Andrew Ferrier

Lisa: Promise me you’ll never die.
Gary: You know I can’t promise that.
Lisa: If you did that, I would make love to you right now.
Gary: I promise I’ll never die!

Team America is just wicked fun. Sure, it’s political, and that appeals. The satire is well aimed, and the targets well-deserving. But like Parker and Stone’s previous film, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, it also works well as a film in its own right. The South Park film performed a strong parody of a Disney movie, with the music being the standout attribute that made it work. Team America serves as a parody of an action film, with exactly the same strength. Fourth wall-breaking satire such as the song Montage only add to the fun.

The film pokes fun at plenty of folks, on both the American left and right (it’s no coincidence the film’s creators are basically libertarians). At times, it almost feels like it’s closer to hitting the truth than its far more complex and serious rivals like the more recent Syriana, which alludes to some of the same topics. It’s not surprising also, what with the film being from the creators of South Park, that it’s both offensive and politically insensitive (Derkaderkastan is apparently a Central Asian country now). Put simply: if you don’t like swearing for the hell of it and (comically well-constructed) childish behaviour, you won’t like this film.

Some touches of South Park do slip through. Although the film is produced entirely using puppets (kinda like an X-rated Thunderbirds), the characters act in a similarly unpredictable manner. The voice of Cartman (Trey Parker) also slips through into Kim Jong-il, possibly the most well-defined character in the film (played somewhat like an south-east Asian Goldfinger).

Team America is a glossy and high-budget production that deserves to be seen, if only so you can decide whether you hate it or not. It’s an easy watch, and you’ll make your decision within the first ten minutes. Enjoy.