On Film: Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters

Written and Directed by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis

Featuring the voices of Dana Snyder, Dave Willis, Carey Means, C. Martin Croker, Bruce Campbell

I have been a fan of this insane little animated show since it debuted in 2000. So my heart was happy to plop down in my local multiplex and see the big screen adventures of Meatwad, Master Shake and Frylock. So, was it any good?

The Movie

For those of you who haven’t seen the Cartoon Network series Aqua Teen Hunger Force, I will help you catch up. Meatwad, a huge meatball, Master Shake, a milkshake, and Frylock, a giant box of fries, live in the suburbs with a neighbor named Carl. Weird things happen and the group has to deal with it. That is as close of a description of this hilariously strange show that I can come up with.

So, for the big screen, it is mainly just an extended adventure for the surreal trio. However, in this film, Frylock, Meatwad, Master Shake and Carl are attempting to assemble the Insane O Flex, an otherworldly exercise machine. They have their typical enemies, such as the Mooninites, the Plutonians Emory and Oglethorpe, The Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, and Dr. Weird trying to thwart their plans. Even Abraham Lincoln and a piece of watermelon named Walter Melon are thrown into the mix to make the assembly of this exercise machine even more difficult. And of course, hilarity and mayhem ensues.

This film is solidly for the fans and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Sure, there a few moments where the film seems to bog down and become sluggish. But, when this film is firing on all pistons, it is a wonderfully surreal nugget of brilliance.

I can’t see this film making you a fan of the series if you aren’t already. You either plug into the strange logic of these characters or “get it” or you just don’t. But if you do, plunk your money down soon to see their big screen adventures.

I have failed to mention another great moment of the film, the opening sequence. What appears to be a great classic retro concession stand commercial segways into a box of popcorn, hotdog and soda having a wicked death metal showdown with some nachos, pretzels and a bon-bon. I don’t want to give up  to many details, just trust me, you will be laughing until you cry.

So, for fans of the series, don’t hesitate, get yourself down to the theater and see this film. If you find yourself racing for the remote to change the channel when you see this strange show come on Cartoon Network, this film isn’t going to change your mind. But when you look at the current films playing at your local multiplex, you certainly won’t find one as strange and as daring as this one at the moment and it certainly deserves credit for that alone.

8/10

-Suzie Lackey