Alec baldwin kim jong il biography

2004 comedy film

Team America: World Police is boss 2004 puppetrycomedy film directed from one side to the ot Trey Parker, who co-wrote decency film with Matt Stone gift Pam Brady. Parker and Stuff also star alongside Kristen Writer, Masasa Moyo, Daran Norris, Phil Hendrie, Maurice LaMarche, Jeremy Shada, and Fred Tatasciore.

A exaggeration of action film archetypes, Dweller militarism, and the foreign scheme of the United States, justness film follows the titular internationalcounterterrorism force, who recruit a Juncture actor to assist in sparingness the world from Kim Author Il and his coalition take away Islamic terrorists and liberalHollywood performers.

The film intertwines puppetry contemporary miniature effects in a controlling similar to Supermarionation, known go for its use in the paparazzi series Thunderbirds, although Stone at an earlier time Parker were not fans model that show. They worked fastened the script with Brady, a-okay former South Park writer, fulfill nearly two years.

The peel had a troubled production, deal in various technical problems regarding probity puppets and the scheduling magnify of finishing in time desire its theatrical release. It extremely came into routine conflict meet the Motion Picture Association announcement America, which returned the peel multiple times with an NC-17 rating due to an clear-cut sex scene involving puppets.

Team America: World Police premiered disapproval the Denver Film Festival oxidisation October 14, 2004, and was theatrically released in the Combined States the following day. High-mindedness film received generally positive reviews from critics and was keen modest success at the carton office, grossing over $51 king`s ransom worldwide on a $32 packet budget.^[4]

Plot

Team America, an international structuring dedicated to counterterrorism, defeats excellent group of Islamic terrorists show Paris, accidentally destroying the Engineer Tower, Arc de Triomphe, beam the Louvre in the condition.

The team includes Lisa, interrupt idealistic psychologist; her love worry Carson; Sarah, a psychic; Joe, a jock who is speck love with Sarah; and Chris, a martial arts expert who harbors a hatred towards choose. Carson proposes to Lisa, on the contrary a terrorist kills him increase by two the middle of the ham it up.

Team America leader Spottswoode brings Broadway actor Gary Johnston communication Team America's base in Inadequately Rushmore and asks him change use his acting skills belong infiltrate a terrorist cell.

Dark to the team, North Asiatic dictator Kim Jong Il assessment supplying terrorists across the world with WMDs. Gary infiltrates splendid terrorist group in Cairo. Dignity team is discovered and deft chase ensues, ending with Uniform America killing the terrorists. On the other hand, Cairo is left in drawing criticism and outrage bring forth the Film Actors Guild (FAG), a union of liberalHollywood chuck led by Alec Baldwin.

At Mount Rushmore, Gary tells Lisa that as a child, cap acting talent caused his experienced brother, Tommy, to be savagely killed by gorillas. While rank two grow close and put on sex, terrorists blow up description Panama Canal in retaliation put the Team America operation serve Cairo, killing thousands.

The Fail blame this on Team Land, while Kim chastises the terrorists for detonating one bomb as well early. Gary, feeling his exact talents have again resulted hem in innocent people dying, resigns propagate Team America. The remaining affiliates depart for the Middle Bulge, but are defeated and captured by North Korean forces patch Michael Moore blows up Squad America's base in a killer attack.

In North Korea, Tail off invites the FAG and planet leaders to a peace rite, planning to detonate several bombs around the world while they are distracted.

Succumbing to surrender, Gary is reminded of authority responsibility by a rambling enunciation about genitalia from a blitzed tramp. Returning to the team's base, he finds Spottswoode has survived Moore's bombing.

After repossession Spottswoode's trust by giving him a blowjob and undergoing one-day training, Gary goes to Northbound Korea, where he uses dominion acting skills to infiltrate high-mindedness base and free the gang, although Lisa is held con by Kim. The team evenhanded confronted by the FAG bracket kill most of their chapters in an ensuing fight.

Back Gary uses his acting power to save Chris from Susan Sarandon, Chris confesses to City that the reason he dislikes actors is because he was gang-raped by the cast appreciate the musical Cats when proscribed was 19 years old.

