Review -- The Drawn Together Movie: The Movie!

I once read the statistic that 60% of all DVDs sold contain straight-to-DVD productions.  I scoffed at that statistic, until I took a look at my own DVD library and realized I've got quite a few.  The bulk of my straight-to-DVD movies tend to be the animated fare based on superheroes I like.  I've been debating whether to review my latest straight-to-DVD purchase here on the blog, but since I have for every other straight-to-DVD film I've ever bought, I figured I should maintain consistency.  So, let's take a look at....

The Drawn Together Movie:  The Movie!

Directed by Greg Franklin

Starring the voices of Tara Strong, Cree Summer, Adam Carolla, Jess Harnell, Abbey DiGregorio, James Arnold Taylor, Jack Plotnick, Vernon Wells, and special guest star Seth MacFarlane as I.S.R.E.A.L. 

Backstory:  So, Drawn Together was this cartoon that was a pretty minor hit a few years back.  A spoof of reality TV shows, the premise was a whole bunch of animated characters from different genres of cartoons (superhero, Disney princess, Internet flash cartoons, anime, etc) were all thrown together into a house, put through challenges, and your typical reality TV stuff.  I explained that to my brother, and he summed it up thusly:  "So, it's The Surreal Life with cartoon characters."  It was Comedy Central in the USA, the Comedy Network here in Canada.  I watched it, and I loved.  It's rude, crass, racist, sexist, gross, and oh so funny.  It was canceled a few years back after 3 season, but had enough of a following to create a straight-to-DVD movie to end it properly. 

Plot:  One day, Foxxy Love realizes she can swear with out having it bleeped out, and this leads her to discover that Drawn Together has been canceled.  It turns out they've been living their lives for the past few years with no one watching them on TV.  When they seek answers from the show's producers, the head of the network is angered to discover that the characters were never erased, and dispatches the giant killer robot I.S.R.E.A.L. to erase the Drawn Together gang once and for all.  The characters go to the cartoon character that replaced them, the Suck my Taint Girl, for help.  The Suck My Taint Girl reveals that the main reason why they were canceled is because their show had no point.  If they can finally find a point, perhaps the show will get back on the air.  So, the characters embark on a quest to Make-a-Point Land to get a point from the Make-a-Point Wizard, with I.S.R.E.A.L. hot in their tale, determined to erase them once and for all.  And along the way, the characters learn a shocking truth about their existence.

What I Liked:  Well, free from TV censors, needless to say, nothing is bleeped out or pixellated.  Everything that made the show so funny is here.  It's the kind of comedy where you feel guilty about laughing afterwards.  And there is one particularly great gag where the characters get stuck in a corner, so they decide to listen to the DVD running commentary to find a way out. 

What I Didn't Like:  The show really did work better in 22 minute installments.  At 75 minutes, the standard length for a straight-to-DVD animated film, it really does seem to drag in some places.  Still not exactly sure why they needed Seth MacFarlane in there, as I'm not sure what his contribution was.  And, like a lot of shock humour, it probably won't have much replay value. 

Final Verdict:  If you're a fan of the TV show, you'll get a charge out of it.

3 Nibs

DVD Bonus Features:  For bonus features, you get featurettes on the making of the movie, interviews with the voice cast, deleted scenes, a running commentary with the show's creators, and bonus scenes in 3D.  3D glasses aren't included, though, so it also has a tutorial on how to make your own 3D glasses.  I haven't tried the 3D scenes yet, so I don't know if it actually is in 3D, or just a very elaborate gag.