Meet the Feebles (1989)

Director:

Peter Jackson

Writers:

Peter Jackson (writer)
Danny Mulheron (writer)

Release Date:

1 September 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Tagline:

Hell hath no fury like a hippo with a machine gun.

Plot:

Heidi, the star of the "Meet The Feebles Variety Hour" discovers her lover Bletch, The Walrus, is cheating on her...

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Drug Addiction | Interspecies Sex | Satire | Machine Gun

Awards:

4 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Donna Akersten	...	Samantha the Cat / The Sheep (voice)
Stuart Devenie	...	Sebastian / Dr. Quack / Daisy the Cow / Sandy the Chicken (voice)
Mark Hadlow	...	Heidi / Robert / Barry the Bulldog (voice)
Ross Jolly	...	(voice)
Brian Sergent	...	Wynyard the Frog / Trevor the Rat / The Fly (voice)
Peter Vere-Jones	...	Bletch / Arfur the Worm (voice)
Mark Wright	...	Sid the Elephant / The Cockroach / Louie the Fish (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Danny Mulheron	...	Heidi the Hippo

Also Known As:

Frogs of War (New Zealand: English title) (fake working title)
Just the Feebles (USA)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

New Zealand

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Spain:18 | France:-12 | Argentina:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-16 | Iceland:Unrated | Ireland:(Banned) | New Zealand:R16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Portugal:M/16

Filming Locations:

Wellington, New Zealand

Company:

WingNut Films

Trivia:

Not all characters in this movie are puppets. Among those that are played by actors in suits are Heidi (hippo), Bletch (walrus), Cederic (wart hog), Sid (elephant), Daisy (cow) and Barry (bulldog).

Quotes:

[first lines]
anouncer: Ladies and gentlemen. Your attention please. Welcome to the newest, the greatest, the most spectacular in entertainment history. Put your hands together for the fabulous Feebles variety hour.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Making of 'The Frighteners' (1998) (V)

Soundtrack:

ROBERT'S SERENADE

Alternately hilarious and frustrating

First of all, if you have never seen a Peter Jackson movie before, do NOT start with this one.

"Meet The Feebles" is a movie that, whether you like or hate it, you won't forget it. How could you, when it deals with drugs, sex, vomit, AIDS, Vietnam, and bloody massacres? And when all of the above is done by MUPPETS? (Actually not official Muppets, but it's clear that some of the characters - especially the female hippo - got inspiration from some of the actual Muppets.)

It's a sick movie, but actually it's also very funny. Peter Jackson is obviously one of the masters of cinematic sick humor. Though "Meet The Feebles" in now way compares to "Dead-Alive", it's still worth checking out for any Jackson fans.

Still, I had some complaints about the movie:

(1) The movie didn't have a high enough budget, making some sequences look TOO cheesy

(2) An obnoxious music score

(3) A musical score that doesn't know when to shut up

(4) Too many characters

(5) No characters get enough time to actually make them "main" characters

It's possible that even if you are a Jackson fan, you might be disappointed with the movie. I admit the five problems I've listed above almost got to the point where I wouldn't recommend the movie. But in the end, I was glad to have seen it. If you prepare yourself for this movie having some major problems, and you are not expecting a masterpiece like Jackson's "Dead-Alive", then by all means see "Meet The Feebles". Though as I said before, you have to be used to this director's kind of humor first.