Episode 5: Follow That Bird
A/N: I own nothing involved in this review.
"Hello I'm the Classic Critic, I remember it so you're not required to." Airnaruto says before we see clips from Sesame Street appear on the screen before Airnaruto continued speaking.
"In 1969, Jim Henson and the Children's Television workshop introduced Sesame Street to television audiences across the country on PBS. The show was smash hit and actually made learning, letters, numbers, words, and other fundamentals in life surprisingly enjoyable and it turned into a pop culture phenomenon. However the shows success lead to many people asking if any studios would consider making a movie based on the show well as luck would have it 16 years later Jim Henson and Warner Brothers teamed up to produce one of two Sesame Street movies that did get a theatrical release." Airnaruto explains before warning those watching the review.
" Now before I get jumped on by people who have grown up with the show I'm going to warn you now, I was 4 when I stopped watching the show and didn't care much for it afterwards therefore I will be much harsher in bashing this film unlike the Nostalgia Critic." Airnaruto explains before we get a cutaway gag involving a man wearing a beret, a black coat, a red neck tie and a white shirt known as the Nostalgia Critic is shown.
(A/N: The Nostalgia Critic is a character owned by Douglas Walker of Chicago who runs his own web show on )
(Cutaway Gag)
NC (Crying): I can't do it! I can't make fun of Sesame Street. It's the first show I ever saw. I'm sorry about the gay joke Bert and Ernie whatever your sexual preference is none of my business, I'm sorry Grover, I'm sorry Big Bird I'm sorry everybody! I love you all, you're all so beautiful and innocent to me, YOU ARE CHILDHOOD!
(Cut back to Airnaruto)
"See what I mean?" He asks his audience before continuing. "Anyway released on August 2, 1985 the film is …Follow that Bird." Airnaruto says trying to keep as straight a face as possible in order to keep himself from laughing at the Nostalgia Critic's outburst.
"The Film opens with strangely enough a grouch anthem." Airnaruto says as we see a trash can in front of an American flag.
Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen would you please rise for the singing of the Grouch anthem.
(Oscar the grouch pops out of the can)
Oscar: No, no, no, for a Grouch anthem you stay sitting down.
"Now please note that I didn't pick up my cynical attitude from Oscar though he was one of the main influences behind it." Airnaruto says before getting to the bulk of the review.
"The film opens with a meeting of a group of birds known as the feather friends who keep tabs on certain birds and try to find them the perfect home and apparently Big Bird has ended up on that list." Airnaruto says before we cut back to him. "What are these birds fowl themed stalkers?" He asks randomly.
"Moving on one of the members Ms. Finch, thinks that Big Bird's not happy with his current accommodations in Sesame Street so she decides to check up on him but after seeing Sesame Street for herself and Big Bird's accommodations she convinces him that there's a family in Illinois that's willing to take him in. Big Bird decides to give it a shot but not before bidding farewell to rest of the gang." Airnaruto says as we see the farewell play out.
"The Next day Big bird arrives at the airport to meet his new family the Dodos who lets just say give a reason as to why that their species has been extinct for the past 400 years." Airnaruto says as we see the doorbell ringing scene.
Donnie Dodo: get the door Marie
Marie: you get it Donnie
Donnie: No, you get it.
"Later that night before he loses his mental sanity Big Bird runs away to head back to Sesame Street, only three things stand in his way, the first being he has a lousy sense of direction, the second is a couple of carnival operators who are either gonna send him back to the Dodos or sell him off as a sideshow attraction, and of course Ms. Finch taking him back to the Dodos by any means necessary." Airnaruto says before we see the interview scene.
to Kermit: I'm going to find him and bring him back to the Dodos.
"See this is why I don't live with social workers." Airnaruto says before cutting back to the film.
"Meanwhile the Sesame Street gang decides to track Big Bird down and get him back to Sesame Street before Ms. Finch catches him, the gang consisting of Count von Count, Cookie Monster, Bert & Ernie, Super Grover, a honker, Telly and Oscar along with some of the human cast members like Linda, Olivia, Maria and Gordon split up to find Big Bird." Airnaruto says before cutting back to him. "Now I need to be honest and ask What's worse the fact Big Bird has no clue how to get to Sesame Street or that fact that he could just fly back home was over his head." Airnaruto states bluntly.
"After Big Bird gets a lift from a truck driver with a truck loaded with turkeys, he ends up spending a few days with a couple of kids at farm while it may not be Sesame Street it's an improvement over the Dodos." Airnaruto says regarding Big Bird's temporary residence that is until Ms. Finch shows up, the kids tell Big Bird to hide in a haystack while Ms. Finch after being lied to by the two kids ends up looking searching the haystacks trying to find Big Bird as if he's a needle." Airnaruto says before cutting back to him.
"Now honestly how could anyone miss finding an eight foot tall bird in a bunch of haystacks?" Airnaruto asks his audience before chuckling to himself.
