It’s hard to believe that it was a decade ago when the South Park movie came out. I didn’t remember much about it so I was eager to jump back into the snow-covered town and revisit what Kyle, Kenny, Stan and Cartman had been up to in theaters in 1999. How has the film faired over ten years and how was its transition to Blu-ray? Grab your cheezy poofs and read on to find out…
Film 
Officially titled South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone brought their construction paper cash cow to the big screen at the close of the 20th century and capitalized even further on the show’s cable tv success. The film focuses around two controversial television characters that the South Park kids are all fans of; Terrence and Phillip.
The gaseous canuck pairing have just come out with their first movie and the kids absolutely love it. However, once their parents catch wind of the film’s curse-fest content, they take drastic measures to protect their children’s ears and innocence. Their actions are so extreme that they go to great lengths to apprehend Terrence and Phillip while launching an anti-Canada campaign.
Before you know it, maple leaf-marked planes are bombing Hollywood and Satan’s waiting to rule earth in anticipation of World War III. The trio of Stan, Kyle and Cartman (sorry, Kenny gets killed again) work to free the Terrence and Phillip as they try to avoid another round of groundings from their mothers. Prepare for a very musical and no-hold-barred episode of South Park that is extra lengthy when compared to the weekly show. This film is not for the prude or virgin-eared. You can expect everything from several F-bombs to toon nudity in this 80-minute film. I haven’t watched South Park regularly for more than a few years now, but even going back to this movie got a couple smiles and one really good belly laugh out of me. It’s going to be a hard sell to recommend this movie to the casual cinema-goer or disc renter, but if nothing else is on the list, I say pull the trigger.
Video 
I think it’s safe to say at this point that all animated films are flawless in appearance on the Blu-ray format. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut is no exception. There is no grain to speak of and the colors jump out with eye-appealing vibrancy, though it is a limited palette that is utilized in the film’s creation. Brought to our screens in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio with an AVC encode, there isn’t much else to say here about this raunchy, animated work.
Audio 
The film’s audio isn’t going to knock your socks off, but then again, it’s not an all out action flick either. It gets the job done well enough and as a viewer, you will not find yourself straining to hear the dialogue. The front speakers will carry the character dialogue to your ears while the rear speakers provide emphasis with the music. Those same rear speakers will also provide the occasional sound effects but this is something that could have probably delivered a little more oomph overall. For the South Park uninitiated, if you find yourself wondering what Kenny says, that’s normal. The poor kid’s hood is pulled so tight that his conversations are always muffled.
Special Features 
This disc has slim pickings when it comes to extras. You will find the typical creator commentary and trailers as well as a couple of other small goodies to boot. In the end, it’s really nothing special.
- Commentary by Matt Stone & Trey Parker
- “What Would Brian Boitano Do” Music Video – This is a full version of the song from the movie, complete with something that looks like a rock band, all displayed in the very mundane world of standard definition (2:45).
- Theatrical Trailers – There are three trailers here which consist of a teaser trailer and two full cinema trailers for South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. Again, all in standard definition. Yay.
- BD-Live – The interactive feature unique to Blu-ray; you’ll find it included on the South Park disc.
Final Thoughts
It was fun for a moment revisiting this movie derived from a series I once tuned in weekly for. Now it’s but an afterthought and the film did just a little to invigorate the past. Perhaps I’ll tune in in another ten years when I’m writing about its release on Green-ray. Getting to a point though, I will say many people would turn a shoulder to this film and complain about its crudeness and vulgarity. Yes, well that is South Park in a nutshell so it’s kind of like going sailing and saying it was fun except for the part about the wind and the water. This movie is for fans only.
This movie is so rude and crude it is a must-own!
But seriously, I want to take you up on your statement in the video section. You can’t really believe that every animated transfer on Blu-ray gets a 5-point score do you?