South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut
Fourteen years later, Hollywood and the MPAA have learned nothing from “South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut,” Trey Parker’s landmark musical comedy based on his and Matt Stone’s vulgar animated show. The lessons Parker, Stone, and co-author Pam Brady illuminate have lost none of their bite, as Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and Cartman are caught in a culture war waged by their parents after they find themselves under the influence of the vulgarity in the new Terrance and Phillip movie from Canada. The parents are appalled, and have the film banned, and go even further and get involved in a bloody war with Canada. The result is one of the most vicious satires in Hollywood history, although honestly, it feels a lot like an animated documentary about modern America.
When the movie came out in the summer of 1999, the movie industry was under a microscope after school shootings such as Columbine shined a light on violent movies and the ratings system, which seemed even then to have a relatively lax attitude when it came to violence compared to sex and foul language. The first time I saw it in theatres– with my mother, no less (though I was buying both tickets) –was also the first time I was carded for buying tickets to an R-rated film. I was 21 years old at the time, and ironically enough, when I went to go see “Eyes Wide Shut” a couple of weeks later, I didn’t get carded at all. The lesson was obvious: movie theatres were enforcing the R-rating hard for “Bigger, Longer and Uncut,” but giving a pass to movies like “Eyes Wide Shut” and “American Pie.” (The only other time I got carded was in 2002 with “feardotcom.” Don’t ask me why.) No way could the political material be part of it, right?
Even though the show that led to “Bigger, Longer and Uncut” is still going strong on Comedy Central, it’s hard to think the show has ever managed to eclipse the brilliant creative high they hit with this film, where they weren’t handcuffed by television standards and practices. Yes, the MPAA is arguably stingier in a lot of ways, but Parker and Stone found ways to get away with some truly subversive material here. Nothing is more subversive, though, then the ridiculous gay love affair between Satan and Sadaam Hussein, with the Iraqi dictator (who was still in power, and alive, at the time) as the dominant, and emotionally abusive, partner, and Satan as an emotionally weak individual who just dreams of being on Earth, and might get his wish with the American-Canadian war. This has been the part of the movie that’s gotten the most flack, but it’s also inspired in how it reflects the disdain we, as a country, had for Hussein after the first Gulf War in 1991. The fact that it also leads to a couple of the most devious musical numbers of the movie– Satan’s “Up There,” and Sadaam’s “I Can Change” –helps quite a bit.
Oh yeah, the film’s a musical, in case you had forgotten. That was the most remarkably stunning surprises about the film in 1999, and it remains part of what keeps the film so wickedly entertaining now. Though the structure of it is inspired by the Disney animated musicals of the late ’80s and early ’90s, Parker and co-composer Marc Shaiman have filthier ideas in mind, like re-imagining the titular song from “Oklahoma!” as the absurdly vulgar Terrance and Phillip song, “Unclefucker.” And creating a French resistance theme for the kids as they try and stop the war with “La Resistance.” (My personal favorite.) And opening the movie with a bright and cheerful tune called, “Mountain Town.” And who can forget the immortal ditty, “What Would Brian Boitano Do?” Sadly, only one of the film’s great songs, “Blame Canada,” was nominated for an Oscar, and it didn’t win, but that doesn’t stop it from being a soundtrack for the ages.
In the end, what the film really rails about is the lack of parental responsibility the parents of “South Park” show when confronted by their kid’s bad behavior. Rather than taking responsibility and reflecting on what they could have done to prevent their kid’s bad behavior, they look outward at society, and start a violent war rather than look for rational discussions about the issues, and talk about things with their children. It’s pretty savage stuff for a cartoon, and proof that not everyone in America feels like animation is just kid’s stuff. I haven’t watched it much over the years, but if anyone’s noticed how I sign some of my blogs with “Viva La Resistance,” you’ll know that the film’s rebellious spirit, and raucous brand of satire, has stayed with me to this day. That doesn’t mean I’ll be showing it to any children in my life anytime soon, though. It’s easy to rag on the MPAA on some of their decisions over the years, but the R rating this movie carries is hardly one of them, even if it has a tune that’s easy to tap your feet too.
