Thunderpants

Unashamedly aimed directly at the little boy in all of us comes this (apparently) very first film about farting, ever. While not being rocket science, it... oh, uh, yes it is actually. Rocket science plays a huge part in it. So, it’s not only a farting movie, it’s rocket science as well. Well, that covers both ends of the intellectual spectrum doesn’t it?

Patrick Smash has the most incredible gift. Born with two stomachs, he has an almost inexhaustible supply of marsh gas and a mastery of complex delivery. Naturally this doesn’t endear him to many, including his parents, but one Alan A. Allen is a brainy nerd-boy with no sense of smell. So, of course, they get along just fine.

When Patrick laments the fact he can’t be a spaceman, he and Alan set about controlling his noxious arse with Thunderpants®, a complete system for containment and removal of Patrick’s fumes. Ever so happy and experiencing the best day of his life, ever, Patrick is suddenly set upon by the schoolyard and his Thunderpants® are torn from him. Then he is ridiculed as ‘Fart Boy’ (I too, know the sting of this cruel and callous term...)

However, Alan then has the bright idea to incorporate Patrick’s pumps into a flying machine (Thunderpants® 2) and they win an unassisted flight contest. This brings Alan into the spotlight and it isn’t long before the United States government want him working for them. Suddenly friendless, Patrick takes a job touring the world singing an ‘unperformable’ opera note with his remarkable wind section, but the dude he works for is soon exposed as a cheat and Patrick is accused of murdering the world’s number one tenor. Now Patrick is on Death Row awaiting his execution and it’s only a matter of time... will he never achieve his dream of being a spaceman?

"You got a heart of gold, son. You’ve got the constitution of an ox, and you’ve got pants... of thunder. God speed, Patrick Smash."

I rented this one a while back and couldn’t quite get into the spirit of it then, but this time I really enjoyed it and got some real belly laughs out of it, particularly at the hijinks of Patrick’s poor father suffering his son’s trouser coughs. Knowing the film is about farting before you go in is a big help here. The kids are gonna love it and dads will have their boyhood treehouse memories come back as fresh as a warm one in the face.

Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies) is absolutely sensational as Alan, totally stealing the show from the wayward Patrick and his chuffing. He is barely recognisable from Ron as the brilliant boffin behind the Thunderpants® design with his big false teeth and ultra perm hairdo.

This is a fun film for anyone not married to sensibility or anyone who can admit that hey, we’re all human and this funniest of noises (and unfunniest of smells) is something we all get a perverse thrill from.

The first thing you will notice about this film is the green. It’s everywhere and is used to create a slightly off kilter world so similar to our own, but so very Roald Dahl in approach. Shot in 2002, the picture looks pretty darn good with some fairly clean definition and barely a squeak of artefacts. Flesh tones are all okay and natural looking while blacks are realistic and shadows are well detailed. Delivered deliriously under our noses with the theatrical aspect of 1.85:1 plus a follow through of 16:9 enhancement, the film comes to the screen looking superb in all its many shades of green. The only real failing in vision is in some of the dodgy computer animation and modelling. Most of it looks awesome, but there are a couple of odd bits that look very flimsy.

Okay, it’s a farting film. How do you think it’ll sound? Disgusting, that’s right, but also hilarious and very sharp in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. So many wet, gassy, windy, burbling, gluey, splotching sounds are utilised perfectly and come across like they came from the person sitting next to you. Which they may have, if they’ve given in to the spirit of the film.

Everything else is great too. Dialogue is clear and the best, ever. The music is well balanced and appropriate and never dominating but the real winner is in the sound effects. I don’t even care that some may have been stock sound effects (unless that kid got the role through a supernatural ability of his own) because they were as funny as someone else getting the blame for one you did.

A pantsload of robust, fluffy extras are here that will keep the kids ensconced for hours. We begin with the ripe video diary of Patrick Smash, which is a composite of various one word interviews and observations from newcomer Bruce Cook (Patrick Smash) as he wanders around with a Handicam. It only runs for 3:08 and I suspect it was not shot entirely by our boy Bruce. However, next we have the theatrical trailer at 1.85:1 and enhanced though this looks almost exactly like the teaser trailer which is kinda poorly named taken into consideration.

Deleted scenes follow and there are eight of these, though they don’t have film context or explanation as to their cutting. There is a nice Gladiator gag thrown in here, which made it worthwhile, but it would have been better in the film (as would the scene in question for it gave a better explanation of Alan’s departure and his silence during it). They’re all 1.85:1, by the way, but not enhanced and are of varying lengths (the longest over 11 minutes!)

Cast interviews are rather lame as they are a montage of answers and statements with the second party's questions snipped off. So, therefore, nothing has real context unless it comes up in the answer itself. There are also some repeats from the video diary of Simon Callow being interviewed in a bathroom by the look of it. Next up are the excellent storyboards that run through three full scenes. They only feature the linework though with no text, but they do offer the option to watch the sequence after they’re done. The art is killer stuff too, not the wretched scratchings some look like.

The next bit is a fart montage that features director Pete Hewitt and Rupert Grint thinking up all the fart names they can for one minute. Funny. Then the photo gallery with just 15 shots from the film and then, finally the worst part of all. The sad group Allstars perform a track called Going All the Way, which is fairly disturbing. Should a band sing a song with a title like that to kids? Surely that’d be a better one for Britney when she finally decides to admit to doing it. (Farting that is... what were you thinking?) Anyway, it’s lame. It does feature some film footage at 1.85:1 yet again, but without enhancement.

At this point I'm also going to include the English for the Hearing Impaired subtitles. The varying descriptions of fart sounds and such are like watching the film with a whole extra commentary. Descriptions like 'steamy whoosh' had me in stitches, particularly when coupled with the action. My favourite subtitles, ever.

So, a rather monumental collection of extras. Oh, and I forgot to mention the truly funny audio commentary. This features Hewitt with several other leading crew and they have a really good time discussing the film and farting, their hopes, their dreams etc. Let me just say ‘The ass has spoken’ and leave it at that.

The kids should love this film and I know dads will. I suspect mums might even think it funny too, though I think mine would mutter ‘disgusting’ a lot while trying not to laugh. However, this is a fun film and one bound to be enjoyed for its message that anyone can achieve their dreams if they look within themselves and find their unique talent. While employing some darker themes, this runs a lot like the dark themes Roald Dahl used to employ in that the kids won’t notice them and if they do they’ll love ‘em. There are some very clever pisstakes of The Right Stuff, Apollo 13, 2001: A Space Odyssey and even Indiana Jones gets a look in. The parents will get those ones more than the kids will, but that’s cool because a film like this can be enjoyed by everyone. Funny stuff for the immature or the puerile at heart, but still a warm family film.