After finally
seeing The Passion, Kyle has
to admit that
Cartman has been right all along about the Jews' role in history.
Inspired by
Kyle's
change of heart and a powerful love for Mel Gibson, Cartman
incites many of the
film's hardcore
fans to band together and carry out its message. Meanwhile, Stan
and Kenny also see the movie and embark upon a quest to find Mel
Gibson and get their money back.
CRITIQUE
The Passion of
the Jew aired March 31, 2004, on the Comedy Central network,
but with the release of Mel Gibson's Passion the episode is
now coming out on DVD in a surprise move - it's pretty funny and
clever when you think about it. In short, the episode is hilarious
and outrageous. A lot of craziness goes on in this program, from
Cartman forming the Mel Gibson fan club to uniting unsuspecting
fans of The Passion to carry out the final solution ("Wir
müssen die Juden ausrotten"), and from a torture-loving and out of
control Mel Gibson chasing after Stan and Kenny to an explosive
climax (put intended - hehe) taking place in front of the South
Park theater (or formerly the South Park theater). It's kind of
insane, but hilarious at the same time. Trey Parker and Matt Stone
are geniuses when it comes to spoofing movies and making fun of
people.
The DVD includes two
bonus episodes as listed below. Their subject matter has to do
with Catholicism and religion. These make perfect companion
programs to The Passion of the Jew, because they're equally
funny and hilarious.
Christian Rock
Hard (Season 7) - When the other boys kick Cartman out of
their band, Cartman pulls his own group together to make music for
Jesus. While Cartman's "Faith+1" rockets to the top of the
Christian charts, Stan, Kyle, and Kenny are arrested for
downloading music from the internet.
This episode is
clearly a commentary on illegal downloading. Parker and Stone come
up with an excellent story and terrific jokes to make their point,
sort of. After Stan, Kyle, and Kenny are arrested (the FBI storms
the boys' room SWAT style), the investigating officer explains to
them how celebrities (such as Britney Spears and Lars Ulrich of
Metallica) are affected by illegal downloading of music. I won't
spoil the joke here, because it's just too hilarious - but
ridiculous as well if you realize the irony behind the joke, yet
this makes this episode even funnier.
Meanwhile, Cartman's
rise to the top is well documented (such as Christ-Fest), and the
results are funny. He organizes a photo shoot for the album cover
with band mates Token and Butters at the beach, and later makes an
on stage appearance at Christ-Fest where he sings a song that goes
like this, "Whenever I see Jesus up on that cross/I can't help but
think that he looks kinda hot." The final minute is priceless as
Cartman finally receives the other end of his racial jokes towards
Token, and then Butters has something to say of his own.
Red Hot Catholic
Love (Season 6) - When the Catholic Church scandal negatively
impacts church attendance in South Park, Priest Maxi travels to
Rome to confront religious leaders about a solution. After
intensive counseling about the issue, the boys are still confused.
Cartman distracts everyone when he pulls off what was believed to
be scientifically impossible.
What happens here is
just wrong, but one can't help but laugh one's ass off. I don't
doubt people will be offended by this episode, but I think more
people will enjoy it and find something to laugh about. Priest
Maxi can't believe the actions of the other priests he meets in
the Vatican. He tries to appeal to their senses and beliefs, but
they're skewed - for them sex with boys is "the way of life". Needless to say, the Catholic Church scandal is
overly exposed in this episode whether certain things are true or
not.
Meanwhile, Cartman
makes a bet with Kyle for $20 that he can crap out of his mouth by
inserting food up his butt. The result stuns everyone, but sooner
than later everyone just seems to do it as if it were the norm. In
true Cartman fashion, Eric begins to show off his new $20 bill to
Kyle, annoying him and rubbing in the fact that he has his money.
Cartman exchanges the bill for twenty $1 bills and shows them to
Kyle, who asks, "why", and Cartman says, "So I can do this," and
he throws them into the air, dancing around the shower of money
and chanting, "Mmmh. Kyle's money!" Priceless.
THE VIDEO
Paramount presents the
episodesin 1.33:1 fullscreen format. Video quality is
just fine, nothing major is wrong with it. There are some
interlacing errors it looks like, but colors look good.
Sharpness is fine, as is detail.
THE AUDIO
Paramount presents the
episodes English 2.0 Dolby Surround Sound. Front speakers
present the audio is good fashion, so basically dialogue is
clear and easy to understand.
THE EXTRAS
None really,
except the two bonus episodes. Commentary would've been nothing
short of excellent.
SUMMARY
Fans of South Park
will find this release not only timely but very fun to watch... again.
Despite the lack of bonus material, this DVD comes recommended because
of the three very funny episodes included.
