Sommerleigh Pollonais, Senior Writer
Plot: Blasting off on a NASA space mission in 1998, mischievous best pals Beavis and Butt-Head time travel to the year 2022. As the NSA and U.S. government try to track them down, the clueless teens do their best to adjust to modern life.
Review: Depending on either how old you are or how much you’re a fan of the 90s (the era is apparently making a fashion and pop culture comeback at the moment) you may already be familiar with these two idiots. With their distinctive laughter, love of nachos and perpetual desire to get laid, Beavis and Butt-Head were cultural icons of the decade and their show, created by Mike Judge, was one of the most popular adult/teen-driven cartoons on the air.
I myself was a huge fan of Daria, not so much B&B, but I do remember how large a fan base they had. Still, I was surprised to see a movie about them coming out in 2022 no less that would take these dimwits and maybe make them relevant once again.
It’s been 25 years since their last movie (Beavis and Butt-Head Do America) but the story here actually starts in 1998 with the duo at a science fair. When they learn first prize is a trip to NASA space camp, Butt-Head uses a machine (designed to kick footballs) to kick Beavis in the crotch so hard he rockets across the room, causing mass chaos. Fast forward through them in court and a sympathetic judge and B&B get to go to space camp where through a series of misunderstandings and sheer idiocy on the part of the lead astronaut Serena (voiced by Andrea Savage) these two numbskulls go into space…and the rest you’ll just have to see for yourself.
I didn’t expect to enjoy this at all, watching it out of curiosity more than anything else, but I have to admit even as someone who was never a true fan of Beavis and Butt-Head I found the movie not only entertaining, but strangely nostalgic as well. While the animation is more polished than anything found in the show it never strays too far from what made the original series a hit with fans.
Story beats that explored how these two would fit into present times actually worked well with the two standouts being Beavis falling in love with Siri the iPhone voice assistant because he thinks he’s talking to a real woman, going on a crazy shopping spree when they realize they can pay for everything (mostly nachos though) with an app, or, my favourite, Beavis turning into his alter ego Cornholio and inspiring prisoners to riot for more toilet paper, brought genuine laughs. And I think if the movie took more time putting the two ne’er-do-wells in modern scenarios, it would’ve been even better.
As a whole Beavis and Butt-Head do the Universe isn’t bad; it just suffers from a lack of imaginative story beats. I think if they had spent more time in the modern world, interacting with both the technology and the people, a lot more humor could’ve been milked from it (milked..heh heh…). So if you’re a fan, you may enjoy this for what it is. But if you’ve never heard of Beavis and Butt-Head, this isn’t the movie that’s going to make you want more from them.
Score: 6 out of 10
Sommerleigh of the House Pollonais. First of Her Name. Sushi Lover, Queen of Horror Movies, Comic Books and Binge Watching Netflix. Mother of two beautiful black cats named Vader and Kylo. I think eating Popcorn at the movies should be mandatory, PS4 makes the best games ever, and I’ll be talking about movies until the zombie apocalypse comes.
Double Tap Baby!
Are you a fan of Beavis and Butt-Head? Have you seen the new film, or are you looking forward to it? And you can check more 90s nostalgia content below:
