Scathing social satire

Rating: 10/10 (2 July 1999)

When Trey Parker and Matt Stone were writing the script for the movie, they had to make a decision if they wanted to "dumb down" material for the non-fans. Instead, they decided to make this movie for the fans-and by God, this has got to be one of the funniest movies I have seen all decade. There was never a dull moment, the audience was uproarious, and I was laughing harder than I have in years.
Even going as far as to top There's Something About Mary in its crudeness and extreme vulgarity, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut does what few TV-to-movies do: make a jump to the next level by pushing the obscenity to the limit.
I'll try and not spoil too much. The four kids go to see the Terrance & Phillip movie, "Asses of Fire." There is a musical number featured in the movie-within-a-movie which had the audience rolling, the lyrics consisting almost entirely of the f-word (and the TV show's bleeps are discarded for the film). The boys soak in the movie's naughty language and come out spouting forbidden obscenities. Soon other children see the movie. In the school classroom, there is an eruption of swearing and the boys are sent to the school guidance counselor, Mr. Mackey, who calls in their mothers to make them aware of what the Terrance & Phillip movie has done to the kids. They form The Mothers Against Canada and try to have Terrance & Phillip executed. Canada defends its humor while the United States laughs at them, and Canada retaliates by bombing the Baldwin brothers (very clever). Soon Canada and the U.S. are engaging in full-scale war.
Meanwhile, Kenny dies (not surprisingly) and goes to Hell, where Saddam Hussein and Satan are in a homosexual love affair. Saddam only wants sex every five minutes and Satan wants to be loved. Their scenes in bed are a reason why kids should not see this movie. Back on Earth, the kids form a group to save Terrance & Phillip, "La Resistance" (obviously paying homage to Les Misérables) and make a plan to rescue Terrance & Phillip from the big USO show, where they are to executed. Guests at the USO meeting include Big Gay Al and Winona Ryder (who is happy to demonstrate her famous "ping-pong ball" trick). The kids attempt to sneak into the show and free Terrance & Phillip.
This movie will shock you. You will not believe some of the jokes in this movie. It will offend many people. The film takes equal shots at Jews, blacks, Canadians, Bill Gates, and Jar Jar Binks, to name a few. I'm quite sure many will be offended by "The Mole" character and what the military's plans are for the 14th battalion (snicker).
Fans will undoubtably love this movie. We finally see Kenny without his parka and hear him speak, and there's none of those annoying bleeps. I am a fan. I loved it. In fact, I'm going as far as to recommend it as a candidate for one of the best of 1999, let alone best comedy of the decade. This movie is non-stop laughs and it's very, very entertaining. It's not all toilet humor, either. The creators manage to get a message through, and there are large satirical tones concerning our modern society.
I paused while writing my review to consider people who aren't fans of the show and what they will think, and I have kept those in mind. There is a lot of swearing and a lot of frankly gratuitous sexual material. I salute Trey Parker and Matt Stone for having the guts to push the R rating to its boundaries. This film is fun for movie buffs and those who love political humor. And so, I am awarding it four stars. In these trying times, we need a good laugh or two.