The work of Trey Parker & Matt Stone is a taste which I've not really acquired, though not through a lack of effort. I've sat through many a "South Park" episode (as well as the movie) and seldom even chuckled, though I occasionally appreciate the people and/or institutions they choose to satirically skewer. It's not that I find the show offensive...I just don't think Parker & Stone are very funny, and "Orgazmo," the brainchild of Parker, made before "South Park" became a pop-culture phenomenon, didn't change my mind. Personally, I thought "Orgazmo" sucked (it would have warranted an F if not for the fact it's pretty well made), but the folks interested in a movie like this aren't gonna give a damn what I think. There are likely legions of "South Park" fans & soft-core sex connoisseurs who'll feel a movie like this is right up their alley. But I think even those would-be disc buyers may be a bit disappointed; it's neither as shockingly raunchy the original NC-17 rating would suggest, nor does it offer much in the way of voyeuristic kicks. "Orgazmo" sure as hell didn't deserve the controversy it allegedly stirred up when finally released...some years after "South Park" became a hit. This disc DOES feature two versions of the movie for those inclined, along as many extras as I've recently come across on a single disc.

Writer/director Parker stars as Joe Young, an idealistic Mormon who goes to L.A. and travels door-to-door in an attempt to spread God's word. He wants to marry his girlfriend, Lisa (Robyn Lynne), but can't afford to. Then he meets Maxxx Orbison (Michael Dean Jacobs), a porno director who's impressed with Joe's ability to fight. He offers Joe $20,000 to star in his next film, "Orgazmo," a superhero who fights his enemies with the orgazmarator, a ray gun which induces orgasms. His co-star/sidekick, Ben/Choda-Boy (Dian Bachar) convinces Joe that porn films are pumped out with such regularity that no one is likely to notice. Joe reluctantly agrees, with the proviso that he doesn't perform any sex scenes himself (a "stunt c**k" is brought in for such a task). When "Orgazmo" becomes an unexpectedly huge hit, Joe wants out, but Maxxx is unwilling to let him quite, threatening to kill his girlfriend if he doesn't do "Orgazmo 2." Meanwhile, Ben, a closet scientist, has developed a real-life orgazmarator, which the two use to thwart Maxxx and his porno cronies, essentially becoming real-life superheroes. While it undoubtedly has the Parker/Stone stamp all over it, meaning it's loaded with scenes & dialogue calculated to offend, viewers who would be put-off such material aren't likely to sit and watch a film titled "Orgazmo" anyway. That leaves Parker & Stone's core audience, who may be disappointed at the relatively conventional approach to the material. Sure, there's an abundance of penis jokes, foul language, and broad swipes at both the porn industry & Mormonism, but nothing as over-the-top and in-your-face as the "South Park" movie. In fact, I'm sort of at a loss as to how "Orgazmo" earns its NC-17 rating. With the exception of some bare breasts and several close-ups of men's hairy asses, there's little actual nudity, and most of the implied sex is depicted comically (and, given the premise, almost tastefully...almost). Don't get me wrong, the movie is still raunchy as hell, but the targeted audience of such a movie is likely expecting reach-for-the-barf-bag humor, or at least a shitload of gratuitous sex, of which "Orgazmo" offers neither. Plus, the movie simply isn't very funny. Despite a few admittedly clever moments here and there (the one time I laughed aloud was the introduction of the character, 'Sancho'), most of the humor is obvious, sophomoric and heavy-handed (having an elderly lady spout 'shocking' obscenities is about as fresh as Michael Jackson jokes). Even that would be okay if executed right, but "Orgazmo" mostly offers raunch for the sake of raunch (such as a sex scene featuring a morbidly obese woman named T. Rex, which is more repulsive than funny). I'm sure writer/director Parker would be amused by my comments, since I'm probably playing right into his hands, but a bad movie is a bad movie, no matter the content. Parker himself actually turns in a decent performance, as does a lot of the cast, but they are undone by a script that tries to be the ne plus ultra of degenerate sleaze, yet still adheres to many of the Hollywood conventions Parker & Stone purport to scoff at. This film features the original theatrical cut, which was rated NC-17, and an unrated version. While the unrated version is almost two minutes longer, you'd be hard-pressed to notice a real distinction between the two.

For a low budget film, the transfer quality is surprisingly good. I was expecting something more grainy and homegrown, but the film admittedly looks as polished and professional as most big-budget movies you can name. The soundtrack is simply okay - nothing to write home about - rendered in 2.0 Dolby Digital. There's no distortion or hissing, but not a lot of creative use of sound, either.

As I said before, "Orgazmo" includes more extras than almost any single recent disc I can think of, and if it was a matter of quantity over quality, that really mean something. For me, Parker & Stone's frat-boy mentality is somewhat amusing for awhile, but not something I'd want to experience for hours-on-end...certainly not something I'd want to revisit over and over. As abundant as the extras are, most of them will appeal only to the same 15 year-old crowd who made Parker & Stone millionaires in the first place. Three commentaries are included; the first features Parker, Stone & others getting increasingly shitfaced as the movie rolls on, doing shots when certain words are uttered, etc. The second features members of the cast, most of whom are content to laugh at how funny they think they are. The third, and worst, features Parker, Stone and numerous other celebrities (Weird Al Yankovic, Kevin Smith [who never even saw the film], Jerry Zucker, etc.); none of them have anything really relevant to say about the movie, and there are numerous loooooooooong passages in which no one says anything. Side B offers similarly amusing/tedious extras. Over 30 minutes of deleted scenes are included, a few of which are funny, some of which are boring (and trust me, unless you enjoy hearing nepotism-in-action, don't play it with the commentary). "The Book of Orgazmo" is a pretty interesting look at the history of pre-"South Park" Parker & Stone. Also included are over 40 minutes of outtakes...again, many are funny, but it gets tedious after awhile. There's also an actual 'serious' interview with Parker, Stone, producer Jason McHugh and a few cast members. The worst feature is an interview with Parker, conducted via-satellite by rabid fans at a convention (the audio is so bad that you'll be hard-pressed to sit through all 33 minutes). Several 'Easter Eggs' are also included, but I didn't really have the energy, nor the desire, to check them out.

"Orgazmo" is neither as offensive as its reputation, rating or title suggest, nor as amusing or clever as the typical "South Park" episode by its creators (though I don't personally like the show, I understand why it's popular). Despite my personal opinion of Parker & Stone's brand of humor, I truly do root for them to create the ultimate challenge to our First Amendment rights, but they need to graduate past the eighth grade to do so. Still, fans of these guys, but not necessarily their popular TV show, will find a lot to enjoy....probably more so after 12 beers.