Release Date: August 5th, 2011
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"It's like someone took Bill the Cat and made him human" – Bill on disheveled drunk dad
Don Dohler certainly directed some riff-worthy creature features. The monsters are clever, though cheaply constructed. You get a colorful cast of weirdos and a plethora of stupid/funny situations. And the Rifftrax crew takes advantage of this with some strong riffing early on. The references are cute (Iron Man costume - Al Gore as the green man) and Mike's (and sometimes Bill's) "Joe as James Stewart" impressions are spot on. There are also sharp observational bits (ala the quote above, or when Bill notices a smart-looking guy at a bar).
Conversely though, Dohler piles on the padding. There are long dull, repetitive stretches of film that the guys attempt to fill by piling on padding of their own. Chestnuts are hauled out - such as singing the title over and over, or the extended argument gag, which ends up with one riffer threatening another with violence (here, it's the 'gun routine'). Neither of which was funny - and the laughs overall, dry up as it goes. In the final tally: Great start, fair finish. (Of note: Scenes from this film are shown during the credits of the MSTed Pod People)
#20 in Mighty Jack's Top 50
Release Date: January 20th, 2012
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"Household glass, Satan’s pal" – Bill
Rifftrax springs from the ashes of Captain America to deliver this beauty. The movie offers several treats: The creepy kid with clown doll, accompanied by their own evil carnival theme music, would be enough to mark this as a Z-level classic. But we also get marble-mouthed ham radio operator, Jim Dalen, as well as the best female performance by an oddly accented gal who says "Paul" since Natalie in Werewolf. It's a smorgasbord of stupid, just waiting for MK&B to tear into it. The guys are in good form and engage the movie smartly (plus they don’t shy away from the great Kim Bassinger/Kelly Lebrock flamewar that divided the citizens of Denver). Sure, some of the jokes were a bit dark (Kevin whistling the Kung Fu theme as a body swings from a rope), but I enjoyed the release, through and through.
Release Date: May 21, 2007
Riffers: Mike Nelson & Mary Jo Pehl
“Charlie; get me the prostitute and wino division!” – Mary Jo
Here’s the great insidious joke behind Rifftrax. I have watched “Crossroads” more times than the “Godfather”. I have viewed “Battlefield Earth” twice and God help me, I've now suffered through the Mariah Carry vehicle, “Glitter”. I’m not proud of this fact; there are fewer things that can shame a man than admit he’s not only watched Britney and Mariah in their big Hollywood starring debuts but also enjoyed it. The flip side of the coin of course is that Mike Nelson and, in the case of Glitter, former castmate Mary Jo Pehl have been there to smooth over the rocky slopes and thorny backwoods included in each film.
Making her Rifftrax debut, Mary Jo's vocal inflections shine, her witty bon motes sparkle, her comedic timing shimmers (gee, can I mine any other corny "Glitter" adjectives?) – Uh, let's just say, I liked what she brought to the table. It was funny due in large part because Mike and Mary Jo get such a kick out of how bad it all is.
The sound of Mary Jo’s laughter is infectious and it gets Mike going too. When a guy named Dice locks onto Mariah’s character at a club, the scene shifts into some cheesy camera work, which makes Mike and MJP giggle in delight. That’s probably the most insightful statement one could make at the moment and it got me laughing like a goon as well. This is simply a ridiculous movie from top to bottom. The dialog is insipid (Soup girls up?) and as our riffers note, it comes from the “Yadda, yadda, yadda; school of film making” (it tells us what happens but doesn’t show us).
DJs of the year? Glitter’s got ‘em. Sex addict, Eric Benet? Yup, he’s here as well. Brilliant songwriting and recording skills? On display in full. And all of it is silly, and all of it is riffed to pieces. The ‘trax overflows with great observational quips -“It's one of those panty roses from 7-11” – MJP - Mary Jo's line about how lucky Stedman Graham is, and her bit about Brando when Dice starts Stanley Kowaskiing all over the place, are priceless. Mike had me in stitches when the movie evokes God's wrath, I love it when he has the Lord sending a “plague of razor blades to rain down from the Heavens”. And after watching this mess, I wouldn’t blame God in the least. This RiffTrax is simply a ton o' fun, what else can I say except... “BOOTY! BOOTY! BOOTY!”
