Muffin Man (2003) User Reviews

This ain't the Farley Brothers

[all_for_science · 7/10 · 5 January 2004]

If you're looking for cheap jokes, personal put-downs, and physical comedy, this movie probably isn't for you. Muffin Man is a dark, poignant, cerebral comedy that stabs at the heart of all of our social ills.

Unfortunately it was not without its problems. On the plus side, it was wickedly funny with a very sharp wit. There were a lot of subtleties that make you do a second take. Also, I especially loved the music - I really want a copy of the soundtrack. On the minus side, the production was a bit campy. Not sure how to describe it, but it had more of a cult feel than a mainstream production - I'd really like to see it on a big screen, I only watched a promo version on DVD. I'll give it a 7 on a scale of 10.

pretty good, not great

[splatterpunk-3 · 6/10 · 23 November 2005]

i'd have to disagree with posters who fault the direction and acting, both of which i thought were pretty good, most of all, i think the writer/director should have elicited some help to take an intriguing concept and turn it into an actually good script. i thought the direction and acting (given the material) was first rate but she should have gotten some of her artsy friends to tweak the script a bit and made something really special. from the description on the box i thought the premise was strong and they could have done a lot more with it, but also i think other posters have been unduly harsh. a unique indy flick worth checking out. maybe not for everyone but still somehow compelling...

93 minutes of fatso bashing

[jerrypdx-mail · 1/10 · 1 February 2005]

This looked like some high school kids' film project. Very juvenile and poorly made. The DVD would serve a higher purpose as a coaster. Poorly acted, poorly written, and lacking in substance. I couldn't wait for it to be over. You know how some movies you want to wait until they come out on video? Well, this one you'd be better off to "just say no!"

I guess it's supposed to be a comedy with a moral that it's bad to be fat. But that point is made immediately, and the repetition becomes quickly tiring. The "joke" about how bad fat people are wasn't funny the first time they tell it, but when it's presented over and over again, it soon becomes more aggravating than humorous. There are no redeeming qualities to this movie.

Crap

[josh_gannis · 1/10 · 8 May 2005]

Someone should find the original negative and burn it. This review is coming from someone who recommends Ice Pirates on a regular basis. I shut my DVD player off 15 minutes into this film. Turned it back on 2 days later determined to give this movie another shot and then was quickly reminded why I shot it off two days earlier. If you come across this movie at your local video store, hid it or casual discard it in the garbage. You will be doing yourself and all of humanity a favor. In fact, not only will you be doing all of humanity a favor but if their are beings beyond this earth, you will be doing them a favor as well. I would rather be subjected to two more terms under George W. Bush then watch another second of this movie!!!

Watching Fat People Jiggle? NO THANKS

[shygirlfmthewest · 23 December 2003]

Don't watch this piece of crap. Save for the thin girl, the *only* way you got cast in the movie was if you weighed 300 pounds or more. *Hardly* acting talent. Pumpkin was too disgusting to even look at. Dumb movie. It hasn't been distributed yet, but I saw it in Bellevue.

Utterly Awful

[millesime · 1/10 · 24 August 2005]

I picked this up off the rack at my local public library, as it looked like it would be good for a laugh and I've discovered some very enjoyable films that way. Muffin Man is not one of those discoveries, however. I wouldn't normally go to the trouble to pan a movie, but this film is really and truly bad, possibly the worst I've seen, and I've seen some real crap over the years. Sometimes bad movies are good for a laugh, but this one just made me embarrassed for watching it and embarrassed for those responsible. I think people need to be protected. DO NOT waste your time with this. Maybe we should be extinct if we can find such, er, fare entertaining. I was ashamed that the Seattle Public Library has such an abysmal and offensive piece of tripe in its otherwise decent video collection. Then I realized that since the 'auteur' is local, they probably dropped off a number of free copies to the unsuspecting SPL. The premise was excellent, but the acting, directing, script, etc: all terribly and utterly awful - embarrassingly so.

Move over Christopher Guest

[bobandweave_57 · 9/10 · 27 February 2004]

When you mention the word "mockumentary" you usually think about movies by Christopher Guest (Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show) or Woody Allen (Take the money and run, Sleeper). But Muffin Man brings the mockumentary concept into the 21th century - to the year 2030, to be exact, when human beings complete their evolution from homo sapiens to homo twinkus. The new species, dubbed Muffin Man, is overweight, lazy, and sits around eating junk food and watching TV. Extinction soon follows. I think the whole concept is very funny, and the execution is great - the acting is good, the jokes are hilarious, the production is obviously low budget but still very good. If you are offended by this movie, then you need to take a good honest look at yourself in the mirror, because you're probably a Muffin Man!

Oh my, this is a funny movie

[starr_sandra · 9/10 · 24 December 2003]

I was in Seattle on business and just happened to attend the premiere of Muffin Man. I laughed so hard i thought i would wet my pants! I think some of the people in the audience were somewhat offended but that didn't stop them from laughing too. To whomever made this movie: please make another one! I can't wait till it plays in New Jersey so I can tell all my friends to see it.

Muffin Man is a very honest movie

[Crockett_Mary · 10/10 · 31 March 2005]

I am appalled at the condition of today's kids. Every day, I see grade school children eating doughnuts as they walk by my house on their way to school, and they are all FAT.

I'm 75 years old, and I know people hate it when old ladies say "in my day", but in my day kids weren't fat. Parents didn't feed their kids sugar coated cereal for breakfast. An occasional small scoop of ice cream and maybe a soda pop once a month was about the extent of the treats we got.

I got such a kick out of Muffin Man, I just had to write about it. People are so afraid to tell the truth in movies. If someone is fat, you should tell them they are fat, not beat about the bush. Muffin Man is very honest and calls a spade a spade. This movie shows what will happen to our country if kids don't stop eating so much junk food. I'm just glad I probably won't be around in 30 years to see it come to pass.

Mary C.

Long live Muffin Man!

[EcuadorHomesOnline · 10/10 · 22 December 2003]

Ok, as Executive Producer of this film, I admit that I'm a little biased (I'm saying that up front so no one accuses me of ballot stuffing) ... but audiences genuinely love this movie!

Muffin Man is a hilarious, yet frightening look at the obesity epidemic that led to the extinction of the human race. This movie is an absolute "Must See" for anyone concerned about the ballooning size of the American population. However, the movie is not about making fun of fat people - the humor is derived from social commentary about the general excesses of modern civilization and all its foibles (violence, race, religion, sex, and of course, our love of food are all fair game in this movie). What makes this movie so successful is the combination of truthfulness in its message and complete outrageousness in its delivery of that message. The characters are completely real people, but are complete caricatures of themselves. The jokes are a combination of very subtle high brow cynicism and low brow crudeness that makes you catch yourself when all of a sudden you're embarrassed that you're laughing so loudly.

Go see Muffin Man - this is going to be a classic that will entertain audiences for many years to come!

Fat

[shygirlfmthewest · 26 December 2003]

An article I read before going to the movie said that the only way people were casted were if they weighed 300 pounds or more. What about acting talent? There was none.

Don't waste your time on this one. I think it will do better if they hire actors with talent and use body suits if they need to.

Of course, it could be said the actors being actually fat gives the movie a more sincere feeling, but it wasn't there.

I found myself bored with the tired "mockumentary" idea. The story pace was inconsistent and the jokes were lame. Nobody laughed. But hey, my friend dragged me to it, so I got in free. You get what you pay for.