User reviews

Michael Malone (Kevin Farley) is an American documentary maker out to abolish Fourth of July celebrations, perceiving it as the ultimate representation of what is wrong in America. However, he is visited by three ghosts who intend to change the way he views his country.

Firstly, David Zucker appears to have fallen a long way since the heights of Airplane and Police Squad – although too many Scary Movie sequels and "spoof" movies on the resume show the path to these new depths of garbage. Unfortunately, we live in a world where bowing to the lowest common denominator in taste and quality still makes money.

As somebody outside of the USA, perhaps this is not a movie targeted at me but it feels like the worst kind of low brow comedy, which takes easy and cheap shots at "anti-American" film-makers. Although the target is clear (Kevin Farley's characterisation is in no doubt), if questioning the way things work automatically marks you as an anarchist (or "anti- American", in this case) then what is a democracy? I may not always agree with your point but would not deny you the right to say it. "Freedom of Speech" still exists, right?

Leslie Neilson appears as a grandfather, telling the story we see play out. Although always good to see Neilson, he has little to do in this movie besides one "action" scene. Trace Adkins appears as both The Angel of Death and himself. As himself, he is apparently the ultimate representation of America and what it means to be a true American. The role is fairly small, which is probably best, as even if you enjoy his musical output, I'm not sure feature films are his future. Kelsey Grammar as General Patton has an overly long yet mildly amusing role but is ultimately wasted in it. His feature film output will not garner awards – Down Periscope any one? – but he may be the highlight in an otherwise dull production with few redeeming features.

Bad acting, cheap shots at those willing to question the norm and "jokes" that will make many wince – we should be allowed to charge the film-makers for our time spent watching this rubbish.

Overall, if you are a fan of the spoof movies of recent years, give this a try. If you are a Michael Moore hater, give this a try. If you don't fall in to either of those camps, don't waste your time or money.

On the July 4th, a group of children listens to the story of the documentary filmmaker Michael Malone (Kevin P. Farley) told by their grandfather (Leslie Nielsen) at a family barbecue. Michael wants to abolish the July 4th and does not celebrate the date and refuses to visit his family. Three clumsy Afghan terrorists consider that Michael Malone hates the United States of America and posing of producers, they invite him to make a feature with the intention of helping them to recruit new terrorists. During the night, Michael is visited by JFK that advises that he will be visited by three spirits. Soon General Patton, George Washington and the Angel of Death visit him trying to show him what would happen to the United States if pacifism prevails over war.

"An American Carol" is a parody of "A Christmas Carol" where a Michael Malone is a parody of Michael Moore in the role of the Scrooge. There are funny, but also moronic gags and after a promising beginning, the plot concludes with a terrible boastful nationalism that spoils the plot and the character. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Corra que Tem Loucos por Aí!" ("Run Since There Are Madmen Around")

i laughed, i cringed, i smirked, i got mad, really mad, i felt, i almost cried, definitely choked, this was a good film. and so much of it i hated, because it was true. and you all know what i mean.

i am conservative in Hollywood, my friends treat me exactly like this movie. i do feel alone, a lot.

was it entertaining? well, in very few movies do i laugh out loud, and this is one of them. it was so much fun to laugh, yet as the movie went on the burden of truths took their toll on me. thank goodness for the zombie reprieve in the 3rd act, that helped! it will actually take me a few days to recover from the emotions i have, but knowing Zucker and others are out there, in Hollywood, and for them and the companies involved, the actors, and crew, to make this film, is a great thing indeed.

on so many levels, this film did a lot, acting, jokes, sets, story, message, lines, i actually think this should be an option in university & high school viewing! you know, students can choose Inconvenient Truth, any Michael Moore film, or American Carol. After all, we believe in choice.

A great film.

I loved Airplane! I think it's a staple on the American comedy scene. In fact, I love several of David Zucker's movies, but he seems to have lost his understanding of the American psyche in his last few attempts. An American Carol, for instance, could just as well have been a pro-Nixon movie, released soon after Watergate. I'm sure there will be a few who will find Zucker's portrayal of Michael Moore funny and they would likely find a Zucker portrayal of Martha Mitchell to be humorous, as well. The irony comes in Zucker's failure to realize that most people side with Michael Moore on his opinions, as well as the facts that support his opinions, which Zucker pokes fun at by treating them as if they were untrue.

