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Printer-Friendly ModeFamily Guy DVD just like the show
Griffin family stays true to their roots
October 31, 2005 —
It is hard to believe that just a few short years ago, Family Guy was sitting on a shelf somewhere after FOX prematurely cancelled the show, despite its popularity among viewers. Though the move to cancel the show was discouraging, it definitely was not surprising. FOX is the network best known for canceling all of its quality shows while leaving behind terrible reality TV and Pamela Anderson sitcoms.
A number of great shows met the same fate as Family Guy - Futurama, Undeclared, Firefly, Strange Luck, Wonderfalls... the list goes on. The only thing that sets Family Guy apart is that it came back from the dead. FOX realized the grave mistake it had made and brought the show back for a fourth season - more than three years after the show's third season.
With the show's seemingly lasting popularity, the only sensible thing to do was to turn the show into a full-length movie. Or at least that is what happened, anyway. The movie, Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, was a welcome surprise for fans of the show, but it's release (straight to DVD) raises one question - why?
What exactly is the point of having a Family Guy movie? Certainly the move to make this 88-minute episode was not to showcase a brilliant, in-depth storyline that would not fit into a normal Sunday night episode. No, the plot in this one is mediocre at best.
The move does not even seem to be for the pleasure and freedom of not being limited to the rules of television. One would expect this movie to take complete advantage of the anything-goes world of DVD, and while there is a handful of R-rated curse words floating around the movie, the movie overall is pretty tame. Well, pretty tame in terms of Family Guy, which often feels too crass for TV anyway.
But the question of why the movie exists is soon forgotten with the first appearance of the Kool-Aid Man, who apparently has hooked up with Drew Barrymore.That's right, the movie does not differ much from the show in its jokes or structure. There are plenty of one-liners, nonsensical flashback scenes, cameos by pop culture icons of the past, and jokes about Meg.
The jokes are hit and miss, but most of them are on target. And there are several ridiculously funny moments that make the movie worth seeing even if you do not watch the show on a regular basis.
But comparisons to the show aside, Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story is about the adventures of everyone's favorite maniacal infant, Stewie. He sees someone resembling himself who he believes may be his real father, but who turns out to actually be (spoiler alert!) himself.
That's right, a grownup version of himself - and he's quite a loser, too. So baby Stewie and adult Stewie work together to set things right and make his life a little less embarrassing.
Yes, the plot is pretty weak, but it does not matter. Nobody is going to watch this movie because they are dying to know whether Stewie can determine the event that changed his life. People will watch this movie because it is funny, and because there is a good chance of seeing Frankenberry before it's over.
If you cannot get enough Family Guy, then watch this movie until the next new episode airs on FOX. As Peter Griffin would say, it's "freakin' sweet."