Fletch's Video Miniview: Idiocracy

I'd heard the rumblings. I'd heard the praise, and I'd heard the pans. "Idiocracy is hilarious!" "Idiocracy is a one-joke piece of crap!"

Either way, I had to see it - that much was known. After the cult-that-is-no-longer-a-cult masterpiece that is Office Space (not to mention all of his TV successes), Mike Judge deserves the benefit of the doubt, at the least. And besides, the bizarre "was it intentional or not" shelving of Idiocracy is as interesting a story as any movie.

After seeing the movie, the conspiracy theory's credence only grows. While a comparison to Office Space is moot, Idiocracy is indeed a funny film. At times hilarious, at times painful. In the end, it's "pretty good," certainly not of a quality that deems shelving (hell, Let's Go To Prison and Epic Movie are light years worse yet were given wider theatrical releases). So the Mike Judge Mystery lives.

And so will this film. While it remains a one-joke concept, it's a great joke and an even better concept. In short - a normal guy in the present day takes part in a hibernation experiment gone wrong and wakes up some 500 years later to a world full of morons, brought on by the litter-like breeding of idiots (while the smarter folk tend not to have as many kids, if any) - thus, a watered-down society.

Judge takes that simple premise and runs with it. Those who take joy in sight gag after sight gag will most likely love the film, while those who prefer the big picture will bore quickly. A liking/tolerance of somewhat sophomoric humor (almost always a Judge staple) doesn't hurt, either.

Fletch's Film Rating:

"Darn tootin'!"


Some footnotes:

1. Nice to see Office Space alums David Herman and Stephen Root on board, though Root has a small role.
   
2. Without spoiling it, the "Brawndo"/plants exchange was amongst the funniest I've seen in some time. Thinking of it a week later still brings a smile to my face.
3. You'll never think of Carl's, Jr. the same way again, you bad mother, you.