Release Date: June 11, 2007
Riffers: Mike and Bridget Nelson
“They make being at death's door, fun” – Bridget
Bridget joins Mike on this Trax and that husband/wife dynamic adds a new kind of fuel to the fun. Bridget brings an upbeat, happy vibe to the table. Her timing and delivery is quick and snappy, much in the same vein as those classic screwball comedians from the 40s. This style meshed well with Mike’s, which shouldn't be surprising, and the comfort level between the two makes for a smooth, easy listen (Bridget’s reaction to Mike’s ‘liver and onions’ quip is just what you’d expect from a spouse, and there are a couple moments like that throughout)
Grey’s Anatomy is one of those soapy TV medical dramas. All the familiar elements are in play; the most bothersome is the -nervous newbies harassed by short-tempered old pros- angle. I really hate that crap, snarky jagoffs really annoy me, which is why I avoid medical dramas (or medical comedies, like Scrubs, for that matter) like the plague.
Mike and Bridget don’t deal too harshly with the show. They tease it, slap it around a little; have fun with the dialog and the stock characters. The two are especially funny (and naughty) when teasing a gal who ‘sleeps and runs’ -“Yup she’s heading for the shipyard for another guy” – Mike- and Bridget’s Viagra joke put me in stitches. The couple is having a goofy good time and that put me in a great mood as well.
The show considerately keeps us informed on the time (inspiring Jack Bauer quips). Theirs a bedpan full O’ horrible bedside manner to rip on, and the gaudy looking surgical caps are just asking for trouble. Sandra Oh was a major irritant, so I’m glad she takes some shots. And the scene with the Chinese women by the dumpster is some of the funniest material in the series. And of course, there’s an 'Operation Game' reference as well... “Hey Milton Bradley’s right, there is an ice cream cone in her head” – Bridget. Ahh, that’s sweet stuff.
Release Date: November 10, 2006
Riffers: Mike Nelson & Kevin Murphy
“You gotta try this acid, son” - Kevin
Though not a rollicking rifftrax rollercoaster, The Grudge still provides ample quantities of humor. The biggest and brightest bit comes right at the beginning of the film as Mike tries to convince Kevin that his nickname back in school was, “The Grudge”. The banter between him and Kevin (who did some research that seems to contradict Mike’s boast) had me doubled over with gales of laughter. Soon after this exchange, Kev wets ‘em at the very first scare. Priceless.
Mister's Nelson and Murphy spend the rest of the movie confused by the pointless story, making Yoko Ono quips and referencing several moments from their MST3K days (from Prince of Space to Gamera). I loved the jokes directed at the crazy old lady and the creepy little kid (I roared when a character was on the elevator and Kevin had the blue boy asking things like… ”Hi lady, could you get me some underpants?”) and got a kick out of how Mike would say -“And with that… Goodnight”- when the movie would make a quick cut to black after every scary moment. When all the laughs are tallied up The Grudge comes out a winner.
The Guy From Harlem
Release Date: October 4th, 2012
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"You didn't learn any of your lines, did you?" - Bill
Boy, after all the hype surrounding this release I was expecting much better than I got. Yeah, the movie is as bush league goofy as they come, but the riffing was nothing to write home about. There were times when it seemed that all the guys were doing was repeating what has been said by the characters (yelling like the yelling guy, pointing out that the crime boss has never been seen, repeating the title). But those aren't really jokes as they are mocking observations. The Internet buzz for this thing has been glowing, so if you use this site for suggestions and ideas I'd say just ignore me and buy it. It's not a bad track, I did get laughs out of it and the movie's a hoot – but the riffing -for me- rarely reaches those reported lofty highs.
Halloween
Release Date: October 19, 2006
Riffers: Mike Nelson & Kevin Murphy
"Look, Free-Range mental patients” – Kevin
Kevin returns and that’s great news, considering how well he and Mike clicked for Star Trek V – Halloween is a better film than the last one they covered but their riff-work is just as good, if not better.
The duo take Carpenter to task for continuity problems (exposing the differing weather conditions and time zones in the same scene was especially funny) – They make a good point of noting how the director lingers too long on certain shots and how the friends in the film seem to loathe one another. But the real spark comes from the two simply adding their own skewed mindset to whatever’s on the screen. In Mike and Kevin’s version of the movie, Darth Vader accidentally wanders on the set; Billy Corrigan discovers his true calling and the opening sequence-which becomes a conversation between Debbie (?) and John Carpenter-had me holding my sides in huge fits of laughter.
