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South Park Bigger, Longer, & Uncut Blu-ray Review |
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South Park Bigger, Longer, & Uncut Blu-ray
Paramount Pictures | 1999 | 81 mins | Rated R | Oct 13, 2009
South Park Bigger, Longer, & Uncut Blu-ray ReviewWhat would Brian Boitano do? He's buy 'South Park' on Blu-ray!Reviewed by Martin Liebman, September 30, 2009 That movie has warped my fragile little mind. South Park, Colorado. It's a quaint little country town, surrounded by serene, snow-peaked mountains. The town seems the ideal slice of Americana; a diverse population, crisp mountain air, and a public school system shaping the minds of tomorrow are but several of the town's many enviable features. On the surface, it's the quintessential "any town, USA," but look deeper and find South Park to be not-so-perfect. Thanks to the many exploits of four friends -- Eric Cartman, Kyle Broflovski, Stan Marsh, and Kenny McCormick -- South Park has been a hub for alien activity; destroyed under the power of Mecha-Streisand; witness to They Live-style fights between crippled children; the home to unsavory scientific experiments involving pig and elephant DNA; and plenty of other decidedly politically incorrect exploits that place the town in jeopardy, test the sanity of its citizens, and threaten to warp the fragile little minds of its youth on a seemingly daily basis. Now, in their big-screen debut, the people of South Park face their biggest challenge yet: Canada! Oh, and Satan and Saddam Hussein, too.
The boys are excited to see the new Terrence and Phillip movie. When they hear Terrence and Phillip -- a Canadian comic duo -- cursing on-screen, they imitate their heroes and in the process corrupt their fragile little minds. They impress their friends with their newfound vocabulary, but when their dirty mouths get them in trouble at school, the parents of South Park band together to ban the movie. Terrence and Phillip are stealthily arrested when they appear on the Conan O'Brien show. In response, Canada launches a bombing run on Hollywood's Baldwin family, leading the United States to declare war on Canada and plan the immediate execution of Terrence and Phillip. Meanwhile, Kenny dies and goes to hell where he learns that the execution of Terrence and Phillip will bring about a satanic takeover of the world. South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut comes just as advertised. Appearing on the big screen for the first (and still only) time back in 1999, playing out with a length that's about equal to three of the show's TV episodes, and, yes, letting the characters' mouths run rampant without bleeping every swear word, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut didn't break any cinematic boundaries but it certainly let loose in a big way, doing all the things considered too taboo for TV. Despite the transition to the big screen, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut doesn't sacrifice the show's charm. The animation style remains identical, the characters retain their normal cadence and way of going about their business, and the story is appropriately goofy, vulgar, and lacking in class and tact, all traits that made the TV show so successful. Bound to offend any audience, the movie never skips a beat or plays it safe in any area, letting loose a fury of obscenities, jokes, and blasphemies that are bound to offend everyone in the audience at some point, though the movie handles the material in such a way that said offenses are often lost behind the grins that result from material that, vulgar and offensive or not, makes for some of the funniest jokes and gags ever to grace the silver screen. A hybrid movie if there ever was one, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut is an amalgamation of crude animation, Musical, and grand Adventure all wrapped into a tidy 81 minute package. The movie is first and foremost a Musical; there are several numbers throughout, and despite the vulgarities and taboo subjects that make up the theme of most every song, they're all amazingly written and performed. In fact, "Blame Canada," one of the songs that's not quite as obscene as the rest, earned an Oscar Nomination for "Best Music, Original Song." Vulgar or not, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut never seems to be all that overbearing in its use of language; it becomes almost routine once the movie hits its stride, and in a way, that's a comment on today's society where "shocking" is really no longer "shocking." While South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut is no more or no less vulgar than something like Casino, what shock value there is stems from the novelty of hearing long-established characters -- and fourth-grade children at that -- use the language without the hindrance of the cable television bleep. Nevertheless, even that boundary was shattered by "South Park" Co-creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker about two years