Team America: World Police

By Simon Woodhouse

Movies cost a lot of money to make, which I suppose is why Hollywood seems to take very few risks. Tried and tested formulas, that's what film studios like - generic plots/characters recycled every few years and pepped up with a few new special effects. I can't imagine many studios would be wild about the idea of a political satire that uses Thunderbirds style puppets, and addresses a real hot potato issue like Middle Eastern terrorism. I guess Team America managed to see the light of day thanks in no small part to the previous work of its creators. This is a movie by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the guys behind South Park.

Anyone familiar with the TV show, or the movie it spawned, will be aware that Stone and Parker aren't afraid to tackle sensitive issues. So if you're the sort of person who thinks international terrorism isn't a laughing matter, this film probably won't appeal to you. On the other hand, if you can see the ridiculousness of the extremists on both sides of the 'war on terror', this movie will make you laugh - a lot.

Team America World Police are a secret, Thunderbirds style organization, who rather than trying to save people spend their time kicking terrorist butt. Their favorite colors are red, white and blue, their favorite music is generic rock, and their favorite pastime is shooting big guns and blowing stuff up. They're not interested in detective work, or debating the rights and wrongs of a situation. You show them a Middle Eastern gentleman dressed like a tribal hills man, and they'll kill him.

The movie starts with the team thwarting a terrorist attack in Paris. Visual gags abound here, especially when a member of the team and a terrorist square up for a bit of hand to hand combat, but just flail around like the uncontrollable puppets they are. The team wipe out the bad guys, but in the process do far more damage than the terrorists ever would have (and this becomes a running joke that pops up again and again throughout the film). However, a key member of their organization dies, so they need to enlist a replacement. Enter Gary the actor.

Recruited specifically because he is an actor, Gary's first mission involves him infiltrating a terrorist cell in Egypt. Things go slightly wrong, but Team America save the day by blowing up loads of stuff. Just prior to this, we meet the film's main bad guy, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il. Definitely the movie's funniest character, Kim both looks and sounds a lot like Cartman from South Park. Portrayed as an insane, James Bond style villain with a terrible Korean/English ascent, he's funny enough just to look at, let alone here him speak. After watching this film you'll never be able to take the real Kim seriously again, or feel threatened by him. And I'd be interested to know whether the movie ever made it into North Korean cinema's (somehow I doubt it)

As the story moves on, we learn that Kim is the mastermind behind a worldwide terrorist plot. The scheme involves weapons of mass destruction (of course), a thing that Team America are absolutely paranoid about. Gary also becomes romantically involved with Lisa, another member of the team. This leads to one of the film's funniest scenes - gratuitous puppet sex involving naked marionettes who have no genitals whatsoever.

Though the movie relies heavily on visual jokes, the dialogue is funny as well. The filmmakers cleverly lampoon both sides of the political divide, obviously mocking the whole idea of over zealous patriotism and an unwarranted fear of foreigners, but at the same time singling out anti-war liberals for an equal bashing. The United Nations also comes in for a fair bit of ridicule, culminating in Kim Jong-Il's dispatch of weapons inspector Hans Blix (pronounced 'Brix' by Kim).

In a film as silly as this, the finale was always going to be daft. Team America end up being captured by Kim, who is using liberal American celebrities to distract the world's attention while he executes his evil plan. Gary arrives and saves the day, at the same time delivering a speech full of really funny analogies.

There's a fair amount of gross-out comedy, especially in the scene where Gary is vomiting. But the overall premise, and the larger-than-life ridicule of what is essentially a very serious subject, gives the movie a clever edge. Just like South Park, there are weighty issues wrapped-up in toilet humor. If you're a fan of the show, you'll recognize most of the puppets' voices, as the majority of them were performed by Stone and Parker. In another similarity to South Park, Team America contains quite a few musical numbers. Most of these are funny, but one of them is hysterical, however its title contains the F word so I can't tell you what it's called, but you'll know the one I mean when you watch the film. After which you'll be singing the song all day, if only in your head. Though this is a film containing puppets, it's definitely not for kids. But if you're a level-headed adult, it will at the very least make you chuckle.