Other bright spots: Kevin quotes an obscure Beatles tune ("I'll Be On My Way"); the insiders debate on the appropriate response to hearing a Chris De Burgh song (Mike once tossed Kev’s Servo at the screen for singing “Don’t Pay The Ferryman” during show #618); the hilarious line, ”You’re kidding me! Someone went back in time and ripped off John Carpenter’s ‘The Thing’?”, and the various quips concerning the near-comatose little girl, Lindsey.
The Happening
#2 in Mighty Jack's Top 50
Release Date: October 21, 2008
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"Behold my dramatic lemur eyes!" - Mike
I'm stupefied over how terrible this movie was. Could the same man behind the 6th Sense and Unbreakable actually have created this train wreck? When a little girl goes up to speak to Mark Wahlberg’s character, our riffers have her say… “Don’t look now but this is worse than Lady in the Water”. Funny – but Lady at least had some competent acting, The Happening can’t even boast that. Wahlberg is locked into condescending mode and poor Zooey Deschanel (an actress I usually like) appears bewildered and wears the expression of someone who has come to the sudden realization that she’s made the worse career choice of her life. “How did I get here and can anybody get me out?”
The movie certainly gives the gang a lot to work with and they take advantage of the situation. I generally enjoy riffing that gets into the rhythm of a movie, and targets it specifically, rather than tossing out excessive and generic fart jokes or whatnot. Mike, Bill, and Kev find their rhythm here and actually surpass their workout on Shyamalan’s 6th Sense.
M Night trying to horrify comes off funny instead and one of the guys note how one scene reaches Monty Python levels of silly. They also point out how lame it is to have the wind as your primary movie effect. Hotdogs and lions and plants that spout threats are all part of the riffing equation. And Mike gave me my biggest laugh when he has Deschanel warn a child, "If you misbehave..." and then he makes a windy whooshing sound.
Heroes
Release Date: September 4, 2007
Riffer: Mike Nelson
"Chicks dig it when you tell them about your Superman dream"
Mike flies solo this time out and battles one of my favorite riiftrax subjects, the television pilot. And his work on Heroes is generally a marvel. On the negative: Mike at times just complains about the show, and not in a clever way. And the jabs at Hiro's less than manly manner got tiresome. On the positive: I like Mike's use of obscure or pop culture reference, the sharp observational humor, the witty alteration of the reality set in the movie. Some examples...
Mike shows off his Biblical knowledge by having fun with a character named Micah. When a father has a heart to heart with his young, cheerleader daughter, he warns her to "Stay away from Kevin Spacey". When a man named Mohinder offers a glass of water to the very thin Eve, Mike has her reply... "No thanks, I'm on a diet". And he also has fun referencing within the comic book genre. As when a policeman named Parkman enters the room where a murder took place and locates a frightened child hiding in a crawl space. When Parkman is asked by other officers how he knew where the girl was hiding, Mike offers; "His orphan sense was tingling".
Heroes is loaded with colorful characters and Mike provides much amusement poking fun at each of them. From Clair's invulnerability (Her plans to jump into a stump grinder and shoot herself into the sun) To the flying Peter Petrelli's Hitler hair. As mentioned before, Mike does hit below the belt in regards to Hiro, still I got a kick out of the "Pie to 2 equals O’clock" riff. And then there is Niki, who inspires many stripper jokes (as when Mike suggests that she sold her son for a leather bustier). So despite a few missteps, there are plenty of goodies to be enjoyed.
Highlander
Release Date: March 15th, 2011
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"Woa, another under the Kilt shot, there should be only one!" - Bill
I'm not sure how a weak flick like this inspired all those sequels and TV shows? The best thing about it was the Queen music... but even Queen wasn't immune to MK&Bs satirical barbs (all in good fun). Though not as spot-on as their next release (Karate Kid 3) I still found plenty to laugh at. The opening sword fight in the parking garage is an early example of the well-placed jokes to be had -- whether it's Kevin mentioning that he now knows what to do if his auto needs a jump - or Bill's car stampede line... "Moooo!"
Cocker spaniel hair, a dig at Adrian Paul, a screwy May/December thingy and Mike's brilliant line -"So your invincible, wanna kill Hitler?"- are all high points of the Highlander experience. I have to add that there was one missed opportunity for a prime riff? When the little girl tells Connor, "Everybody's dead" - I added a "Dave". You Red Dwarf fans know what I'm talking about!
High School Musical
#49 in Mighty Jack's Top 50
Release Date: September 25th, 2010
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"Yeah but I'm cute, could you find any role models for me who couldn't double as Dick Tracy villains?" - Mike
Cheesy musical about peer pressure and basketball and possible incest and other topical subjects -It stars Zac Efron as Troy, who has an odd, bendy Wallace (of Gromit fame) mouth, and –as is pointed out a few times- is pretty, in a girlish sort of way. Riff-wise there wasn't a whole lot that failed (though I could nitpick a few small items) and it boasts several big rib ticklers.
