude, crude, and laugh-out-loud funny, Team America is without a doubt the wildest puppet show ever.

In an era of worldwide panic and terror brought about by terrorists looking to plant those notorious Weapons of Mass Destruction (Great! Somebody found ‘em!), only one team of elite American freedom fighters is willing to give their hearts, their souls, and their $1.05 to make the world a better, safer place.

Team America is a 6 person hit squad consisting of

Chris: a charm school U of Nebraska quarterback.

Joe: a hard-core ammo/martial arts specialist.

Sara: a brainy chick who can read people’s thoughts.

Lisa: a blonde, wide-eyed romantic who follows her heart . . . and can wield a 12-gauge shotgun with the best of ‘em.

Gary: their newest recruit . . . a Broadway actor fresh off the success of “Lease: The Musical� (featuring the soon to be Tony Award winning smash hit “Everyone’s Got AIDS!�).

Spottswoode: their fearless leader . . . a tough as nails commander, in the vein of Charlton Heston, who demands excellence and commitment from his team. His demands know no boundaries. No boundaries means just that: NO BOUNDARIES!

Their enemies first appear to be Taliban-like terrorist groups demanding Jihad, but we later find out that those guys are mere puppets in the bigger plan of notorious Korean dictator Kim Jong II: who plans to use them to plant WMD’s around the world in hopes that countries would blame each other and cause World War 3 . . . or in his case 9/11 times 2356 (or something like that). In order to execute this plan, Jong enlists the “help� of Alec Baldwin, Sean Penn, Tim Robbins and other actors who belong to the Film Actors Guild (referred to in the film by their acronym, which consists of the first letters in their 3 word name . . . ’nuff said). Jong lures them in by supporting their call for world peace . . . and convincing them that their true enemy in their quest for peace is Team America itself.

Anyone who’s ever seen a South Park episode and the South Park movie knows that the creators’ sense of humor knows no boundaries. This film is no exception. They are deliberately and intentionally offensive. They want to ruffle feathers. They get a rise out of ticking off anyone and everyone they can possibly tick off. Leave it to them to have our heroes mount an attack against terrorism, shoot up the bad guys, and declare that “Team America� has saved the day . . . meanwhile destroying the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, and leveling the whole darn city of Paris in the process (a dig on the newfound anti-French movement? I think so!).

Needless to say, this is not your father’s puppet show . . . or your 5-year-old’s for that matter. This is definitely an R-rated affair. These puppets spew out blood, get their limbs and heads detached from their bodies, every other word is a four-letter one (even the musical numbers are loaded with colorful lyrics . . . check out Team America’s theme song!), and I’m still trying to figure out what was actually cut from that love scene to qualify the film for an R rating. From my seat, it sure looks as if they pulled a fast one over on the MPAA. That scene makes the stuff I discussed in She Hate Me look like an afterschool special!

It is clear why this film will appeal to the high-school/20-something set. Even some of the 30-something folks will dig it. Let’s face facts: the movie is hilarious! The stuff they do with these puppets is hilarious! The lyrics in the musical numbers are gut-busting! The one-liners are sidesplitting! The Michael Moore “cameo� is outrageous! Like I said, it’s rude, crude and laugh-out-loud funny! It’s definitely among the funniest movies of the year.

I’m recommending the flick . . . but only for the thick-skinned among us who have strong convictions and are open-minded with their comedy choices. Why would I do that . . . in spite of the f-bombs, sexual situations and rudeness/crudeness?

1. Let us remember, we are not sin-hunters at Hollywood Jesus. It is not our job to point out the sin in every corner of the entertainment world. Yeah, those South Park guys tend to go a bit too far in their humor (I know I took great offense with the South Park movie: in particular the Sadaam/Satan relationship and the French kid who had nothing but contempt for God . . . thankfully, they left God/Satan/Christianity out of this one). But . . .

2. Frankly, I needed this laugh! We Americans definitely needed this laugh. As rude and crude as it was, Team America is, first and foremost, a satire . . . not to be taken seriously, but to cause us to laugh at ourselves. We are bombarded on every side with the War on Terror. It’s in our thoughts, on our minds, blaring on our TV news everyday, and it’s driving us crazy! After hearing the President and his challenger wax rhetorical for the last 3 weeks in their debates going back and forth about this war, I was worn out. I needed a break. Heck, many of us need a break from all of this. This film could very well be the closest thing we get to a break until Election Day.

The Verdict: See Team America: World Police . . . if you’re brave enough. And feel free to laugh your head off along the way!

—Roundtable Discussion

Links
—Overview by Chris Utley
—Trailers, Photos
—About this Film