This ultra-crude animated feature from Australia might not look like much at first glance, but give it a chance, because it's actually a raunchy-'n'-subversive sci-fi/allegory/comedy that harkens back to the earliest, most caustic days of Ralph Bakshi. Directed and entirely-animated by Ray Nowland, with the voices of Keith Scott and Helen Knight, this wildly sacrilegious satire rethinks the Bible's origin of mankind and the battle between God and the Devil, amidst crass jokes, graphic flesh, druggy hallucinations, and inter-species sex. It begins when mega-businessman G.D. funds a project to save his planet's genetic make-up in a giant space-ark, just as his world destroys itself. Accompanied by his rebellious li'l son Red and a full crew, it might take centuries to reach the next livable solar system, but thanks to a couple of suspended-animation chambers, G.D. & Son can stay young while their "eco-ship" goes through dozens of generations. As the decades spin by, the ship's population starts referring to their legendary, never-seen leader as 'God', while a newly-discovered planet is eventually groomed for their needs. A meteor is diverted in order to cleanse the place of pesky giant reptiles, genetically-altered monkey men are sent down as a cheap labor pool (with G.D.'s holographic image keeping them in line), while the ship's original crew has become so repulsively inbred over the years that they're useless. Then there's Red, who's driven underground (along with his pet snake) and plans a revolution against his pop's oppressive ways. But unlike the usual Lucifer, this dude is an unexpected cheerleader for mankind, and along the way, we meet a hairball named Moses, learn that the Pharaoh's curses were due to radiation poisoning, and check out a surfboard-riding Jesus (which explains how he walked on water). From mankind's earliest incarnations, right up to the 20th century (with God in league with Hitler!), the film gloriously self-destructs in the final moments, but crams a wealth of imagination into only 73 minutes. More outrageous than any wimpy studio effort would dare, where else will you see God portrayed as a self-centered, Reagan-esque fat-cat, while the Devil is actually the saner of the two? Fearlessly turning the Bible on its ass, this is one-of-a-kind epic storytelling that mixes the humor of the Furry Freak Brothers with The Old Testament, on a budget that makes SOUTH PARK look high-tech.

© 2000 by Steven Puchalski.