Wacky sophomoric spoof of the genre - with takeoffs on every iconic movie character of the past year (e.g., Indiana Jones, Beowulf, Prince Caspian, the Love Guru) thrown in for good measure - as a young man (Matt Lanter) and a motley crew (Gay “G-Thang” Johnson, Nicole Parker, Kim Kardashian, Crista Flanagan) attempt to rescue his girlfriend (Vanessa Minnillo) amid nonstop calamities. From co-writers and directors Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, the cast is game, and some of the gags are funny, others considerably less so, but satirically intended or not, the humor is relentlessly and unabashedly vulgar. Pervasive sexual and scatological humor, some crude language, crass expressions, and occasional profanity, strong comic violence, partial male nudity, passing religious jibes.
O -- morally offensive.
(PG-13)
2008
Coming from Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, the writing-directing team responsible for “Date Movie,” “Epic Movie,” and the “Scary Movie” franchise, this latest, "Disaster Movie" (Lionsgate), proves yet another wacky but sophomoric spoof of the titular genre.
As if lampooning that target did not provide enough fodder, the film is awash in takeoffs on every iconic movie character of the past year (e.g., Indiana Jones, Beowulf, Prince Caspian, the Love Guru) just for the heck of it.
The plot, a mere clothesline for one celebrity or movie parody after another, concerns Will, a young man (Matt Lanter) who, in the opening dream sequence -- a spoof of “10,000 B.C.” -- learns that August 29, 2008 (the opening date of the film, wouldn’t you know) will mark the end of the world.
Sure enough, disaster strikes at his belated “Sweet 16” party (Will is already in his 20’s), and before long, he and a motley crew -- sidekick Calvin (Gay “G-Thang” Johnson), Calvin’s girlfriend Lisa (Kim Kardashian), the princess from “Enchanted” (Nicole Parker), and Juney (read Ellen Page’s “Juno”) (Crista Flanagan) -- set off to rescue his estranged girlfriend Amy (Vanessa Minnillo), trapped in a museum (a la “A Night at the Museum”) amid nonstop calamities.
The cast is game and often versatile (Parker, for instance, doubles as Amy Winehouse and Jessica Simpson) and some of the gags are funny, others considerably less so.
Javier Bardem, Miley Cyrus, and Dr. Phil all come in for “Saturday Night Live”-like skewering, as do “Sex and the City,” “Hancock” “Hellboy,” “Get Smart,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks” and more. (This film is remarkably up-to-date!).
But satirically intended or not, the humor is relentlessly and unabashedly vulgar.
The film contains pervasive sexual and scatological humor, some crude language, crass expressions, and occasional profanity, strong comic violence, partial male nudity, passing religious jibes. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
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Forbes is director of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. More reviews are available online at www.usccb.org/movies.
Movies have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishop's Office for Film and Broadcasting according to artistic
merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating,
the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief
synopsis of the movie.
The classifications are as follows:
- A-I -- general patronage;
- A-II -- adults and adolescents;
- A-III -- adults;
- A-IV**
- L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
- O -- morally offensive.
** Discontinued classification. All archived movies that were originally in the A-IV category are now classified as L.