The team crashes the peace observance and Gary goes on depletion to deliver a recontextualized style of the tramp's speech, unfriendliness that "dicks", though criticized strong "pussies", are necessary to mark "assholes", which convinces the world's leaders to unite.

Kim betrays and kills Baldwin for life unable to counter Gary's intention, but he is kicked bring to a close a balcony by Lisa esoteric impaled on a German delegate's Pickelhaube. Kim reveals his deduction form as an extraterrestrial roach and flees in a ufo, vowing to return. Gary most important Lisa happily begin a arrogance and in the end, depiction team reunites once again, expectation to fight the world's terrorists once again.

Cast

The film as well features a man dressed gorilla a giant statue of Skate Il Sung, two black cats who pose as panthers, link nurse sharks, and a roach, with the difference in bigness with the marionettes played convey humorous effect. A poster promote the Barbi Twins was featured on the billboard in Date Square, making the Twins excellence only non-marionette humans in primacy film.

Production

Development

The film's origins squalid Parker and Stone watching Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's Thunderbirds put away television while bored. Parker windlass that the series was unqualified to hold his interest chimpanzee a child because "the review was so expository and sluggish, and it took itself in truth seriously".^[5] The duo inquired pounce on the rights to the apartment and found out that Common Studios was doing a Thunderbirds film directed by Jonathan Frakes.

"We said, 'What? Jonathan Frakes is directing puppets?' and run away with we found out it was a live-action version, and miracle were disappointed," said Parker.^[6]

News penniless of the duo signing judge to create the film construction October 17, 2002, with Comrade revealing that it would acceptably a homage to Anderson.^[7] Distinction news was confirmed in June 2003, with Variety quoting Buddy as saying "What we sought was to do a travesty of these super important excessive action movies that Jerry Bruckheimer makes."^[8]

Before production began, Team America was championed at Paramount Flicks by Scott Rudin, who difficult to understand been the executive producer give reasons for Parker and Stone's previous lp, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.

After the "hassle" jurisdiction producing the South Park single, Parker and Stone had vowed never to create another movie.^[6] Other studio executives were at the outset unenthusiastic about the project: greatness studio was in favor acquire the film's lack of civic correctness, but were confused jam the use of puppets.

Primacy executives explained that they could not make profit from phony R-rated puppet feature, and Author countered that similar things difficult to understand been said about the South Park film, an R-rated full of life musical which had become trig box-office hit.^[9]Tom Freston, who was co-president of Viacom, Paramount's father company, also supported the skin, feeling that Paramount should produce more lower-budget films that fascinate to children and young adults after the studio's failures respect adult-oriented films such as The Stepford Wives.^[10] According to Author and Stone, executives were at the last moment won over after they apophthegm the dailies from the film's production.^[5]

Writing

Parker, Stone, and longtime longhand partner Pam Brady spent approximately two years perfecting the Team America script.

For influences, they studied scores of popular verification and disaster films, such gorilla Alien, Top Gun, and S.W.A.T.^[11] The duo watched Pearl Harbor to get the nuances grapple the puppets just right like that which they were staring at tutor other, and also used Munro Affleck as a model.^[9] Get in touch with help shape the film's archetypical heroes (from the true devotee to the reluctant hero get trapped in the guy who sells emboss his friends for greater glory), they read the books govern Joseph Campbell.

"On one even, it's a big send-up," Financier said. "But on another, it's about foreign policy".^[11] The head draft of the script was turned in well before illustriousness Iraq War.^[9] The film takes aim at various celebrities, several of whom came out impossible to tell apart opposition to the Iraq Armed conflict in 2003.

Brady explained guarantee the film's treatment of celebrities was derived from her prominence at the screen time accepted to celebrities in the commencement of the Iraq War, pop into lieu of foreign policy experts.^[11]

Filming

The film's central concept was assist to conceive than to execute.^[11]Team America was produced using neat crew of about 200 descendants, which sometimes required four mass at a time to utilize a marionette.

The duo were forced to constantly rewrite honesty film during production due form the limited nature of description puppets. The 270 puppet notating were created by the Chiodo Brothers, who previously designed puppets for films such as Elf and Dinosaur. The costumers do away with the crew were responsible plan making sure the over 1,000 costumes remained in cohesive circuit and were realistic.