As a Liberal, I didn't expect to agree with Zucker's political views, and yet, I felt compelled to watch it and give it a fair shake, believing that my difference in politics might not prevent me from finding it funny. Unfortunately, An American Carol ended up being as disconnected from reality as I'd feared beforehand and I can't help wondering what Hollywood genius figured it would be a good idea to make fun of a controversial American political icon, just as the vast majority of Americans were figuring out that his serious accusations were justified. If Zucker were around for the Boston Tea Party, he most surely would have had a blast ridiculing Samuel Adams, and those throwing tea overboard, and I'm sure he wouldn't have spared American revolutionaries for wanting independence, either, because Zucker seems all about protecting the establishment, no matter who it is and what faults it may have.

I may sound motivated by politics, but that's really not the impetus for my harsh review at all. We've all seen funny political humor that was driven by views that we didn't share, but this is different because Zucker is trying to force humor that just isn't there. Michael Moore offers a plethora of opportunities for humor, but there is nothing funny about portraying people as wrong, when in fact, they were right. And if I am wrong on this, then I have a great idea for a satire about Abraham Lincoln foolishly trying to end slavery, which I'm certain will have it's fans as well.

Some slapstick, mostly the kind of stuff you laughed at when Tom & Jerry did it thirty or forty years ago. Script-wise, it makes 'Goodburger' seem like comic genius. If you loathe Michael Moore, you'll probably find it hysterical. If you watch any network but FOX News, you'll possibly get a chuckle. But if you're just looking to throw away $9, go buy nine scratch-cards and save yourself the hour and half of your life.

I thought it was going to be good farce, going in. I'm no fan of Michael Moore, but it takes some particularly vile cowardice to claim that anyone "hates America" because of their political views. Neither Barack Obama nor John McCain hate America. Joe Biden might accidentally call it the wrong name and Sarah Palin can't locate it on an unmarked world map, but they don't hate it. If the producers were seeking to attract the attention of independent moderates in the election season, they needed to put more work into the humor and less into making their already-fanatical base bark and clap like seals.

Keep in mind folks, this is just a comedy but it does contain enough messages to anger any ultra-liberal. It won't hurt anyone to watch this movie and even the far left liberals should get a good laugh. You have to admit after watching it that it's a harmless movie and is in good spirit. Those that are left leaning, head this warning, it will bring to light some painfully harsh realities of the problems our American culture is facing within our own borders and how ridiculous some of those ultra left leaning (progressives) are. If you are open minded, do not care about politics and would like to experience the Zucker style of humor, go see it. You'll get to see an angle of things that hasn't come from Hollywood in recent years.

I can't say that my politics are very conservative (except in making government smaller), but this film makes "Baby Geniuses" seems like "Citizen Kane."

I can appreciate a well-made film regardless of its agenda. "Patton" and "Dirty Harry" are great, quality films with a Conservative bent. "An American Carol" is not.

This movie is not quality film-making. The writing, as Shakespeare wrote, "is a tale told by an idiot: full of sound and fury and signifying nothing." And NOT funny.

The acting - (Dennis Hopper, go watch your early work and strive for half of that artistry) - is painful. They say, "drama is hard, but comedy is harder." In this case, Kevin Farley (the Frank Stallone of the comedy world) must think drama is impossible.

As to the dual credits of direction/writing, David Zucker has completely lost it. I loved his earlier work, but he hasn't worked on an artistically successful film in over ten years, and it shows. Sort of like Dennis Hopper.

A funny spoof on all anti-American movies that seem to spew from Hollywood like fire ants through the Texas prairie. Far from being all about Michael Moore, as liberals profess, this movie takes dead-on shots at general liberal/anti-U.S. propaganda that is taken as truth by the mainstream media and gullible Americans. The director is not afraid to give credit to Lincoln for going to war to fight slavery, when the Democrat Party of that day was willing to let the South have its way, just to avoid a war. I had to laugh when Malone and the Rosie O'Donnell character put up that radical Christian video as evidence that America deserved 9/11. If you know history as it happened, you will like this movie. If you know history as told by Hollywood, you will understand nothing. Good job Zucker, and now I want to see the Ben Stein movie that was in the previews.

