Fox are the idiots here!

"As the 21st century began, human evolution was at a turning point. Natural selection, the process by which the strongest, the smartest, the fastest, reproduced in greater numbers than the rest, a process which had once favored the noblest traits of man, now began to favor different traits. Most science fiction of the day predicted a future that was more civilized and more intelligent. But as time went on, things seemed to be heading in the opposite direction. A dumbing down."

As Idiocracy commences, we're presented with a fairly convincing theory regarding the future of the human species. For centuries, science fiction stories have usually portrayed a future world as a crisp utopia of science and advanced learning with flying cars and phenomenal technology. The future has also been illustrated as a desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland. These are perfectly believable theories. However, Idiocracy - a film helmed by Mike Judge, a man also responsible for Beavis and Butt-Head and 1999's Office Space - tosses these theories in the toilet and offers an alternate vision of where mankind is headed. According to Judge, in the future humans may have a lower IQ than a muffin.

Judge's theory may appear outlandish, but think about it... the Jackass flicks are able to reach #1 at the box office while intelligent, provocative movies such as Michael Clayton and Children of Men perish at the box office (still earning a modest profit, but very slowly). One factor Idiocracy brings to the fore is that destitute, dim-witted families screw and breed like rodents while smart, well-off families restrict themselves to one or two offspring. Hence, the smart population may develop into an endangered species before ultimately becoming extinct. Judge's savage attack on American idiocy (which went through many title changes, originally being known as 3001 and Amerikwa) takes the form of an eye-wateringly hilarious hybrid of sci-fi and comedy. Judge's script is pervaded with endless wit and creativity, never becoming preachy in its depiction of the future but ensuring it'd be quite possible to ponder Judge's message about modern man. Mike Judge is simply the perfect guy to produce a movie about a future overrun by morons, as his entire career is built on mining the stupidity of North America for laughs. Idiocracy is loaded with a frighteningly realistic concept...but it's in an amusing wrapper.

"The years passed, mankind became stupider at a frightening rate. Some had high hopes the genetic engineering would correct this trend in evolution, but sadly the greatest minds and resources where focused on conquering hair loss and prolonging erections."

Private Joe Bowers (Wilson) is the dictionary definition of an "Average Joe". So incredibly average, in fact, that the Pentagon selects Joe to be a guinea pig for their latest experiment - labelled the "The Human Hibernation Project" which will test whether the best men in the military can be frozen indefinitely until they're needed the most. Joe - along with a hooker named Rita (Rudolph) - are cryogenically frozen for the military experiment...only to wake up to a 26th century in which morons have inherited the planet. Suddenly it's discovered that Joe is the smartest person alive, and is recruited to solve all the world's stupidity-caused problems.

"Comin' up next on The Violence Channel: An all-new "Ow, My Balls!""

When Idiocracy is boiled down to the essentials, it's an uproarious comedy and a potent bitch-slap of a social commentary. After initially conveying the alarming concept that America's future has fallen into the hands of the moronic and irresponsible, Judge's script begins to attack not only America's commercial sponsorship culture, but the entertainment tastes of the citizens as well. In this future the most popular show on television is called Ow! My Balls!, which is precisely what you'd expect - a string of scenes showcasing a character being repeatedly hit below the belt. Everyone's favourite channel is The Masturbation Network. Winner of eight Oscars in 2505 (including Best Original Screenplay) is Ass - which is just 90 minutes of a flatulent bare butt.

Judge also proceeds to criticise Gatorade (labelled "Brawndo" here), using the general futility of sport drinks to accentuate the misleading nature of predatory corporations as well as the gullibility of consumers who will believe anything they read. Conversations are now sponsored as well. 2505 is a world where it has become commonplace for citizens to be named Hormel and Beef Supreme. Starbucks is now an establishment that only sells hand-jobs, Butt-F**kers is a restaurant which hosts birthday parties for children, and if a topic doesn't pertain to sex, balls or farting, nobody wishes to discuss it. Idiocracy eventually ventures into the political realm, transforming a presidential address into a wrestling main event and revealing that positions in the White House can be won in competitions! As a satire, Mike Judge's gem is a cold steel blade to the gut. Judge is a brilliant satirist, relishing his opportunity to expose our insatiable need for stupidity.