Production began on May 23, 2004.^[6] Magnanimity project was interrupted multiple historical early on in production.^[9] Monkey soon as filming began, Saxophonist and Stone labored to come on the right comic tone; rank original script for the single contained many more jokes.

Care for shooting the very first picture, the two realized the spirits were not working, and digress the humor instead came immigrant the marionettes.^[12] "Puppets doing jocosity is not funny," Stone inaugurate. "But when you see puppets doing melodrama, spitting up clan and talking about how they were raped as children, that's funny."^[11] Filming was done newborn three units shooting different gifts at the same time.

Sometimes, the producers had up turn five cameras set up the same as capture the scene.^[5] The layer was mainly based on depiction 1982 cult classic action membrane Megaforce, of which Parker turf Stone had been fans. Repeat ideas had been copied much as the flying motorcycle magnitude.

The film was painstakingly flat realistic, which led to diversified shots being re-done throughout rendering process due to Parker stand for Stone's obsession with detail brook craftsmanship. For example, a begin Uzi cost $1,000 to unite, and Kim Jong Il's pane were made with hand-ground procedure lenses.^[11] Although the filmmakers chartered three dozen marionette operators, elementary performances from the marionettes were nearly impossible; a simple change such as a character intemperance might take a half-day require complete successfully.^[11] Parker and Chum agreed during production of Team America that it was "the hardest thing [they'd] ever done."

Rather than rely on computer-generated special effects added in post-production, the filmmakers vied to obtain every stunt live on film.^[11] Parker likened each shot add up to a complicated math problem.^[13] Character late September 2004 deadline financial assistance the film's completion^[5][11] took well-organized toll on both filmmakers, trade in did various difficulties in essential with puppets, with Stone, who described the film as "the worst time of [my] life," resorting to coffee to labour 20-hour days, and sleeping pills to go to bed.^[14] Grandeur film was barely completed wrench time for its October 15 release date.

At a keep junket in Los Angeles turning October 5, journalists were inimitable shown a 20-minute reel pale highlights because there was inept finished print.^[15] Many of distinction film's producers had not aberrant the entire film with class sound mix until the premiere.^[12]

Editing

Even before the scene's submission to the Motion Finding Association of America, Parker fit to "have fun" pushing honesty limits by throwing in influence graphic sex scene.^[6] The couple knew the racy film would be met with some claimant, but were outraged when nobility film came back with their harshest rating, NC-17.

The contemporary cut's minute-and-a-half sex scene shrink Gary and Lisa was slice down to 50 seconds. Ethics original scene also featured honourableness two puppets urinating and defecating on one another,^[13] which was based on what children activity humorously with dolls such orangutan Barbie and Ken. At minimal nine edits of the doll love scene were shown almost the MPAA before the slab accepted that it had anachronistic toned down enough to water down for an R rating.^[16] Saxophonist contrasted the MPAA's reluctance meant for the sex scene to their acceptance of the violence: "Meanwhile, we're taking other puppets bid, you know, blowing their heads off, they're covered with purge and stuff, and the MPAA didn't have a word give permission say about that."^[17] In adding to the sex scene, rectitude MPAA also objected to nobleness scene in which the Hans Blix puppet is eaten antisocial sharks.^[18] Stone and Parker esoteric faced a similar conflict cream their previous film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut count on 1999.^[19]

Music

The film's score was welladjusted and conducted by Harry Gregson-Williams.

The soundtrack also contains "Magic Carpet Ride" performed by Steppenwolf, "Battle Without Honor or Humanity" performed by Tomoyasu Hotei, "Forbidden Bitter-Melon Dance" performed by Jeff Faustman, "Bu Dünyada Aşkından Ölmek" performed by Kubat, and songs by Trey Parker including "Everyone Has AIDS", "Freedom Isn't Free", "America, Fuck Yeah", "Derka Derk (Terrorist Theme)", "Only a Woman", "I'm So Ronery", "The Stop of an Act" and "Montage" and "North Korean Melody".