I tried to go into this with an open mind. I'm fairly liberal generally, but I enjoy good movies, regardless of the slant. This tripe, though... Jesus. It was horrendous. There is not a single redeeming moment in the entire movie. "Disaster Movie" was better than this. This is - I would say a blatant propaganda piece, but that's unfair to blatant propaganda. This is propaganda on a level with "Triumph of the Will", if it was directed by an idiot and had a stupider message. Zucker was massively disappointing here. When he's on, he can be amazing, but when he isn't, the results are ugly. He's great at surrealist humor, obviously, but this film just tries to slap you in the face with the message every minute or so and the blame for that has to go to Zucker. Obviously the line "not screened for critics" should have filled me with dread, but I really didn't think it would be this bad. Good God.

I really, really, really, really, really want to see Kevin Farley succeed as an actor, if only because he's paying his dues and obviously wants it very badly. By now, I have to think he's got enough experience to know what does and doesn't work comedically and I'm ready to see him shine.

Mr. Farley shines about as brightly in American Carol as a kump of petrified wood, but it's not his fault. It's really, really not his fault. The fault is not even in the script or with the director, it's in the premise. The idea that right-wing celebrities and media figures somehow need an opportunity to "get their own" runs smack into the reality: that these people, unlike the Hollywood elites, have actually been running this country and driven it to the very precipice of permanent disaster. If the film maker wanted to invite these figures into the theater as comedic devices, they simply can't work as underdogs. It's like "Springtime for Hitler" in "The Producers." The gag only worked because it was a fantastic irony. But there is no irony in An American Carol. Zucker wants us to take his premise seriously. But, unless you live in a bottle (as some of my fellow reviewers appear to), that threshold of believability is just way too high.

The jokes fell flat. The premise itself damned this film. It could not be funny. And so, it's not.

I sincerely wish Mr. Farley the best of luck in his future work and congratulate him on working with Mr. Zucker. It's a shame Mr. Zucker couldn't fit him into a picture as funny as Airplane or Naked Gun.

After hearing David Zucker being interviewed on the radio, I wanted to support the ideas he espoused. I am a conservative who enjoy a good laugh, wants to see well-thought through engagement of intellectual ideas against the barrage of left-wing ideology. I share Zucker's desire to encourage the main street middle of the road average person but this did not do it. I actually walked out. I was embarrassed. This had no plot, offered only in your face stupid anti-intellectual arguments and aimed at the middle school aged brain. I feel sorry for him. I know he meant well but who is his target audience? It was not me. Or anyone I know. He failed in this first attempt to offer a counter for the left wing movie world. Lets see if he can learn from his mistake.Can he give us something that's intellectually stimulating and thoughtful as well as encouraging and fun? I would prefer a movie that has an engaging plot and is worthy of our time and money.

In general, I find myself enjoying a lot of comedy movies that were critically panned (BASEketball, Freddy Got Fingered, The Greasy Strangler) and I guess you could say I'm a fan of Zucker. This does not mean that I had incredibly high hopes for this movie, but I was just hoping for a solid comedy that takes a piss on politics. The first 10 minutes were pretty good, with an incredibly funny scene where Moore is shooting a scene in Cuba where everything is obviously really bad, which he is completely oblivious to (or repressing it) describing it as a socialist paradise. However, after the opening the movie slowly started to lose me, to the point where during the last 20 minutes i sank lower and lower from my bed until I laid down on the floor. I'm from Denmark, and of course I carry some personal opinions about American politics, which most people outside America do in 2018 because of social media. But this movie is pretty damn ham-fisted with its messages. One thing is that it only shows how stupid democrats can be. That would be totally fine with me if: 1) It was clever and funny. The "left" in this movie is so obnoxious. Watching this you keep asking yourself "do people really believe that leftists acts this way?" It should have either made clever critiques at their ideology or it should have went completely funny. Instead we get a pathetic "parody" (we see the same thing with leftists making fun of right-wings) that is so out of touch with reality and just frustrates you instead of making you laugh. 2) If it wasn't so serious. If the movie just tried to be funny and absurd that would be perfect. But there are so many obvious tries at making a point or to make you feel some kind of spark of nationalism (again, I'm not from America, but I seriously don't think that many people would feel that spark by watching this movie) that it kind of ruins a lot of the "background" jokes that Zucker is so wellknown for. His style and jokes really do not fit with the way this movie is written. Instead they just feel obligatory to remind you that the movie is in fact a comedy. Still, these signature jokes are the only thing that saves this movie from being the worst thing ever and they did manage to make me laugh a couple of times. The political jokes are just plain bad.