after the movie's theatrical debut when the premiere fifth season episode "It Hits the Fan" crammed an inordinate number of "S" words into the sub-30-minute episode. Video  South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut debuts on Blu-ray with a pristine 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer. Though made for the big screen, this is still "South Park," and it still features the crude animation that reflects the show's construction-paper origins. Characters appear flat and simple by design; many seem to waddle rather than walk, but it's all part of the show's charm, and that same charm is retained in the movie. Colors are many, bright, and accurate. The boys wear their typical garb -- Cartman in a red jacket and light blue cap, Kenny in an orange jumpsuit, Stan with a brown jacket and dark blue hat, and Kyle in an orange jacket and green cap -- and while every shade is basic in appearance, they are rendered with pristine accuracy and appear as they were meant to. The detail in the animation is as good as it can be. Viewers will see construction paper-like textures on walls, clothing, and other assorted objects. The film does mix some more realistic imagery in the bowels of hell where fire has a decidedly lifelike appearance, and it meshes surprisingly well with the animation style. This Blu-ray disc presents South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut as it was meant to be seen: crudely animated but colorful, and there's no single blemish that jumps out to ruin this most faithful transfer. Audio  South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut features a solid Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Though the image may be simple, the soundtrack is anything but. It's decidedly front-heavy through much of the film, but it steps up when called upon, during the musical numbers and the big action sequence at the end of the film in particular. All of the tunes sound great, streaming out of the front speakers with a noticeable boost in clarity and definition across the entire range when compared to previous home video incarnations. A hard rock tune that accompanies Kenny on his journey into hell shakes the soundstage with a hearty amount of bass, and it is here that the surround speakers feature their first bit of intense action as they deliver several sweeping, discrete sound effects. The military confrontation in the film's final act delivers plenty of good surround effects; sound effortlessly traverses the entirety of the soundstage and explosions pack a surprising wallop. Dialogue reproduction is smooth and accurate; whether Mrs. Broflovski's high-pitched, squealing voice or Mr. Mackey's more subtle, relaxed and deliberate vocal deliveries, the "South Park" characters have never sounded so good. All in all, this is a mix that should satisfy listeners both new to the film and veterans of all its vulgar goodness. Supplements  Unfortunately, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut arrives on Blu-ray with but a handful of extras. The primary draw here is a commentary track with "South Park" co-creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker. A brand-new commentary, this is a retrospective piece where the pair look back on the movie in the context of having an additional 10 years of "South Park" experience under their belts. Claiming not to have seen the movie since its release, they criticize the animation, reflect on how the movie came about, the hard work that's involved in making a movie, the studio's initial desire to make a PG-13 movie and their insistence on going all the way with the R rating, and more. It's nice to hear the duo deliver a full-length track; their commentaries on the previous "South Park" releases are billed as "mini commentaries" and offer only a fleeting few minutes of insight per episode. Of course, fans are going to want to listen to this one from beginning to end. Also included is the "What Would Brian Boitano Do" music video (480p, 2:45) and the film's teaser (1080p, 0:56) and theatrical (1080p, 1:32 & 1:50) trailers. Final words  Offensive, obscene, and uproariously funny, South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut is not for every audience. It takes an audience member that's almost completely de-sensitized to get through it, and anyone that's unprepared is sure to be shocked and dismayed by what Stone and Parker have put on-screen. Still, for those that understand the finer nuances of "South Park" and are familiar with Stone and Parker's master ability to mesh decidedly politically incorrect social commentary with outrageous humor will come to see the movie for what it really is behind the onslaught of obscenities. Paramount's Blu-ray release of this fan favorite is technically sound. Featuring a perfect 1080p transfer and a solid lossless soundtrack, the disc only lacks a more complete supplemental section. Nevertheless, fans will want to pick this one up in a hurry. Recommended. 
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