I think my favorite joke was Bill noticing John Mayer and Avril Lavigne in a rare duet. After that, I thought the "Short People" musical mash-up was cute and reminiscent of MST3Ks "Tusk" skit. The riffing in general pops off on the movie's many stupidities, while offering hilarious twists here and there: From the bait and switch of the "Say Anything" reference (and no, Troy's song of choice wasn’t recorded by Peter Gabriel), to having these kids get all a twitterpated over Werner Herzog ("Woo-Hoo! Life is a meaningless nightmare" – Kevin). Overall a first-rate release.
House on Haunted Hill
Release Date: February 4, 2009
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"I'm scared so I don't know who I am" - Kevin as Nora
Do-over shenanigans from the boys. Mike's original commentary track was one of his better efforts for Legend, and I enjoy the movie. While most of his best jokes survive, some are replaced by superior quips (as with Bill's line when the test pilot snags 2 candles) some are lost (I actually like the original riff at the start when Price introduces us to the rest of the guests and Mike hopes they are more than floating heads. In this version Bill offers a cute line about Price's face being re-smallened) Oh, and I prefer Mike's delivery over Bill's with the 'Salvador Dali's head' line.
A few other changes: The "Grandma Rottie" bit failed and they add a running, "John Goodman in the can" gag that quickly wears out its welcome but Mike voices a joke about the Ghostbusters that cracked me up. In the end, the new laughs coupled with the golden oldies add up to good, but not earth-shaking.
Hulk: The Final Round
#50 in Mighty Jack's Top 50
Rifftrax Release: 12/5/08
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
“The Hulk hu? Y'sure that's not just an enthusiastic Jets fan who got drunk and fell asleep up there?” – Bill
Bill, Kevin, and Mike flex their comedy muscles and smash an episode of the Hulk TV series, yay! Prior to this release, I felt that Rifftrax hit a rough patch. I was finding their humor rather prosaic and tired (I could have skipped Spidey 2, Oceans 11, and Iron Man and not missed much). But with the Hulk, the guys prove they still had the right stuff. Why was this an improvement? Because they delivered quips that were germane to the story and the characters, and in doing so it sounded like they were putting some thought into the commentary and not just tossing out the same old routines. When a couple of street toughs spot Banner, Mike spouts, "Let's go make him angry", which is a simple line but so spot on to the premise of the show (people were always going out of their way to make David mad).
I liked how Kevin refers to Bill Bixby’s pants as Flairs, and when Bill observed a screaming woman (a show staple) he offers, “She’s fine with big green men, but slow-motion scares the hell out of her”. The episode's a knock-off of the film Rocky and the guys have fun with that fact as well. Good solid, fast and furious riffing. It's clever, the jokes are delivered like a right cross.
The Hunger Games
Release Date: September 27th, 2012
Riffers: Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy & Bill Corbett
"So, this is a cross between High School Musical and Spartacus?" – Bill
I came in expecting another slice of Twilight silliness, what I got instead, was a damn fine movie. With its sociopolitical subtext and strong performances, it stands miles above Twilight. So the Rifftrax crew's decision to attack this film in a similar fashion was a mistake. They haul out the "Twilight" standby -"line"- which doesn't fit. They go after the acting, which worked with Kristen Stewart but fails with Jennifer Lawrence. In one scene they note that Katniss looks both confused and confident. Uh, guys, that's called nuance, it's what makes her a good actress. That is no more a joke than watching an NFL match up and quipping that "Peyton Manning threw a beautiful pass for a touchdown."
Hunger Games isn't wholly original, but RT rarely addresses this. I didn't hear any references to the "Running Man" or Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery". They instead chose to mine Spider-Man, Crocodile Dundee, and Star Wars for material, and even spot an object they compare to a Transformers penis (Groan). Apart from the couple bits about the camerawork and the weird hairstyles, they don't really do a very good job of engaging the film for what it is.
Despite this, there are funny moments. They got me chuckling with nods to Directors John Sayles and Terrence Malick, Bill gets in another funny Herzog line. Musician Kurt Cobain was used for a laugh and Kevin voices a cute Flintstones quote. Despite dropping the ball in so many areas, it offers just enough giggles to have made it worth my while. It's a sloppy effort, But not a terrible one.
