MattStone Tagged Articles at Cinematical

According to the MPAA website, "One of the highest accolades to be conferred on the rating system is that from its birth in 1968 to this day, there has never been even the slightest jot of evidence that the rating system has deliberately fudged a decision or bowed to pressure." If that statement's patent absurdity wasn't already obvious to any follower of non-mainstream film, This Film Is Not Yet Rated proves it, with a celluloid middle-finger salute to the MPAA and the Leave it to Beaver-style fantasy image it sells to the public.

Despite proudly proclaiming that its board of directors includes "the Chairmen and Presidents of the six major producers and distributors of motion picture and television programs in the United States", the MPAA nevertheless insist with a sort of dreamy sanguinity on the film ratings board's -- made up of parents, we are repeatedly told, whose only interests are in protecting children and families -- absolute neutrality and invulnerability to outside influence. With that sort of material to work with, mocking the MPAA is like shooting fish in a barrel for a filmmaker as witty and skilled as director Kirby Dick. And mock he does: Via a multi-pronged attack featuring interviews with directors, detective work and side-by-side comparison of levels of obscenity, Dick creates an often-hilarious documentary that is both cutting and compelling; it's so engaging that even filmgoers who wouldn't dream of setting foot in an arthouse cinema will eat it up.

I've never been a huge fan of South Park -- the show is just too much for me (I'm a delicate flower, you know), as was the movie. And, because of my acrimonious relationship with the show for which they're best known, I also have never been particularly impressed by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, even when they're wearing lovely frocks. That all changed, however, when I saw This Film Is Not Yet Rated (a review will go up next week), in which Stone briefly appears. It was really the first time I'd seen him not on for the cameras and the public, and he struck me as both perceptive and intelligent, qualities I hadn't previous known he had. (I realize all of you knew this long ago, but it was news to me.) All of which is a long-winded way of saying that, because of my new perspective, I actually found myself excited this morning when I read that Parker and Stone are going to make two new movies for Paramount.

The films -- My All-American and Giant Monsters Attack Japan! -- are both from the scripts of others (though both Parker and Stone will be involved in future drafts), and will mark the first time Parker has directed a movie that he didn't also write; Stone will produce the films. My All-American is described as "a high-school comedy," while Giant Monsters Attack Japan! -- the plot of which is pretty clear from the title -- "will combine live-action with the 'rubber suit' techniques made popular in Asian imports like Godzilla." Sweet.

Variety reports that the duo is eying a 2007 start date (during the South Park hiatus) though it's not clear which film will be made first for My All-American.