Idiocracy

Idiocracy -- about a dystopia 500 years in the future where braindead fools populate the planet and everything is run by corporations -- was actually presaged by Friedrich Nietzsche in his philosophical masterpiece, Thus Spake Zarathustra. In it he heralds the dawn of a new philosophical era, the threat of nihilism, and the übermensch. The übermensch -- or the man who seeks to surpass himself, to reach his potential -- stands diametrically opposite to what Nietzsche calls The Last Man, who is perfectly content with stagnation, whose "herd mentality" makes him most comfortable among equally unambitious people, who is unable to criticize himself, and who therefore cannot grow.

"The earth hath then become small, and on it there hoppeth the last man who maketh everything small. His species is ineradicable like that of the ground-flea; the last man liveth longest.

'We have discovered happiness'-say the last men, and blink thereby."

Thus Spake Zarathustra

Idiocracy is not a great movie, but it is a trenchant critique of our society (though about as subtle as using a sledgehammer to drive in a pin).The movie obviously is directed at the United States, where underrated director Mike Judge, creator of Beavis and Butthead and cult movie Office Space, hails from. But anyone traveling abroad, or surfing the internet, can easily surmise the same thing: that we are already living in a budding idiocracy everywhere on the planet.

Nietzsche -- whose anti-Darwinian diatribes are well-known -- warned against a future idiocracy, not just in Zarathustra, but throughout his oeuvre. More recently Tom Robbins saw the last battles on earth being fought out by cockroaches and the gonorrhea bacillus. In other words, evolution does not necessarily mean survival of the best. You can see Nietzsche's point, and how he was right as opposed to Hegelian and Marxian notions of the dialectical third -- wherein the thesis and antithesis of the historical process combine and re-formulate to produce something better.

Idiocracy is anti-Darwinian through and through. In it, army private Joe Bauer, chosen for his "perfect averageness", and a woman trying to wave off a prostitution rap named Rita, enter into a top secret army hibernation experiment. Meanwhile, the top brass in charge of the experiment are jailed for corruption, and the location of the hibernation experiment is demolished with Joe and Rita still in their hibernation chambers. In its place a chain restaurant called Fuddrucker's is built.

500 years in the future, their hibernation chambers are dislodged from a giant mountain of garbage in what's called the "Great Garbage Avalanche". They wake up in a society run by morons who are named after products (President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho , Dr. Lexus, Frito Pendejo, among others). Fuddruckers has changed into B*ttf*ckers, Starbucks now offers handjobs with every latte, and Carl's Jr.'s motto is "F*ck you. I'm eating". A narrator explains the best minds have disappeared because of under-procreation, and that the more promiscuous illiterate, alcoholic, under-achieving masses have come to dominate the planet.

In the future, anyone who doesn't make constant fart jokes or who uses words other than "f*ck" is considered a "fag" and a "tard". Nevertheless, average Joe tests as having the highest IQ ever, and President Mountain Dew Camacho, hires him as Secretary of the Interior to solve the dustbowl crisis. Mysteriously, no crops are growing and the nation faces imminent starvation.

While inspecting the crops Joe realizes that they were being watered with Brawndo (an obvious allusion to Gatorade, a power drink with "lots of electrolytes"). Joe suggests they try water, and a few weeks later the first seedlings appear again. But in those interim weeks he faces near death at the hands of his impatient underlings, ultimate-fighting bouts against a futuristic fighter called Beef Supreme, and falls in love with Rita. Joe -- most disappointingly -- conforms to the idiocracy and decides to stay on with President Mountain Dew. Until here, the movie worked, even if it was about as subtle as soapbox preacher with a megaphone. But you shouldn't watch this movie expecting Dionysian tragedy, or anything close to high art. Entertaining it is.

Idiocracy attempts high-brow low-brow, and mostly succeeds. It's a low budget movie, not particularly notable for its directorial style, but it raises eyebrows with its brazen mocking of corporate culture. It's not a surprise that its parent company Fox refused to advertise it anywhere, and only allowed a limited release (Fox News in the future is also ridiculed, in fact, with two newscaster that look like 80s era porn actors, half-dressed, and pretty much sputtering the same inanities as they do today).

Michael Moore famously cited the giant loophole that allowed him to create movies that sometimes undermined the very corporations that distributed them -- the profit to be made will always trump whatever critiques are being made. Idiocracy is just as subjective as any Michael Moore movie, but probably not as effective (if it was at all intended as a wake-up call). You'll either be laughing with it, or at it, but it won't change your mind about anything if you haven't already seen the idiocracy around you.

With its own ironically goofy veneer of stupidity, crudeness and cheese, this film is a brilliant and hilarious study of stupidity, crudeness and cheese taken to extremes. The many reviewers who have given Idiocracy 4 and 5 star reviews recognize the intelligence within the farce, but few seem to note the undercurrent of sympathy and compassion that is present, as well. It is certainly a dark vision of a radically dumbed-down future, yet its view of the "average guy" of the present, personified by the Luke Wilson charecter who is the movie's protagonist, is surprisingly optimistic. He is never less than well-meaning, and his confusion never veers into fear and blind reaction. He accepts the mental limitations of those he's surrounded by and he is forgiving when he is victimized by them. Playing an artless innocent, Luke Wilson's acting is easy to underestimate.

There have been some complaints about production quality, acting and the "silly love story" that develops in the latter course of the film. For me, these criticisms are off the mark. I would not change a thing about this unpretentious work of genius.

In retrospect, it is coming true.

Who wrote the script? a really good fortune teller?

This is a very funny movie. Great story line and flawless casting.

This movie tells the amazing story of where our civilization is headed and

what happens when we get there.

Some reviewers have named "Idiocracy" a flawed masterpiece, and that might be valid, but there is so much funny stuff in this film, I'm willing to overlook some artistic flaws.

The premise of the film is rather BRAZIL -Lite: the future is not so bright, not at ALL bright. We're drowning in garbage, the average intellect of the population has sunk to below-Jerry-Springer lows, and there is a dust bowl and famine as well. The world in the 2500's has become a place where Starbucks is a massage parlor, TV has shows that make "Jackass" look like Masterpiece Theater, and Costco is where you buy everything, including advanced degrees.

I laughed myself silly throughout the film; you really have to pause it from time to time to look at the costumes and the sets; the premise here is that every surface is a place for an advertisement (which is a natural outcome from current practices such as ads on airplane tray tables, gas pump handles and any place the eye rests for more than two seconds.) The extras on this film are rather minimal, but there is one wonderful tidbit "Museum of Farts"--which had us clutching our sides in absolute hysteria. The actors are relatively unknown but do admirable work. Some of the special effects are pretty lame--no special CGI here, but it's all fitting the very light attitude of this film. You'll never read another news blurb about Jamie and Britney Spears the same way again, I promise you.