But as well as the jokes and social commentary from the screenwriting team of South Park <\/em>co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone and longtime series creative producer Pam Brady hold up, it\u2019s the film\u2019s songs and grasp of musical theater history that increasingly feel like its defining elements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though Parker and Stone would soon expand their musical prowess with Team America: World Police<\/em> and the stage show Book of Mormon<\/em>, their musical pedigree was already somewhat established by 1999. Humorous songs often appeared on South Park<\/em>, whose third season was on the air when Bigger, Longer & Uncut<\/em> premiered (though Episode Six was delayed a week to not conflict with the film\u2019s opening day). And brave viewers had been exposed to the forgettable Cannibal! The Musical<\/em> since its 1993 release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet over the course of the film\u2019s opening stanza, sung by Parker\u2019s Stan Marsh, there\u2019s a sense that the South Park <\/em>team is operating on a new and exciting level, one riffing on a range of stage and movie musical traditions in creative ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the film circulated among South Park <\/em>fans and (mirroring the story\u2019s core conflict) the songs were devoured and memorized by underage youths like myself, numerous publications credited the musical success to its composer and co-songwriter Marc Shaiman. Already a veteran Broadway and film composer by 1999, with credits ranging from The Addams Family <\/em>to Ghosts of Mississippi<\/em>, his involvement brought prestige to Bigger, Longer & Uncut<\/em>. But as Shaiman told Entertainment Weekly<\/em> in 2014, his involvement was largely secondary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was Igor to Trey\u2019s Dr. Frankenstein,\u201d Shaiman said. \u201cThe word genius gets thrown around a lot, but Trey truly is a genius. He can do it all. I understood and shared his sense of humor and musicality, but this was all Trey, and I was just along for the ride.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Parker\u2019s brilliance is evident in each of the film\u2019s songs, all of which convey exposition yet are still catchy and funny. And they\u2019re not just earworms about love, desire, and other standard fare, but compositions that speak to the times and remain just as relevant today \u2014 if not more so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Complementing a plot that accurately predicts (albeit via nuclear hyperbole) the outrage that numerous adults would express at their children\u2019s inevitable access to Bigger, Longer & Uncut<\/em>, the lyrical explorations of censorship, hypocrisy, xenophobia, and extremism slot eerily well into 2024. And the familiar show tunes that the film references make the messages go down in a most delightful way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Reminiscent of \u201cOh What a Beautiful Mornin\u2019\u201d from Oklahoma! <\/em>and \u201cBelle\u201d from the animated Beauty and the Beast<\/em>, introductory number \u201cMountain Town\u201d is somewhat of a throwaway to bring in the characters and get them to the animated Terrance and Phillip movie, Asses of Fire<\/em>. But minutes later, things shift to another gear with the film-within-the-film\u2019s “Uncle Fucka,\u201d an Oklahoma!<\/em>-like hoedown complete with a fart solo showdown from its Canadian stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even with the overlapping Rodgers and Hammerstein influences, Bigger, Longer & Uncut <\/em>starts to feel like a truly cohesive musical with school guidance counselor Mr. Mackey\u2019s profanity-substitution tune \u201cIt\u2019s Easy, M\u2019kay,\u201d which continues the banjo-forward country western instrumentation of “Uncle Fucka\u201d while adding in horns. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Considering that it was written in the same year as the Columbine shooting, Eminem\u2019s violent, misogynistic The Slim Shady LP<\/em>, and the gun-heavy The Matrix<\/em>, the central scapegoat theme (a call-to-action song in the vein of Mary Poppins<\/em>\u2019 \u201cSister Suffragette\u201d) provides intelligent commentary at a time when Middle America was clutching its proverbial pearls extra tight. And the lack of personal accountability that endures 25 years later keeps \u201cBlame Canada\u201d decidedly modern and potent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The wittiness keeps coming with an expanded version of the show\u2019s “Kyle’s Mom’s a Bitch,\u201d echoing the polka vibes of \u201cChitty Chitty Bang Bang\u201d; “What Would Brian Boitano Do?,\u201d a get-the-gang-together anthem in the vein of \u201cWhen You\u2019re a Jet\u201d from West Side Story<\/em>; and “Up There,\u201d Satan’s “I Wish” song about living on earth, parodying The Little Mermaid<\/em>\u2019s \u201cPart of Your World\u201d but with a huge backing chorus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Likewise obvious yet effective, “La Resistance” takes inspiration from Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em>\u2019 \u201cOne Day More,\u201d peppering it with hilariously grisly lyrics, and kicks off a medley with reworked versions of previous songs, a la West Side Story<\/em>\u2019s “Tonight Quintet.\u201d And Sadaam Hussein\u2019s “I Can Change\u201d checks the villain perspective song box, combining the deceptive promises of Kaa\u2019s \u201cTrust in Me\u201d from The Jungle Book <\/em>with the bombastic energy of Scar\u2019s \u201cBe Prepared\u201d in The Lion King<\/em>, all with Middle Eastern instrumentation that evokes Hussein\u2019s native land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The film\u2019s final number, Big Gay Al\u2019s “I’m Super,\u201d successfully combines Busby Berkeley choreography with the welcoming spirit of Beauty and the Beast<\/em>‘s <\/em>\u201cBe Our Guest.\u201d But like many (most?) classic musicals, Bigger, Longer & Uncut <\/em>wisely shifts to action and dialogue in the climax rather than additional songs that almost certainly would have proved ill-fitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It all lands just as successfully now as it did in 1999, and lest one think Bigger, Longer & Uncut <\/em>is an overpraised nostalgic relic from this elder millennial\u2019s formative teen years, its musical elements earned the respect of some impressive peers. \u201cBlame Canada\u201d was nominated for Best Original Song at the Academy Awards, where Robin Williams memorably performed it live; Stephen Sondheim sent Parker a letter saying the film was one of his favorite musicals of the past 15 years; and Shaiman says the film was \u201ccertainly the thing that really led to me being asked to do Hairspray<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not bad for a bunch of foul-mouthed kids from Colorado.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut” is out now on 4K UHD<\/a> and is streaming on Paramount+<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/south-park2-1024x512.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
By this point in the project, it\u2019s clear that the filmmakers are treating the feature like a real musical. Only a few minutes lapse between songs, and these dialogue-focused stretches are typically underlined by Shaiman\u2019s thoughtful score, thereby maintaining the overall musical feel. While hellbilly rock anthem \u201cHell Isn\u2019t Good,\u201d sung by Metallica\u2019s James Hetfield as young Kenny McCormick descends to the underworld, and Stan’s Disney-esque internal love songs “There’s the Girl that I Like\u201d serve as fun interludes, Bigger, Longer & Uncut <\/em>hits its apex with “Blame Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n