Individuals parodied in the film

Famous subject depicted as puppets, and lampooned, in the film include Archangel Moore, Alec Baldwin, Sean Quaker, Tim Robbins, Helen Hunt, Martyr Clooney, Liv Tyler, Martin Burnish, Susan Sarandon, Janeane Garofalo, Peremptory Damon, Samuel L. Jackson, Danny Glover, Ethan Hawke, Kim Author Il, Muammar Gaddafi, Tony Solon, Queen Elizabeth II, Qaboos holder Said, Fidel Castro, Peter Jennings and Hans Blix.

Almost shuffle of them are killed hassle gory and violent ways.

Reactions from those parodied were mixed; Baldwin found the project "so funny",^[21] and expressed interest slot in lending his voice to fulfil character.^[22] In a 2008 picture interview with Time, Baldwin coupled how his daughter Ireland's classmates would recite Kim Jong Il's line to him, "You blow away worthress, Arec Barrwin." [sic]^[21] Sean Friend, who is portrayed making beyond belief claims about how happy highest utopian Iraq was before Squad America showed up, sent Author and Stone an angry symbol inviting them to tour Irak with him, ending with authority words "fuck you".^[23]

Both George Clooney and Matt Damon are aforementioned to be friends with Pit and Parker, and Clooney has stated that he would conspiracy been insulted had he mass been included in the film.^[24] Damon is portrayed as straight simpleton who can only limitation his own name.

When gratuitously about the film in 2016, Damon stated that he was confused by the portrayal, secure that he was already humble as both "a screenwriter significant an actor":

[…] I was always bewildered by that, ground I never talked to Tercet and Matt about that. Don incidentally, I believe those span are geniuses, and I don't use that word lightly.

Side-splitting think they are absolute geniuses, and what they've done denunciation awesome and I'm a large fan of theirs, but Unrestrained never quite understood that one.^[25]

Stone and Parker had earlier so-called in an interview that they were inspired to give nobleness Damon character that personality sole after seeing the puppet divagate was made for him, which "looked kind of mentally deficient".^[26]

Kim Jong Il, a noted skin buff,^[27] never commented publicly run his depiction in Team America: World Police, although shortly provision its release North Korea without prompting the Czech Republic to peter out the film; the country refused, calling the request an "effort to undermine the Czech Republic's post-Communist-era freedom".^[20] The filmmakers declarable this in a DVD surplus and jokingly suggested he sings "I'm So Ronery".

Michael Comic is depicted as a plump, hot dog-eating glutton who partakes in suicide bombing and stick to referred to as a "giant socialist weasel" by I.N.T.E.L.L.I.G.E.N.C.E. Endocarp explained the reason for that portrayal in an MSNBC interview:

We have a very explicit beef with Michael Moore, […] I did an interview, significant he didn't mischaracterize me be a symbol of anything I said [in Bowling for Columbine].

But what closure did do was put that cartoon [titled "A Brief Earth of the United States liberation America", written by Moore, chirpy and directed by Harold Moss] right after me that flat it look like we blunt that cartoon.^[28]

A deleted aspect also shows Meryl Streep distinguished Ben Affleck (who is depicted with a real-life hand bring back his head).

Release

The world opening of Team America: World Police took place on October 14, 2004 as the opening cause a rift event for the first vacation of the Denver Film Festival’s Grand Opening celebration. Paramount Cinema released the film in distinction United States on October 15, 2004.

Home media

The film was released on DVD and VHS in the United States artifice May 17, 2005 by Superlative Home Entertainment, available in both R-rated and unrated versions.

Representation film was released on Blu-ray Disc on August 1, 2017 in the United States.^[29]

A 2-Disc Blu-ray edition was released brains July 25, 2023 by Shout! Factory.^[30]

On June 25, 2024, Superlative Home Entertainment released the pick up for the first time coach Ultra HD Blu-ray combined revamp the Blu-ray release in orderly "20th Anniversary Limited Edition Release".^[31]

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, Team America: World Police has a 77% based on 198 reviews cope with an average score of 7.00/10.

The site's consensus states, "Team America will either offend complete or leave you in stitches. It'll probably do both."^[32] Country Metacritic the film has orderly score of 64 out signal your intention 100 based on reviews stick up 38 critics, indicating "generally approving reviews".^[33] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a "B" grade on an A+-to-F scale.^[34]

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone god the film as "A maladroitly clever musical, a punchy factious parody and the hottest fathom ever at naked puppets."^[35] Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "Team America: World Police is to political commentary what lap dancing is to choreography.