Aside from these problems the movie also suffers from bad acting, especially the lead. Farley is so incredibly annoying as Moore, but not in a good way and none of the other characters bring anything to the table. This doesn't seem like a fault of the actors but more that they didn't have anything to work with.

The script is also very confusing. It could have been the fact that I just lost focus because I was so bored but I got more and more bewildered throughout the movie. The movie is of course a retelling of A Christmas Carol, but it constantly shifts between reality, dreams, past and future. I haven't read the source material so I wouldn't know to what the degree that story does the same, but in this movie I never knew what was happening. The story suddenly started to move incredibly fast, which made a lot of the scenes where Moore is confronted with what would happen if America followed his ways incredibly confusing. I had no idea what lesson he was learing or why. This could be because of the movies short running time, but I'm not sure I wished it was longer.

My final problem with this movie is the message it is trying to portray. Again, if the movie went completely nuts like Team America that would be great and the jokes would land. But it doesn't. Which means you can't stop thinking about the message. I don't mind a patriotic movie, but this one is so bad at it. Do you believe that the wars in Middle Eastern countries are justified? Fine. But don't act like it isn't at least a somewhat complicated issue. This movie completely writes off anyone against war, and acts like the war against Nazi Germany is the exact same as the wars in Middle Eastern countries. There is so much more to delve into with instances like these but that would make this review even longer. Whatever you may believe you need to argue for it in a logical way and this movie doesn't do that at all.

I'm kind of sad seeing that this is the last of Zucker's movies and spoof movies in general seem to have died out. This movie had some potential but it squandered it with a poor message and confusing plot which in turn ruined a lot the jokes.

....and going beyond all the clumsy politics and posturing, I kept thinking, "This really reminds me of a TV sitcom after it's jumped the shark."

Is the conservative movement so creatively bankrupt that this is the best it can do? Really?

I'm sure it will resonate among New York Post-conservatives, but I can't imagine any Wall Street Journal-conservative taking it without a hefty grain of salt. I'd be very relieved if no one involved in this ever worked again, down to the key grips, best boys, and gaffs (whatever they are).

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. Though Mr. Zucker's brand of crude humor is typically not my cup of tea, the pleasure I took from watching so many of Hollywood's "sacred cows" being torpedoed on screen made me giddy as a schoolgirl.

The performances were well done, especially Kelsey Grammar as General Patton. Everyone involved in this project should be commended for having the stones to make a film so contrary to the prevailing culture in Hollywood.

This picture said so many things that needed to be said, yet did it through laughter, instead of venom-spewing. Well done.

I enjoy watching funny comedies - even the mindless ones that require a suspension of judgment. What I do not like about this movie is that it makes a statement, an absurd statement, which cannot be made in a non- comedic way, yet is meant to be taken seriously.

I do not consider myself political, but I do know that there are attitudes that are detrimental to human progress and well-being. It seems to me that the irrationalism that defines American neo- conservativism is not harmless 'ignorance is bliss'. The only reason that there is a "liberal slant" in the American media is that the "conservative slant" is not convincing to the younger generation of thinking people. That is why every documentary, political or not, that I have ever seen or heard of, is liberal-friendly. Because by making a comedic argument to be serious comes off as an ironic farce - which is precisely what this movie is.

Putting the political statements aside, it is just not funny.