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(More customer reviews)Being a member of the more (as Eddie Izzard would say) "Relaxed and groovy" sect of Christianity, it is not surprising that the wonderful VeggieTales series appeals to me, even at the ripe old age of eighteen. The videos not only give God's message in a way that little children can swallow, but sometimes as a young adult with a past of staunch religiousness to live up to, it helps me to understand my faith better to see it through the eyes of a child (or indeed, an asparagus).
So when the first feature by these marvelous people came out, I was among the first to see it. (And if you think I was embarrassed buying a ticket to "Jonah" the weekend that "Red Dragon" opened, well then...you're right) The film was stunning. It holds true to the unique (although some call it Pythonesque) style of the videos but does not depend on the videos for enjoyment. It is original, charming, bright, and Sherlock Holmes couldn't find a hint of dysfunction in the whole eighty-some minutes.
On the way to a concert, the car breaks down and driver Bob the Tomato and navigator Dad Asparagus get help in a nearby seafood restaurant. But the real tragedy is Laura Carrot has lost the backstage pass she won out the car window. Now, Junior thinks this is great because she was being mean and flaunting it. At any rate, Junior encounters three "questionable" characters who call themselves "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" (See "Very Silly Songs" or "The Ultimate Silly Song Countdown") played by Pa Grape, Larry the Cucumber and Mr. Lunt. They tell a story about "that time when [they] did that one thing with that one guy." This turns out to be Jonah (played to perfection by that green fleshed rival to Sir Lawrnece Olivier, Archibald Asparagus) who is adamantly against delivering God's message to the Ninevites who sin and curse, and even slap people with fish! (A Python reference? Most definitely) So he and the Pirates sail in very much the oposite direction, until a storm makes it apparent that God is very upset with one of them. So Jonah heroically hurls himself into the sea where he is promptly eaten by a whale. The theme is Compassion and Mercy and to remind you that no matter who you are or what kind of aquatic animal you like to slap people with, God says you are deserving of a second chance. I won't tell you how the concert goes because that'll ruin the movie, and I won't tell you how Jonah gets out of the whale because...well, frankly, you should know. It's a very well known story.
What struck me the most was the sheer scale of the project. It wasn't just like watching two and a half Veggie videos back to back (which is not a bad way to spend an afternoon). It was instead marvelously independent of the tapes. With camera sweeps and set designs that wouldn't feel out of place in the latest Pixar/Disney joint. Film students would find nothing wrong with the structure and pace of this cinematic marvel. The characters filled their parts the way we say sitcom actors embody their characters (and maybe it's stupid to say that the performances were good when the "performances" were just voice actors and cartoons, but every slight detail on Archibald's face was carefully designed by the animators to convey a specific emotion and I think the mission was meliphluously accomplished...unless I spelled it wrong). The music was not merely up to Veggie standards, it was simply marvelous. From the childish medley about "Billy Joe McGuffrey" to the Gospel choir (for my money the first reference to African-American culture in the series. Correct me if I'm wrong) singing about a God of "Second Chances" to the "Silly Songs with Larry" vein of "The Credits Song" it was all I could do to run to a shop and buy the soundtrack (a college man has to eat, you know). The end credits also featured a song called "In the Belly of the Whale" performed by Christian rock group Newsboy, which is probably a nod to the Disney tradition of an End Credits Theme. Even the presence of the clearly one hundred percent clownish character of Khalil the half caterpillar/half worm salesman with a regional accent that makes Babbu Bhatt from Seinfeld look like an Oxford English scholar could not take away from the quality of the experience.
So I urge you, Protestants, Catholics, Methodists, Christians, Baptists, Quakers, the lot to take your children, your wives or your sheep to see this movie. (You probably won't enjoy it if you aren't of the faith, because it does come pretty directly from the Bible, but if you can be patient through the religous references and stick around for the fun, go for it!) Don't just go because your kids want to go. Go because it's a funny movie, it's a good movie, it's got a good message and you'll leave feeling pretty good about a thing or two. This is the kind of movie that people need to be making more of and it's the kind of movie people need to be watching more of. I'd see it again in a minute.
I just love those veggies!
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