Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (1996)
A film review by Michael Dequina
Copyright 1996 Michael Dequina
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (PG-13) *** 1/2 (out of ****) In adapting a popular television series to the big screen, one must be careful not to stray too far from the source material so as not to offend the die hard fans, which is exactly what this past summer's TV-inspired hit Mission: Impossible managed to do with a single plot twist. Fans of the cult cable series Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MSTies, as they are called) need not worry, for in the trip from small screen to big, little, if anything, of what made the show so smart and funny has emerged unscathed. For those of you unfamiliar with the basis of the show, the premise is simple yet brilliant: mad scientist Dr. Clayton Forrester (Trace Beaulieu) holds average joe temp worker Mike Nelson (Michael J. Nelson) captive in a satellite in space and forces him to watch some of the worst movies imaginable. This thin plot is really just a setup for the heart of the show, in which Mike and his two robot friends, Crow T. Robot (Beaulieu) and Tom Servo (Kevin Murphy) crack wise at the screen, gleefully saving every awful detail of every awful movie. This time around the target is the 1955 piece of sci-fi cheese This Island Earth, in which an alien race of creatures with large heads try to take over earth. MST3K: The Movie is just like any other episode, and that's why it works so well. The makers of the film--producer-director Jim Mallon, writers Nelson, Beaulieu, Murphy, Mallon, Mary Jo Pehl, Bridget Jones, and Paul Chaplin--are also the crew behind the show, and they wisely didn't go overly big-budget Hollywood with the film. While the sets are more sturdy and elaborate, and the wires that control the robot puppets have been digitally erased, as a whole the film retains the low-budget charm of the source material. The look of the film is fairly irrelevant, since the true "star" of MST3K has always been the writing, and there are far more than a few good quips here though the commentary is slightly more crude than usual, with an occasional profane word here or there (shame on you, Tom Servo). Some critics have knocked MST3K: TM for cutting away from the movie within a movie for sketches involving the cast, but I like their inclusion here, for the film wouldn't truly be MST3K without the interludes with Mike, Crow, and Servo on the Satellite of Love. I do have a couple of bones to pick with MST3K: TM, but this is mostly due to my being a MSTie (#70623, to be exact). The bouncy opening theme song, which very succinctly and wittily sets up the story, is sorely missed, as is the presence of a few players from the television series. Dr. Forrester is as wacky and fun as ever, but the character works better with his dimwitted assistant, TV's Frank (Frank Conniff), who left the series after the sixth season. Michael J. Nelson is a very capable and likable lead, but I always preferred the more dry, acerbic presence of original host (and series creator) Joel Hodgson. Gypsy (Mallon), the robot who pilots the SOL, is thankfully given a greater presence in the film, but it doesn't make up for the absence of Cambot (which shot the TV show) or the amorphous Magic Voice. These two never really played a major part of the show, but it just isn't quite the same without them. The biggest problem of MST3K: TM, in my opinion, is that This Island Earth, while certainly cheesy and ripe for ripping, isn't as prime cannon fodder as some of the true dreck the threesome tackled in the television series. Mike and the 'bots still have more than enough to work with in This Island Earth, but since the film isn't _that_ awful, MST3K: TM doesn't measure up with some the funniest episodes of the series, such as ones in which they rip the so-bad-it's-good 1975 Joe Don Baker action yarn Mitchell or, my personal favorite, Pod People, a disjointed, laughably inept '80s E.T. ripoff. The appeal of Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie will probably fly over the heads of a lot of people--after all, watching three guys making wisecracks about a bad movie may seem like dubious entertainment for some--but it is a fast (only 74 minutes) and very funny treat that will go a long way in converting those who _do_ get it into new MSTies.
Michael Dequina mrbrown@ucla.edu Visit Mr. Brown's Movie Site at http://members.tripod.com/~MrBrown/
"It's not my fault If in God's plan He made the devil so much Stronger than a man" --Frollo (Tony Jay), "Hellfire"; Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame
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