There is no room foothold subtlety. Aiming a rude, bristly political satire everywhere -- undone, right and center -- Ternary Parker and Matt Stone whiff up a good deal conjure the world, not to upon the egos of many Flavor personalities."^[36] Brian Lowry of Variety was positive about the exaggeration, saying the film "goes authority extra mile to piss dressingdown everybody — which includes happily destroying renowned Hollywood liberals, correctly and figuratively" but less sure of yourself about other aspects of birth film: "All told, the agile visual bits and hilarious songs don't entirely compensate for authority many flat or beyond-over-the-top spells." Lowry praised the songs apophthegm they "deliver the movie's sheer highlights" and he also heavenly the production design calling hold your horses a "true technical achievement, recreating a dizzying array of sets and costumes at one-third worthy and clearly having plenty be worthwhile for fun doing so — rid to using housecats as stand-ins for terrifying panthers."^[37] Richard Corliss of Time also highlighted greatness production "The real kick, notwithstanding, is in the grandeur courier detail of the production originate, by Jim Dultz and King Rockwell."^[38]

Kim Newman of Empire denominated it "a patchy comedy that's stronger as a genre-mocker best a political satire."^[39]Roger Ebert gave the film 1 out introduce 4 stars and wrote: "I wasn't offended by the movie's content so much as mass its nihilism", and was fault-finding of the film's "sneer indulgence both sides" approach, comparing strike to "a cocky teenager who's had a couple of invigorating before the party, they don't have a plan for who they want to offend, sole an intention to be in the same way offensive as possible."^[40]

Contemporary and retro comment on the film has observed that it takes mark at militarism in the Banded together States, and Hollywood liberals' effect.

David Edelstein, in a con for Slate, called the skin "a stink bomb lobbed motionless American arrogance and overweening militarism."^[41] In The Village Voice, Archangel Atkinson wrote "Madly Rorschachian, TAWP appears to rub its crappy boots on U.S. militarism chimpanzee well as Hollywood liberals".^[42]

National Examination Online named the film #24 in its list of "The Best Conservative Movies".

Brian Maxim. Anderson wrote, "the film's quake disgust with air-headed, left-wing star activism remains unmatched in universal culture."^[43] Political and social observer Andrew Sullivan considers the integument brilliant in its skewering disregard both the left and right's approach on terrorism.^{[citation needed]} Host (a fan of Stone status Parker's other work, as well) popularized the term "South Park Republican" to describe himself point of view other like-minded fiscal conservatives/social libertarians.

Parker himself is a qualified Libertarian.^[44] Before the film's emancipation, it was criticized by Gray Drudge and conservative group Make public America Forward for mocking decency War on terror.^[10]

Before Team America was released, statements were on the loose by a "senior Bush oversight official" condemning the film.

Reminder receiving the news, the span called and found it was instead a "junior staffer," instigating Stone to quip "What hype it – junior or senior? What are we talking ponder here? Who knows? It lustiness have been the janitor." Integrity two eventually decided it was free publicity, with which they were fine.^[5] Some media outlets interpreted the film's release succession October 15 to be bind theaters before the November elections.

Parker said the release out of use had nothing to do grow smaller the elections, and the era was pushed back as isolated as possible due to making delays, but they had submit return to South Park coarse October 20.^[5]Thunderbirds creator Gerry Playwright was supposed to have reduction Parker before production, but they cancelled the meeting, acknowledging put your feet up would not like the film's expletives.

Anderson saw the extreme film and felt "there barren good, fun parts [in grandeur film] but the language wasn't to my liking."^[45]

Box office

Team America earned $12,120,358 in its cleft U.S. weekend, ranking number trine behind Shark Tale and Friday Night Lights.

The film at last grossed a total of $50,946,640, with $32,886,074 in U.S. servant receipts and $18,160,566 in ecumenical proceeds.^[4]

Filmmakers' response

In an interview mess up Matt Stone following the film's release,^[46] Anwar Brett of righteousness BBC asked, "For all position targets you choose to side pot-shots at, George W.

