Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim star in Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie, which is the dumbest film I’ve seen all year. It lacks any real comedy and spends most of its time on the duos weird sense of “humor” that somehow appeals to a large audience. I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve never watched the show or heard of the pairing before this movie, but the movie is a dud and a waste of time. The only time it becomes almost watchable is during the occasional cameo, in which real actors provide real jokes.
The story for the film is very simple; Tim and Eric owe a movie studio a billion dollars and they must somehow pay up. They see a commercial on the TV for a position at a mall, that just so happens to be paying a billion dollars to anyone that can rebuild it and reopen it. Tim and Eric accept the position from the shady mall owner (played by Will Ferrell) and they immediately begin renovations.
They run into a weird sick boy (played by John C. Reilly) and they occasionally have visits from their spiritual guide (played by Zach Galifianakis). The rest is complete insanity, with two horses constantly running around while the two idiots cut and paste looped footage that seems to go on forever.
Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie is a complete waste of time and money. It feels like one big inside joke that I’d like to not be a part of. Not once does the film attempt to reel in an audience that isn’t familiar with the duo and not once does the film try to land a joke that actually makes sense. If someone piercing their penis or eating at a restaurant that only serves bread makes you laugh then you just might like Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie, but the film is not for anyone that is looking for a comedy that makes you laugh and understand the jokes.
What the film does do is show a bit of the genius behind it all. Tim and Eric are either two of the dumbest people in Hollywood or two of the smartest. What they’ve managed to do here is make a full-length film with actual respectable stars in their corner. I’m sure working as directors and actors the two were able to basically call all of the shots, which means some studio out there thought it would be a good idea to let them make a damn film in the first place.
I give the two my respect for attempting to make such a wacky film, but I don’t applaud them for not trying to appeal to anyone other than 14 year old boys that still laugh when someone farts. It’s just bottom of the barrel stupid and nothing sucks more than a comedy that doesn’t make you laugh at least once. I tried my best to sit through the thing with an open mind, but the film never managed to come to life and become something truly worth celebrating.
The 1080p video transfer is clean and crisp, with mostly everything appearing balanced and with a respectable eye for colors and lighting. There are a few VHS-quality clips that look horrible and fuzzy, but those are intentionally bad looking and that doesn’t hurt the rest of the transfer. It’s a typical comedy shot on digital cameras.
The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track fails to really widen its horizons, but it does manage to stay loud and present. There are a lot of weird sound effects in this film to accompany the weird notions set in place by Tim & Eric and the track keeps up with them for the most part.
The disc is packed with a good assortment of bonus content that unfortunately won’t change your mind about the film. Fans of the two will love this content as it gives you a better look behind the scenes, but non-fans will simply find the added material to be nothing more than filler. Here’s a full detailed list:
- Audio Commentary: Tim & Eric provide their voices for an audio track that is a bit on the soft side. They drop their usual line of jokes, but they keep quiet for the most part.
- Deleted Scenes (HD): Eight deleted scenes that don’t help explain the movie anymore, but they do touch up on a few elements that were present.
- Extended Scenes (HD): Three extended scenes that are a lot more loosely formed and still unfunny.
- Good Evening S’Wallow Valley (HD): Another really weird promo featuring Tim and Eric doing all sorts of random stuff.
- Interview with Tim and Eric (HD): A 22 minute interview that feels like 3 hours.
- HDNet: A Look at Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie (HD): Promo clips for the movie and typical snippets.
- Shim Dancer Screensaver (HD): Exactly what the title says, but for four and a half hours.
- Promo Video$ (HD): Short promo videos for the film.
- Posters (HD): A gallery of 4 HD posters.
- Theatrical Greenband Trailer (HD)
- Theatrical Redband Trailer (HD)
- Also From Magnolia Home Entertainment (HD)
I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t get into Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie. Maybe fans of the show will be more forgiving or maybe they just suck at making full-length films. Tim & Eric fails as a comedy, because nothing in the film is funny, instead it’s just kind of weird and awkward. Weird and awkward doesn’t make for funny, unless there’s a connective tissue tying the two together. Neither Tim or Eric attempt at connecting the dots, leaving you with a film that just sort of works on its own level and doesn’t care if you’re with them or not.
The video transfer looks fine for a movie shot on digital cameras and the audio is great, considering it is a comedy. The special features are plentiful for fans and very skippable for people that didn’t care for the film.
Magnolia has done a fine job bringing such a waste of space to Blu-Ray, with a designed slipcover box and more than enough features to make the disc worth picking up, but I must stress that only FANS of the flick should buy it.
