my-dumb-opinion

[my-dumb-opinion]

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie

Two friends who make comic books, as well as jokes and pranks in order to make their classmates laugh in the hellish bleak prison that is middle school, get in trouble with their extremely strict ‘evil’ principal. They then proceed to hypnotise him and turn him into their original superhero: Captain Underpants.

This is one of the most underrated movies I’ve seen, even by animation standards, which is saying something. I played it at home, only because I’m a fan of Thomas Middleditch, who voices one of the main characters and because I was bored. I actually had no intention of watching the whole thing. It was a “hey let’t see the first 10 minutes of that thing until my sister comes home and we decide what to see on movie night” situation. Needles to say, I ended up watching the whole thing. And again a second time the next day.  

Now what first threw me off this one was the trailer and art style. As someone who has a sense of my preferred aesthetics, I was certain that this style was just not ‘my thing’. Boy oh boy, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Although the art keeps true to the original books, the film brings in a unique atmosphere. The ‘simplistic style’ only adds to the feeling of childhood dreams in the tree house (even if you didn’t grow up on that art style or ever had a tree house).  It uses colour and sound to create not only fun, ridiculous adventure comedy for children, but also a heartfelt story with endearing and real characters that makes the whole ordeal feel grounded.

Although it seems like a stupid kids film full of fart jokes and dumb puns, it is so much more of that. In it’s core Captain Underpants is about artistic freedom and the importance of comedy and laughter, as well as the importance of companionship. The “evil” principal? He’s just sad and lonely, and the film makes sure the audience (made up of mostly impressionable children) understands that. I believe too many kids movies tend to show the world in black and white, and tell children that adults are either fairy godmothers/superheroes or evil witches/villains. This one doesn’t. For all it’s ridiculousness, it tells the truth about the world. And also it highlights the importance of stupid fart jokes and puns. Stoller and Soren bring us a masterfully written and directed piece that combines ridiculousness and depth, light humour and darker themes. The plot itself may not be much, but it is in the dialogue, character dimensions, and visual and auditory comedy that the film shines through. All in all: it is a brilliantly made piece of cinema that deserves way more than the label of ‘stupid kids comedy’.