Meet the Feebles is a 1989 New Zealand musicalblack comedy film directed by Peter Jackson, and written by Jackson, Fran Walsh, Stephen Sinclair and Danny Mulheron. It features Jim Henson-esque puppets in a perverse comic satire. Like Henson's Muppets, the Feebles are animal-figured puppets who are members of a stage troupe. However, whereas the Muppets characterize positivity, naïve folly and innocence, the Feebles largely present negativity, vice and other misanthropic characteristics. It is the first Jackson film that was co-written by his future wife Fran Walsh, who has gone on to act as co-writer for all his subsequent films. Despite being a commercial failure on release, the film went on to win critical praise and a cult following plus won over new viewers following Jackson's success with The Lord of the Rings trilogy. During his acceptance speech at the 2004 Academy Awards, Jackson mentioned Meet the Feebles, joking that it had been "wisely overlooked by the Academy."
Plot
The eponymous theatre troupe is rehearsing the title song with hopes of finding success through being picked up for a syndicated television show. Heidi, the star of the show, is insulted by pornographic director Trevor and complains to her boss and lover, Bletch, who is actually in an adulterous relationship with Samantha. Meanwhile, Robert, the newest member of the team, arrives at the theatre and immediately falls in love with another newcomer, Lucille. Samantha confronts Heidi, insults her, and reveals her relationship with Bletch. Robert confesses his love to Lucille, and the two become engaged. Sid receives a visit from his ex-girlfriend Sandy with his alleged son Seymour. Sandy informs him she will be preparing a paternity case against him. At the toilet, the second most important star of the show, Harry, is suffering from a mystery disease, given only twelve hours to live. Meanwhile, drug-addicted knife thrower Wynyard tells Robert his story of Vietnam, and convinces Robert to give him $50 to buy drugs from Trevor. After seeing Trevor's latest porno film, Bletch decides they need a new porn star, and Trevor chooses Lucille; he drugs her and tries to rape her as an audition but is caught by Robert. When he walks in on the scene Robert thinks that Lucille was drinking and throwing herself at Trevor, and tells her he never wants to see her again. After a good beginning – the Feebles sign with a TV chain to appear in a prime-time television show – Bletch confesses to Heidi that he actually hates her and wants to give the main role to Samantha. After trying unsuccessfully to commit suicide, Heidi goes on a shooting spree with an M60 machine gun and kills many of the cast, including Harry who was told by his doctor that he was indeed going to recover. The epilogue reveals the fates of only six survivors: Sid gets extensive repair on his kneecaps after being shot by Heidi and works in an orchard as a struggling horticulturist with Seymour. Arthur received an OBE for his lifelong service at the theater and retires to the country. Sebastian recovers from his injuries and became a successful writer who achieved worldwide fame for his best sellerThe Feeble Variety Massacre: One Man's Act of Heroism! and is negotiating film rights. Robert, now an award-winning fashion photographer for a women's magazine, and Lucille are married with two children. Finally, Heidi, whose killing spree resulted in her imprisonment in a women's penitentiary for ten years, has been rehabilitated under the community and now works under a new identity on the check-out counter of a large supermarket.
The film was originally conceived as part of a television series, and only belatedly became a feature after Japanese investors proposed expanding it; as such, the script was hastily re-written. The dialogue was recorded before shooting began. Made on an extremely low budget considering the time-consuming process of working with puppets, the film went over budget and schedule. Some scenes, including the Vietnam flashback, were funded by members of the film crew, and filmed secretly under the title Frogs of War. The Vietnam flashback includes a game of Russian roulette as a parody of The Deer Hunter. An initial application for Film Commission money was rejected by executive director Jim Booth, who a short time later became Jackson's producer. The Commission eventually granted the production two-thirds of its $750,000 budget, though relationships between the funders and the production soured and the Film Commission removed its credit from the film. It is often mistakenly stated that there are no human characters in the film; the character Abi is a human. However, there are no real-life human characters in the film. Director Jackson has a cameo as an audience member dressed as an alien from Bad Taste. Every vehicle seen in the film is a variation on the Morris Minor, including a specially constructed limousine. Morris Minors also appear in Jackson's Bad Taste and Braindead. By presumed coincidence, one of the characters, Harry the Hare, shares a name with the title character of James B. Hemesath's short story "Harry the Hare", written for Harlan Ellison's anthology Again, Dangerous Visions in 1972.
Soundtrack
The film's music was composed by Peter Dasent. The soundtrack was released in 1991 by Q.D.K. Media. ;Track listing
Release
The film was marketed in some countries with the tagline: "From the creators of Bad Taste, comes a film with no taste at all!" Meet the Feebles was given its public premiere at a fantasy film festival in Hamburg, in April 1990. From then on, the film was released theatrically in Japan ; Portugal ; Australia ; Sweden ; Germany ; France ; United Kingdom ; and the United States. The film was banned in Ireland.
Reception
The film was met with generally positive reviews, and holds a 71% rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 24 reviews and with a weighted average rating of 6.5/10. The site's consensus reads "Dark and vulgar, Meet the Feebles is a backstage comedy featuring puppets that offers proof of Peter Jackson's taste for sheer outrageousness, even if it often lapses into pure juvenilia." During a limited theatrical release in North America in 2002, critic James Berardinelli touched on aspects of the film which likely helped ensure it limited release in cinemas. "The stories of these... characters are told in a disgustingly graphic, obscenely offbeat, and caustically funny manner. Meet the Feebles is for those with a strong stomach and a seriously warped sense of humor. The film is so off the beaten track that it makes Monty Python seem mainstream."