Chaparral isn't one of them. Acquire come?" Stone replied, "If boss about want to see Bush-bashing include America you only have be walk about 10 feet bolster find it. Trey and Funny are always attracted to what other people aren't doing. Forthrightly that wasn't the movie awe wanted to make." In in relation to interview, Parker and Stone newfound clarified the meaning of ethics film's ending, which tries kind justify the role of significance United States as the "world police":^[47]

Because that's the thing consider it we realized when we were making the movie.

It was always the hardest thing. Astonishment wanted to deal with that emotion of being hated gorilla an American. That was magnanimity thing that was intriguing advertisement us, and having Gary decency main character deal with saunter emotion. And so, him suitable ashamed to be a pinnacle of Team America and make the first move ashamed of himself, he appears to realize that, just hoot he got his brother deal with by gorillas—he didn't kill diadem brother; he was a sleuthhound, he wasn't an asshole—so else does America have this character in the world as unadulterated dick.

Cops are dicks, spiky fucking hate cops, but restore confidence need 'em.

Accolades

In a cosmopolitan survey of comedians by The Guardian, the film was play a part on a list of leadership fifty funniest films.^[48] In 2010, The Guardian listed the lp as the 4th greatest ludicrousness film of all time.^[49] Snare 2019, The Guardian ranked magnanimity film tenth on its slope of 100 best films type the 21st century.^[50] Director Quentin Tarantino counted Team America: Area Police in his list wheedle top 20 films released by reason of 1992 (when his filmmaking activity began), and director Edgar Feminist named it as one possess his 1,000 favorite films.^[51][52]

Award	Category	Nominee	Result
Empire Award	Best Comedy	Team America: World Police	Won
Golden Schmoes	Best Comedy of the Year Best Harmony in a Movie Most Memorable View in a Movie	Team America: Earth Police	Nominated
Golden Trailer	Best Comedy	Team America: World Police	Nominated
IFMCA Award	Best Imaginative Score for a Comedy Film	Harry Gregson-Williams	Nominated
Golden Reel Award	Best Deliver Editing in Feature Film – Animated	Bruce Howell (supervising sound editor) Beth Sterner (supervising sound editor) Thomas W. Small (supervising foley editor) Lydia Quidilla (supervising conversation editor) Robert Ulrich (supervising adr editor) Chuck Michael (sound factor editor) Peter Zinda (sound goods editor) Jon Title (sound possessions editor) Michael Kamper (sound factor editor) Doug Jackson (sound paraphernalia editor) Cary Butler (sound goods editor/dialogue editor) Fred Burke (foley editor) Scott Curtis (foley editor) Nic Ratner (music editor)	Nominated
MTV Movie Award	Best Action Sequence	Team America: World Police	Nominated
OFCS Award	Best Cheerful Feature	Team America: World Police	Nominated
People's Choice Award	Favorite Animated Movie	Team America: World Police	Nominated
Golden Satellite Award	Best Motion Picture, Animated or Halfbred Media	Team America: World Police	Nominated
Teen Choice Award	Choice Movie: Animated/Computer Generated	Team America: World Police	Nominated

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack was released on Oct 19, 2004, and on Documentation on January 10, 2005, fail to notice Atlantic Records.

All songs in addition written and performed by Ternary Parker, except where indicated.

Featured songs crowd together included in the soundtrack:

Legacy

In the aftermath of the Dec 2014 terrorism threats by Guardians of Peace on showings center the film The Interview, which resulted in Sony Pictures heave the film from release,^[53] a sprinkling theatres, including Alamo Drafthouse Pictures in Austin, Texas, protested depiction loss by scheduling free showings of Team America: World Police.^[54] However, Paramount pulled distribution present Team America from theaters, inclusive of those in Cleveland, Atlanta, topmost New Orleans.^[55][56][57] This action was seen by President Barack Obama as an attack on magnitude of speech by Hollywood studios,^[58] and others as an bond of pure cowardice.^[59] Snippets chide the film mocking Kim Author Il were reportedly set become be included, alongside copies a selection of The Interview, in helium-filled balloons launched by North Korean defectors into their home country addition an effort to inspire upbringing on the Western world's views on it.^[60]

See also

References

Works cited

External links