Just so...so bad

Dreadfully Boring

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

You know what, Peter Jackson was best in his earlier career. Sure, I love LOTR, and those films are certainly much better from a general cinematic perspective than something like 'Meet the Feebles' or 'Bad Taste', but these early films are just flat out incredible and hilarious. While a good chunk of this film had me feeling, while not underwhelmed, compelled to say that Jackson didn't go "far enough" w/his perverted twisting of a Muppets-like family program (which comes to work as a general satire of the entertainment industry, particularly the delusions of grandeur brought upon by fame and the over-the-top gossipy media), but, in the final half hour or so, he makes up for all of that. 'Meet the Feebles' remains rather entertaining throughout, largely b/c of its odd, uncomfortable atmosphere and black sense of humour, but once it gets to the grand finale it really starts to shine and becomes a mind blowing extravaganza of gore and drugs and sex and ridiculous, heavy violence. It's laugh out loud hilarious, but also kind of disturbing and is much more unsettling than a vast majority of films more commonly labeled as horror. Anyone w/the right sense of dark humour and love of weird special effects, puppetry, and costume design, will likely loved this as much as I did.

It's fascinating to see this and glimpse any hint that Peter Jackson would move on to Lord of the Rings, and inspire a generation of grooms to hire Gollum impersonators to present the ring to their startled bride. Anyway, yes Meet the Feebles is gross but it's meant to be, and it's a New Zealand flick that is worth checking out after a Hobbit movie.

King Kong (2005), Heavenly Creatures (1994), The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003); what do they all have in common? Well other than the fact that they are all high quality films, they all share a director with the little seen; little loved 1989 New Zealand film Meet the Feebles (1989). That's right; before Peter Jackson won critical acclaim for his magnificent spectacles and J.R.R. Tolkien adaptations he was the director of a twisted, tawdry parody of The Muppets (1976-1981), ranking up there with The Toxic Avenger (1984) in its level of vulgarity.The movie aptly juggles a multitude of stories surrounding the struggling variety show cast and crew. The main character of Meet the Feebles is an aging star, Heidi the Hippo (Danny Mulheron) who is struggling to keep her relationship with adulterous producer Bletch the Walrus (Peter Vere-Jones). That, in addition to a sugary sweet love story between a hedgehog and a poodle is about the tamest thing about Meet the Feebles. There are subplots involving drugs, STDs, Vietnam flashbacks, gun violence and plenty of puppet sex.The sheer ridiculousness of this nightmarish puppet show makes it too ghastly to look away. It appalls intrigues and impresses in equal measure. Everything from the camera-work to the puppeteering to the script are crude yet wildly effective. The size of each anamorphic puppet varies from elaborate sock puppet to a multi-crewed giant all requiring a certain level of skill which while not on par with Jim Henson, is fun to watch.This film, coupled with Peter Jackson's Dead Alive (1992) makes me wonder where the director would be if he had stayed on the path of grotesque horror and gallows humor. Give the man a humungous budget, award winning actors and the top technical talents of Hollywood, and he'll give you a triptych of timeless classics. Give him just $750,000 a hand-held camera and some felt and he'll give you a memorable marionette experience that won't be equaled until Team America: World Police (2004). One thing's for certain if he had stayed on the path we wouldn't have had to endure The Frighteners (1996).The script written by Jackson and three other New Zealanders is fresh and funny giving the audience everything from silly muppet-like puns to ribald musical numbers including "Sodomy" sung by Sebastian the Fox (Stuart Devenie). Much of the gross out humor is provided by a character simply known as The Fly (Brian Sergent) who buzzes around for tabloid gossip and develops his photos in a toilet.The rest of the film is filled to the brim with knife throwing, machine gun toting; cocaine sniffing mayhem intermingled with rabbit-HIV and sadomasochism for good measure. I'd recommend this film to anyone with a warped sense of humor over a certain age. Those who were endeared by Kermit the Frog, Fozzie Bear and Gonzo the…whatever, should probably avoid Meet the Feebles. Not because of its cynical treatment of hand puppets might ruin fond memories but because those same fond memories might be replaced by rude hilarity that ensues in Peter Jackson's 8th best film.http://www.theyservepopcorninhell.blogspot.com

To sum it up, when someone says this film is "perverse", do not take it with extreme caution, take it as a threat on your life. This film is so crazy it's actually kinda good.I did NOT like this film the first time I watched it, mainly because there's a lot of raunchy moments and some grotesque imagery, and had I not given it a second chance, I might have rated it much lower. I ADORE/ADMIRE/LOVE Peter Jackson, and believe him to be a remnant of classic Hollywood-style, but to say the least: this is his weakest motion picture to date.The voice-work for the puppets is great, however, there's just so much perversity, I had to look away. The snuff film was okay, and the poor puppet that thought he had an STD provided for some laughs, but other than that, the acting cannot save the majority of comedy.The puppets themselves range from hideous to cutely-hideous, and the final 10-minutes of the movie are the funniest moments out of the entire film. The carnage resembles that of Bad Taste and Braindead, though not nearly as gory and above-the-bar in gross-out.All in all, this was an excellent idea, if not poorly executed. There's not a lot of flaws, but the flaws are so huge themselves that they warrant Meet the Feebles a 7-star review.This is Peter Jackson's weakest film to date, and I highly suggest his fans or fans of The Lord of the Rings (such as me) skip out on seeing this picture... unless you absolutely HAVE TO.Enjoy.