MOM AND DAD SAVE THE WORLD
A film review by Too FAT Guys
Copyright 1992 by Roger & Me
Roger: A little less than a month ago, Jon Lovitz practically stole
the show with his wry, sardonic humor in his bit part in A
LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN. In MOM AND DAD SAVE THE WORLD he gets
top billing. So, this would be better then, wouldn't it?
Roger: Well, it depends what you mean by "better." MOM AND DAD SAVE
THE WORLD is a science-fiction spoof starring Jon Lovitz as
Tod "The Destroyer" Spengo, ruler of Spengo, Planet of Idiots.
As Tod, in an effort to placate his inferiority complex,
prepares to destroy the Earth, he spies Marge Nelson (Terri
Garr), a middle aged Earth woman. He falls madly in love with
Marge and whisks her and her couch-bound husband, Dick (Jeffery
Jones), off to Spengo.
Roger: From there it degenerates into a typical bad guy wants the good
guy's woman and tries to do away with the good guy to get her.
I've seen it done a hundred times before and quite often much
better. The movie is obviously supposed to get by on comedic
twists, not the strength or originality of its plot.
Roger: Certainly, this is not an original plot. All sorts of films
have used this plot successfully. And yes, the numerous gags do
carry the film. Much like vintage Stooges, many of these gags
are quite humorous, with a buffoonish brilliance. I've seen
Lovitz more "over the top" than in this film, but I think the
several sub-texts make up for this lack. For instance, I felt
nothing but affinity for Marge, seemingly dragged down by her
retiring husband -- this could be my family! Dick's
transformation into Flash Gordon is exciting in a very real
way.
Roger: I disagree. One of the minor characters said, "What we lack in
brains we make up for in good intentions." I think this
describes the filmmakers quite well. I could spot all the
scenes where they were trying to be funny, but for the most
part they failed miserably. At one point, Tod is contemplating
the spare tire above his belt and attempts to become svelte by
doing a short workout. By the punchline, instead of laughing, I
was envisioning the authoring committee pitching ideas to make
the scene funny.
Roger: I guess there's just no substitute for "getting it." The scene
you're complaining about, I found quite funny. Very reminiscent
of "Ren & Stimpy" and Tex Avery. Oh well, your loss. I give
this film a fairly mild thumbs up.
Roger: I'm a fan of both "Ren & Stimpy" and Tex Avery cartoons, but
this just didn't do it for me. I've seen all the gags before.
Watching this movie was like hearing a joke for the hundredth
time, the freshness is gone. It's just not funny anymore. Even
the profusion of Bulldogs, which I appreciated greatly, wasn't
enough to save this movie from a thumbs down.
Roger: Ignoring all of the originality and cleverness, I agree with
you completely. That said, this film earned one mild thumb up,
and one thumb down. That's all for now -- the tty is closed.
.
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