Does The World Really Need A Family Guy Movie?
My interest in Family Guy has waned considerably in the years since its return from television purgatory. The original run had a certain edge to it which I found refreshing, so I suppose it can be said that I was a fan at the time. Of course, this was back when The Simpsons had started to decline, South Park hadn’t yet hit its stride, and Futurama had either been axed already or was on the chopping block, so maybe I remember the first few seasons more favourably than is truly deserved.
One major criticsm towards the show is its strong reliance on cutaway gags, which South Park famously lampooned to great effect a couple years ago in their Cartoon Wars two-parter. Since then I’ve really had a hard time watching Family Guy without Matt & Trey’s version immediately popping into my mind. This, among other concerns, keep me from taking the idea of a Family Guy movie seriously.
Remember all those awful comedies in the 90s based on two-minute long SNL skits? In my opinion, this has the potential to be even worse. While Family Guy has always had some considerable strengths in its storytelling with most of its best humour being conversational and/or plot-based, this unfortunately accounts for only a fraction of what actually ends up on the screen. The rest is utterly interchangeable.
Maybe that works for a 22-minute animated FOX sitcom or the occassional long-form special like Blue Harvest, but with a running time of the average feature I have a hard time seeing this being very successful.
What do you think, readers? Potential sleeper hit, or miserable flop?
2 Comments, Comment or Ping
G. Schroeder
I’m a fan of Family Guy, but I can’t really see a movie working. Things like Blue Harvest and Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story work because they’re multiple episodes strung around a narrative with a couple of Plot B stories going on, or half of the jokes are based on the source.
But a big screen Family Guy movie? I didn’t particularly care for the Simpsons Movie, and that had a better chance then Family Guy, to be honest.
Sep 1st, 2008
A.W. Ross
Straight to DVD would seem like the better option if a Family Guy movie has to be made. A theatrical release probably wouldn’t fare well with most critics nor would it do the kind of numbers that The Simpsons did. It’s popular, but not that popular.
Much like the upcoming Cleveland spin-off, this stinks like a case of the producers doing something merely because they can, not for any particular message or goal.
Sep 2nd, 2008
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