Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie

 

 

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"Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie" -- it sounds very grand and impressive, doesn't it? But except for a couple of extra sets, the movie version of this snarky little series is pretty much the same as the episodes -- a painfully bad movie that Mike Nelson and his sarcastic robot pals relentlessly mock.

As explained by evil Dr. Forrester ("I'm a NAUGHTY BOY!"), he has trapped Mike on the Satellite of Love, and is plying him with terrible movies to see what breaks him. This is apparently part of his evil plan to conquer the world.

Meanwhile on the Satellite of Love, everything is pretty much normal -- Gypsy is running the ship, Mike is running on a giant hamster wheel (complete with water bottle!) and Crow is trying to tunnel back to Earth. After a near-fatal hull breach ("Mommy mommy mommy I LOVE YOU, MAAAAAAAAAAAA..."), the guys are called in to watch their latest movie.

Unfortunately, that movie is "This Island Earth," a pretentious sci-fi flick that was apparently made up as they went along. A bunch of rather dumb scientists are called by a secret organization of suspiciously large-skulled people who are obviously aliens. Immediately the rugged Carl Meecham decides to break out of the place (you volunteered to go, idiot) along with his required love interest -- and soon they find themselves whisked onto a flying saucer and headed for the planet Metaluna. Of course, things go downhill after that.

Despite the "The Movie" tag, this movie is basically just a slightly expanded episode of the series. The guys get to be a little cruder in their language, and we see a couple more rooms on the Satellite of Love when Mike and the robots try to hail Earth using a hokey-looking communicator. Of course, it all goes horribly wrong.

But most of the movie revolves around the guys sitting around making fun of the movie -- Mike, Tom Servo and Crow all mock the special effects ("So they worship the ever-lasting gobstopper?") the silly plot developments ("That's what happens when you leave a potato in the microwave!") and the ridiculous costumes ("It's Ted Kennedy in a Barney suit!"). Not to mention the obviousness of the aliens' identities ("I ram my ovipositor down your throat, and lay my eggs in your chest! But I'm NOT an alien!").

The movie itself is a pretty awful affair, despite the then-impressive special effects and attempts at depth. It's got some really wooden acting, an interstellar trip that turns out to be totally pointless, some heavy-handed anti-war preaching, and a hokey alien species -- with the required benevolent alien who inexplicably cares about our species, but not his own (he doesn't seem very upset about his entire species being wiped out, as long as the all-American heroes get to go home).

Despite the title, "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie" is basically just another episode of the series, albeit a bit glossier than most -- funny, snarky and full of wretched movie.

Watched a VHS version of this vid with mi-laddos a number of years ago and tryly enjoyed it. Decided to add a DVD copy to my library. It's the movie alright, but the first thing I noticed (and turned my nose up at) was its lack of scene selections. I mean WTF's with that?!? Ain't this 2008?
Anyway, that's my one & only complaint (which explains the 4-starred rating - otherwise it would've gotten 5!).
If you're a fan of any space program parody (Red Dwarf, Hitchhiker's Guide...), then do yourself a favour and add this to your library.

Do not hesitate, do not pass go, ignore the fact that this dvd is quite possibly the worst packaging of a movie ever (no extras or chapter selection). You must own this movie. Buy it, watch it and share it with all your friends. This is the funniest and most quotable movie since "Monty Python and the Holy Grail". You will not stop laughing when you and your friends repeat the clever riffs to eachother, even days and weeks later.

For the longest time, this movie was no longer available without shelling out $400+ to some jerk on Ebay, but now it's back!!!

Buy this now!

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5.0 out of 5 stars 74 Minutes of Funny
I'll keep this very brief...

It's not too darned often that I'll give a five star review to such a slim product. Read more

Published on May 6 2008 by Señor Spook

4.0 out of 5 stars Great, Fun little movie!
In spite of all it's misgivings, MST3K: The Movie is pretty funny, and if you are a MSTie who has always wanted to hear Tom Servo swear, well this is your movie. Read more

Published on Aug 23 2005 by N. Peron

3.0 out of 5 stars Look around, and you might find it. . .
I bought this movie for 7 bucks (used) at a movie/music/book store. I suggest doing the same, since it's being sold for MUCH more on the internet. Read more

Published on July 9 2004 by Kevin Fink

4.0 out of 5 stars "Glad you could join us here at the Buddy Epson Society!"
Judging by some other UK reviews, it seems a fair few people here caught its late night airing on ITV. Considering how rare the show is here, I made sure I taped this. Read more

Published on Jun 28 2004 by G White

5.0 out of 5 stars MST3K goes big-screen
MST3K- The Movie is essentially the same as the television show, only with higher production values. The riffing here is top notch, and the host segments are pretty good. Read more

Published on Jun 28 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect show for any smart aleck wiseguy
MST 3k is a conceptually brilliant show. The premise, involving 2 robots and a human trapped on a satellite ship and forced to watch awful B-movies while they poke fun at them is... Read more

Published on Jan 2 2004 by Sweetcheeks McMuffin

5.0 out of 5 stars The Funniest Movie Ever
Quite simply Mystery Science Theater the Movie is the Funniest movie ever made. Mike, Crow and Tom provide perfect comments in tune with the movie "This Island Earth"... Read more

Published on Nov 20 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars A good effort, but could have been better
In adapting their superb series for the cinema, Mike and the Bots chose the obvious way of straightforwardly repeating their proven formula while slightly upping the quality of... Read more

Published on Oct 28 2003 by J. Eric Dietrich

5.0 out of 5 stars Very disciplined and very funny
There are a lot of complaints about both the length and lack of depth of this movie. At less than 80 minutes this movie is shorter than the normal episode of MST3K. Read more

Published on May 1 2003 by Martin Andrade

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect Comedy!
Obviously, this will become a classic in the great scheme of comedy. Every joke is perfect and insanely hilarious. Read more

Published on April 7 2003 by jedilordmatt

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