Search - Epic Movie/Date Movie on DVD

The Death of the Movie Parody

R. J Rey | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | 01/10/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Your favorite romantic comedies and mega-blockbusters of 2005 and 2006 get spoofed in the latest raunchy parodies "Date Movie" and "Epic Movie". In "Date Movie", lonely Julia Jones (Alyson Hannigan) is looking for love and has finally met the man of her dreams (Adam Campbell). Before the big wedding day, the happy couple must deal with eccentric in-laws, a constantly farting family cat, a shapely wedding planner and a devious ex (Sophie Monk). In "Epic Movie", four orphans (Jayma Mays, Adam Campbell, Faune Chambers and Kal Penn) visit a wondrous chocolate factory and escape through a magical wardrobe to the enchanting realm of Gnarnia. They join forces with the wise but horny 1/2 man-1/2 lion Aslo (Fred Willard) to free Gnarnia from the wicked White Bitch (Jennifer Coolidge). "Date Movie" (2006) and "Epic Movie" (2007) are two perfect examples on the steady decline of full-length movie parodies in the past ten years. Both comedies deliver an abundance of continuous gross-out and sexual humor. Unfortunately, they become tiresome and most of the gross-out jokes just fall flat. Upon their theatrical release, "Date Movie" and "Epic Movie" received overwhelmingly negative reviews from US critics, but due to their slim production costs and a strong opening weekend at the box office, both comedies had moderate commercial success.

20th Century Fox has put a lot of effort in the both unrated editions of these rather disappointing and forgettable movie parodies. Both "Date Movie" and "Epic Movie" are presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen format. The DVDs feature a clean and colorful picture quality and a well balanced 5.1 Dolby Digital audio. Among DVD extras, "Date Movie" includes 12 deleted/alternate/extended scenes, several behind-the-scenes featurettes and two audio commentaries with director Aaron Seltzer, writer Jason Friedberg and cast members. Its most interesting special feature is an anti-commentary track by film critics who disliked the film. "Epic Movie" features an audio commentary with production crew, outtakes, alternate ending and seven behind-the-scenes featurette that aren't so appealing. Overall, "Date Movie" and "Epic Movie" receive a "D-"."