What an Idiocracy! Another Rambo?

I recently saw Mike Judge's ‘06 movie Idiocracy. I was aware of the movie because of a review on the G4 channel program Attack of the Show (this should reveal what a nerd I am) that told how the movie was distributed in only a few theaters. Supposedly, the movie was too controversial for the production company to own up to, and they decided to let it have a quick and quit death instead.

The movie stars Luke Wilson as a clerk in the US military who participates in a 1 year deep freeze experiment, but, because of military mismanagement, ends up sleeping for 500 years. (The plot loosely follows Futurama) Luke's character wakes up in a future dystopia where humanity has evolved into a species of idiots. The evolutionary thinking behind this plot is that intelligence is an inheritable trait, and that for centuries more intelligent families focused on their professions and personal achievements over having babies. Eventually, human intelligence as a trait is no longer passed on. (Here the plot distantly echos themes and points in Vonnegut’s Galapagos) At this point, Luke’s character arrives on the scene and has to survive in this future world, and eventually rescue it from its own damnation.

The movie turned out to be a disappointment. Somehow, all these classic and campy sci-fi themes did not combine well under Mike Judge’s vision. He had a funny and great cast, his production budget allowed for decent animation and stage sets, and he was tapping into well known and tried true anchors of sci-fi lore. However, the movie plot came off as hackneyed for anyone who has seen Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butthead; and for those who haven’t, the comedy was essentially dull, and any political and social commentary that may have been embedded in the script was lost between the fart and ass jokes. I can see why the studio might have hesitated to sponsor this movie. I don’t think this is a case of (D. Pugh’s) the Man trying to keep indie art down.

But I still give this movie a 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it for viewing. Here is how I evaluate movies. I like lost causes and I can count at least 3 of these in Idiocracy. Following this line of thinking, I can’t wait (honestly) until ’08 when Rambo IV: Pearl of the Cobra will be released. As a primer, here is a professional reviewer’s summary of the plot:

"I can only imagine Rambo sneaking into Burma to free Christian missionaries who are being held by militants. And as the invincible one-man army looks into the eyes of the ordinary folks from Oklahoma and South Carolina who are risking their lives for the Gospel, he is swept up by their commitment. Oh, wait. I'm Not Kidding.”

How many lost causes can you find in this plot summary? I count at least 4, that equals at least 4 stars on Que-ni’s movie review scale.