Orgazmo

It's the film so daring that it earned a rare NC-17, so controversial that October Films created a separate releasing arm to distance itself from the film, so outrageous only Trey Parker, the bad-boy co-creator of South Park, could bring it to you! They say there's no such thing as bad publicity, unless you're a viewer who happens to pay attention to it. Anyone expecting naughty, edgy fun from Orgazmo might find that its most shocking surprise is how uninspired much of its "outrageousness" is. It does hit two guaranteed hot buttons--religion and sex--in its tale of a Mormon missionary in Los Angeles who becomes an inadvertent porn star and crime-fighting super-hero. And occasionally Parker does take the movie down just the right avenues of absurdity, including mocking the ridiculousness of adult film "plot" scenarios. The trouble with Parker's sense of humor is that it can be terribly lazy, falling back on wacky character incongruities that lost their wackiness several iterations ago--old women who swear like sailors, ethnic characters who spout hip-hop lingo, etc.--and setting up punch lines you'll see coming before you even pop the tape in your VCR. Those who might want to take a peek just for prurient interest should be forewarned that Orgazmo is about as tame as an NC-17 film gets, with nary an exposed female body part to be found; Parker's sense of humor is far more middle-of-the-road crude than genuinely outrageous. In fact, aside from a handful of decent gags, the film inspires the one reaction a "daring," "edgy," "controversial" film can't afford: a big "so what?" Not recommended. (S. Renshaw)[DVD Review--March 22, 2005--Universal, 93/95 min., NC-17/not rated, $19.98--Making its second appearance on DVD, Orgazmo: Unrated Special Edition contains two versions of the film, both the theatrical and the new uncut version. The theatrical version includes three audio commentaries (the first with costars director Trey Parker and co-producer Matt Stone; second with various cast members; and third with South Park writers, as well as filmmaker Kevin Smith, Weird Al Yankovic, and others), the “Book of Orgazmo” documentary featurette (41 min.), outtakes (40 min.), a Dragon*Con interview with Parker (34 min.), deleted scenes with optional commentary (30 min.), a behind-the-scenes featurette (18 min.), extra interviews with Parker, Stone, and costars Dian Bachar, Jason McHugh, and Juli Ashton (8 min.), a stills gallery, tons of Easter eggs, and trailers. Bottom line: fans will love all the extras, but that doesn't change the fact that the film blows chunks.]