I set out watching this movie with the rather low expectations a person should have for a straight to DVD feature and found I was not disappointed, in my expectations that is.
Being a long time series fan as I am, I was somewhat turned about by the previous straight to DVD feature churned out under the Futurama nomenclature and I had expected the lazy writing and derivative humour would soon be replaced by the clever and witty stylings many fans have come to expect from Futurama. Sadly, this has not been the case.
This latest release shows, if anything, an even greater tendency towards the lackadaisical writing form so insipidly stereotypical in nearly all animated comedy. For me, the originality is what had set Futurama apart from the competition. Technical 'in jokes', while still present, have taken back seat to nonsensical pop culture references and non sequitur ala Family Guy. Character comedy is reduced to half hearted one liners and abstract physical comedy. While this may appeal to the new, younger generation of viewer, it leaves the old series fan like myself out in the rain.
While the voice acting is generally good, Billy West is excellent as always, it suffers from generally poor script and writing that in areas completely eschews the character's previously constructed idiom(s) for the sake of making a certain joke work (also generally poorly).
While viewing the feature I found myself mostly bemused. While it does have moments when the brilliance of the original series shines through the tedious intellectually unstimulating doldrums, these are, by far, few and far between.
If you are a long time fan of the series and enjoyed it for more than the novel setting and Bender's byplay then you may well find yourself more irritated than amused with this feature. I'd slate this for a one night rental, as it is really not worth more than one viewing.
However, I once again hope the creators of the series will rediscover their stride in the next feature.. here's hoping.
Being a long time series fan as I am, I was somewhat turned about by the previous straight to DVD feature churned out under the Futurama nomenclature and I had expected the lazy writing and derivative humour would soon be replaced by the clever and witty stylings many fans have come to expect from Futurama. Sadly, this has not been the case.
This latest release shows, if anything, an even greater tendency towards the lackadaisical writing form so insipidly stereotypical in nearly all animated comedy. For me, the originality is what had set Futurama apart from the competition. Technical 'in jokes', while still present, have taken back seat to nonsensical pop culture references and non sequitur ala Family Guy. Character comedy is reduced to half hearted one liners and abstract physical comedy. While this may appeal to the new, younger generation of viewer, it leaves the old series fan like myself out in the rain.
While the voice acting is generally good, Billy West is excellent as always, it suffers from generally poor script and writing that in areas completely eschews the character's previously constructed idiom(s) for the sake of making a certain joke work (also generally poorly).
While viewing the feature I found myself mostly bemused. While it does have moments when the brilliance of the original series shines through the tedious intellectually unstimulating doldrums, these are, by far, few and far between.
If you are a long time fan of the series and enjoyed it for more than the novel setting and Bender's byplay then you may well find yourself more irritated than amused with this feature. I'd slate this for a one night rental, as it is really not worth more than one viewing.
However, I once again hope the creators of the series will rediscover their stride in the next feature.. here's hoping.
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