"Anyway after hallucinating that he was talking to Snuffleupagus he sees a plane fly overhead and what's his reaction to it you may ask well." Airnaruto says before he cuts to the said scene.
Big Bird after looking at the plane: Could that be Ms. Finch?
"No Big Bird that's not Ms. Finch. How could she be in a plane when she's been chasing you across the Eastern Continental US in a car?" Airnaruto snaps a bit. " Sorry about that." Airnaruto says after calming down. "Actually unbeknownst to Double B the pilots are none other than Bert and Ernie who mistake him for a haystack and therefore miss finding him but not before crashing into Super Grover…I think." Airnaruto says revealing the pilots.
"Eventually Big Bird winds up in….The Mushroom Kingdom!" Airnaruto says jokingly.
(Super Mario Bros. theme plays)
"No I'm kidding, he actually ends up in the town of Toadstool Ohio, what Nintendo didn't think that Toad was a popular enough character for a video game so they let Warner Brothers stick his name on a town in Ohio?" Airnaruto asks jokingly again. "Next thing you know he'll want to take over the Mushroom kingdom." Airnaruto mumbles to himself.
M. Bison: OF COURSE!
"Shut up!" Airnaruto says getting annoyed with the jokes. "Eventually Ms. Finch finds him again and chases him through the annual mushroom parade with the Sesame Street gang not far behind them however and when Big Bird eventually winds up at the fair owned by the two crooked carnies, he gets locked up in a cage, has his feathers painted blue and turned into a sideshow attraction." Airnaruto groans.
"Honestly, I know Big Bird is supposed to be the embodiment of childhood innocence but still that doesn't mean he also has to display his child-like stupidity, I thought Sesame Street was also suppose to teach you not to trust the word of strangers!" Airnaruto snaps again.
"After being displayed as the Blue Bird of happiness but having the exact opposite effect on the audience at the carnival, two kids sneak into the back of the tent and Big Bird tells them to call Sesame Street to tell the gang where he is, the next day the gang finds Big Bird and are about to get him free but the carnival owners wake up and drive off with Big Bird in tow leaving Gordon, Linda, and Cookie Monster to chase after them but of course by this point Cookie Monster has manage to eat half the Volkswagen. Cookie Monster what were you thinking?" Airnaruto asks.
Cookie Monster: Me needed to get more Iron into me diet.
"Well it didn't mean that kind of Iron!" Airnaruto says before getting back to the chase. "Anyway Gordon and Linda manage to get Big Bird to jump into the Volkswagen and leave the carnival owners to get captured by a highway patrol officer who believe it or not is portrayed by the late John Candy and while the carnival owners try to verbally cover their tracks we get the line that's used in a lot of crime movies today said by Candy." Airnaruto says.
John Candy: Tell it to the judge.
"Book'em Johnny!" Airnaruto saysbefore getting back to the conclusion of the film. "Eventually Big Bird returns home to Sesame Street and is given a hero's welcome home only for it to be interrupted by Ms. Finch who claims to have another family waiting to take Big Bird in but everyone in Sesame Street clearly tells Ms. Finch that regardless of the ethnic diversity between the species of characters in Sesame Street, they are Big Bird's family regardless, Ms. Finch relents and ultimately allows Big Bird to stay in Sesame Street." Airnaruto says wrapping up the film.
"Now what was my assessment of the movie you ask?" Airnaruto says to his audience, "Well I thought it was okay to say the least and while it was innovative for it's time but when it was first released in theatres it bombed." Airnaruto explains
(BOOM!)
"Despite the fact that the film was heavily praised by critics the film didn't do that well getting only $13,961,370 in box office revenue which was eclipsed by Disney's The Black Cauldron and later Don Bluth's An American Tail but at least it was better than the final shows Jim made for television, and over the years this film has gained a strong cult following among casual movie watchers and Sesame Street fan base, but sadly this was one of the final movies Jim Henson ever directed, less than 5 years later Jim died due organ failure he was only 53 years old. All in all, Follow that Bird is one of Jim Henson's last hurrah's in his life and probably the only decent film before his death but he certainly went out with a bang. I give Follow that Bird 3 and half stars out of five. Well that's it for now be sure to tune in next time when I do my first ever video game review so until next time I'm the Classic Critic, I remember it so you're not required to." Airnaruto says before leaving his chair.
A/N: I told you I would be a bit more harsh when it came to bashing this film.
Final rating of film: ***1/2
Pros: Simple message for people of all ages, familiar franchise and diverse range of characters.
Cons: Film has it's slow points in the middle, Big Bird takes childhood innocence to the point that it borders on stupidity, and Cookie Monster actually eating a whole Volkswagen just to get more Iron into his diet is overkill.
A/N: Well looks like I accomplished something that the Nostalgia Critic could not and that was do a little Sesame street bashing again I apologize to fans of the franchise of all ages for it but still I warned you.