This tour de force of satiric savagery is bitingly hysterical, shooting arrows at the Jackass crowd and highlighting the general dumbing down of humankind. Once a viewer tunes into Judge's jaundiced wavelength, one will recognise how drop-dead hilarious this flick truly is. There are levels to the humour here - broad + subversive, and scatological. These two levels are incredibly proficient in allowing a viewer to accept the premise. When, say, a fart joke occurs, the real gag isn't the actual passing of gas but how funny the stupid population finds it. Virtually every scene is full of genuinely hilarious moments, not to mention it's packed with little details, from hairdos to the colossal futility of the law system in 2505 to the latest technological advancements. Subtle visual gags are also hysterical - unfinished highways where cars keep driving off before piling up at the bottom, appalling misspellings everywhere, and a Costco the size of a city. Stupid characters are usually a turn-off, but Idiocracy features characters so completely and surrealistically brainless that it's practically impossible not to laugh.

"Don't worry scrote. There are plenty of 'tards out there living really kick ass lives. My first wife was 'tarded. She's a pilot now."

Luke Wilson's laidback style has never suited him better. As the poor schmuck accidentally sent five hundred years into the future, Wilson is impeccable and oddly appealing. His introductory scenes - establishing him as the laziest, most under-achieving average bloke in the army - are some of the best-written segments of the screenplay. Dax Shepard is also excellent as Joe's astonishingly dumb, dim-witted best friend Frito. It's hysterical watching Dax giving Joe a look of total vacancy. Even Maya Rudolph, who usually signifies the end of all things good (Duplex, American version of Kath & Kim), is a riot as a hooker from 2005 who's convinced her pimp will manage to come forward in time and kick her ass.
Terry Crews, as well, is an absolute hoot as President Camacho. Also look out for cameos by Judge regular Stephen Root, and even Justin Long.

As enjoyable as Idiocracy is, it most certainly isn't without its faults. The low budget couldn't accommodate state-of-the-art special effects...and the film is stuck with awful, cartoonish CGI creations (interestingly, some of the special effects were done for free by Robert Rodriguez). The low budget is frequently obvious. Despite being enjoyable, the film is also unable to conceal the almost lethal plot holes. In the future, the technological advancements are frankly amazing; from identities tattooed onto citizens to gigantic cars with advanced gizmos, and even special effects in television programs...not to mention televisions are huge and impressive. But this begs the question: with the world populated entirely by idiots with no knowledge of how to create such technology, how the hell could these technological advancements have occurred? And how could they be so widespread when the morons wouldn't know how to manufacture more of them, let alone repair them when one is broken? In addition to these faults, there are some minor pacing issues. There's also too much narration which indicates plain lazy filmmaking.

"Unaware of what year it was, Joe wandered the streets desperate for help. But the English language had deteriorated into a hybrid of hillbilly, valleygirl, inner-city slang and various grunts. Joe was able to understand them, but when he spoke in an ordinary voice he sounded pompous and faggy to them."

Here's what happened to Idiocracy: Fox test screened the movie with a reportedly catastrophic reaction. Unsure with what to do with Judge's little film, Fox granted it a tiny theatrical release - not even bothering to create posters or a trailer - before dumping it on DVD (even though legions of Mike Judge fans were highly anticipating it). As audiences began watching it on DVD, conspiratorial murmurs were sparked, talking about how good the movie is and that the studio just didn't get it. Or perhaps Fox grew nervous on account of Judge skewering big commercial industries. Fox is the pet of Rupert Murdoch, after all, who's the captain of industry and baron of big business. Nevertheless, studios release dozens of indefensible films every single year. Especially when compared to some of the diabolical dirge rushed into cinemas each year, Idiocracy was undeserving of its treatment. It isn't the unfunny flop one would expect...the jokes are usually dumb, but the final result is subversively intelligent. Funny? Yes, and it's also a potent wake-up call to a very probable future. Be sure to stay until the end of the credits.

7.7/10