Les Stupides

Ah yes the story of a family so stupid that they accidentally get involved in a plot of international intrigue and save the world.

First a note to all those bashing this movie: Its supposed to be stupid. This film is good because it's so bad. Thats the whole point. It has some genuinely funny moments and decent acting from Christopher Lee and Jessica Lundy.

Rent this movie and make fun of it with your friends, I think that's what the producers intended.

RELEASE THE DRIVE BEE!

I enjoyed watching this movie. Should I apologize for that? No, I don't believe I should. I find Tom Arnold funny. I like watching dumb people do stupid things; it makes me feel better about myself. I actually burst out laughing during several parts of this movie. The car-bomb was the best.

However, I realize that not everyone will like this movie. Most people, in fact, will hate it. So let me sum up what is wrong with this movie.

First off, there is the terrible acting. God-awful. Oh-the-pain, where-did-they-find-that-kid acting. Tom Arnold is not a particularly good actor - he did well in True Lies because Cameron is a good director that understands timing - but Tom Arnold doesn't have much facial expression variety, and he spends most of the movie wearing that same stupid grin plastered on the cover of the video. The kids weren't much better, but I fault the director for that one (I'll get to the direction in a minute).

Secondly, the "clever" script. Now, the first time I watched this, I thought it was clever, too. But after re-watching, I realized that if your characters are incredibly stupid, you can throw motivation out the window. I can imagine the writers - "how can we justify them putting the garbage out every week even though it gets stolen" "Oh, that's easy, they're STUPID!" This movie is full of that. Unbelievably bad choices only made because the characters have no integrity. A movie like this writes itself, because you are freed from the bonds of actual cleverness; characters that do anything allow you to do whatever you want and not have to worry about whether it makes sense. Trust me, if you watch this, you'll see what I mean. The Stupids never do anything that makes sense, which is why it's funny. But an intelligent script, it is not.

Lastly, there is the slipshod direction. This movie is very theatrical. Deep theater roots. Its comedy is awkward, obvious, and drawn out, just like theater comedy. There is no subtlety whatsoever. If you want the movie to be funny, it will be funny. But if you are suspicious, it is certainly not going to win your heart.

And that, in the end, is the problem with the movie; if you don't want to like it, you won't, because it is too easy to dislike. Only see it if you are truly interested and believe that it can be good, because its charm and uniqueness are its good qualities. This is not a movie that disappoints - it is a movie that sits right where you expect it to lie on the quality scale. If you believe it can be good, it will reward you. But if you see it and don't like it, it really is because you didn't want to enjoy it, for whatever reason.

Come on people! Relax. If you rate this movie a 1, you either are trying to hate it or don't have a sense of humor.

It's not high art, but the deadpan acting is spot on, and if you really look at it, the writing in this script is far more complex and well crafted than most "gross out" comedies people seem to applaud.

While other comedies just string together some non-sequeters, this one has a tightly woven throughline, with one line of dialogue or action not only leading to the next, but so integral to the story that if you were to remove a gag or a character, the house of cards would collapse.

It is theater of the absurd and farce at it a high level.

And it is telling that some people who say this is the worst movie ever also say the Kentucky Fried Movie was a "miss" despite that film being the first of it's kind and leading to hundreds of films since that these same people probably loved.

This is one of those movies that nobody wants to see because it looks so stupid. Um, Hello, it's called THE STUPIDS! That is what is so great about this movie, it lives up to its name. It's so stupid that it's hilarious.

The first time I saw this movie I laughed so hard that I cried. In fact, everyone that watched it with me nearly died laughing. It is truly Tom Arnold's shining moment. He is in his element in this movie. It has an atrocious storyline, but it is surprisingly well put together.

This movie takes a big risk, but it is successful in its goal. A Great movie for the whole family to enjoy.

What a great time. I've seen this movie several times, and it's still as funny as ever. Lighten up folks. When they meet the Lloyd and go in the time machine, I just bust a gut. I've recommended this movie to others, and think everyone should just relax, put their brains in neutral and dive in. The ending falls apart, but the jokes are plenty. I've discovered one thing about comedies--the more people there are who hate them and think they aren't funny, the better I like them. And most people don't like this movie. That's okay--I'm glad they made it, so I could enjoy it. Still highly recommended.