South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut Review — Four Boys, One Mouth Full of Swearing

Stan, Kyle, Eric and Kenny sneak into an R-rated film starring Terrance and Phillip, and walk out with a mouth full of new words. That one joke drives the whole film. It’s a simple setup, and the film doesn’t waste it.

Trailer, via South Park Studios.

Premise

The boys get caught swearing and are grounded. Their classmates watch the film too, and soon the town’s parents start a group called Mothers Against Canada, blaming Terrance and Phillip’s home country for corrupting the children. The film gets banned, the boys are forbidden from seeing it again, and Kenny nearly dies after trying to copy a scene from the film.

Targets

The film takes aim at several targets at once:

• The Motion Picture Association of America, which fought Parker and Stone over the film’s profanity
• The Disney Renaissance era of animated films
• The V-chip push that let parents block TV content
• The series itself, including a parody of Les Misérables

Songs

The songs were written by Parker and Marc Shaiman. They land mostly as jokes, not as serious musical numbers. The film’s biggest set piece is a song about a prophet’s invasion of Earth, sung by Satan and Saddam Hussein, and it’s one of the few places the satire turns into actual music.

Voices

Parker, Stone and Mary Kay Bergman do most of the speaking. Isaac Hayes returns as Chef, and Jesse Howell, Anthony Cross-Thomas and Franchesca Clifford share the voice of Ike Broflovski. The guest list includes George Clooney, Brent Spiner, Minnie Driver, Dave Foley and Eric Idle, plus Mike Judge as Kenny without his mask.

War Plot

The parents’ outrage grows until the United States declares war on Canada. Terrance and Phillip are put on death row, and the boys become the only ones who can save them. The film ends with Kenny’s ghost warning Cartman, and the final act plays out as a cartoon version of a war film, complete with a USO show and a last-minute escape.

Verdict

The film works best when it stays small, following the boys through their punishment and their attempt to break free. The war plot stretches the premise thin, and some of the satire lands flat. The songs are a mixed bag — clever at times, silly at others, and rarely the reason to watch.

Score

The film holds a Metacritic score of 7.3 out of 10. That matches what we see here: a sharp, funny film that sometimes loses focus, but one with a strong core idea and a cast willing to play along with it. The satire is pointed and often effective, even when the jokes repeat themselves. Parker and Stone clearly know their subject, and the film feels like a natural extension of the show rather than a separate work.

The songs don’t elevate the film, but they don’t sink it either. The film is at its best when it’s just four boys getting into trouble, and worst when it tries to build a larger political statement around them. The film’s ambition exceeds its execution in spots, but its energy never flags.

animated film · comedy · movie review · South Park · Terrance and Phillip