Mutant Aliens

Bill Plympton's fourth feature-length animated film, about a group of aliens that return to earth with an astronaut who was lost in space for 20 years, is campy, pornographic, and gross. Anyone familiar with Plympton's previous work knows these are the characteristics that make his films such outrageous, irreverent fun. When Dr. Frubar (George Casden) tries to kill astronaut Earl Jensen (Dan McComas) by draining all his fuel from his space ship so that he gets lost in space, Jensen's daughter Josie (Francine Lobis) spends her life hoping for her father's return in order to exact revenge on Dr. Frubar. When Earl finally returns, he brings four mutant aliens with him that he specially devised to kill Dr. Frubar and foil his evil plans to take over the world through advertising. The loveable, though violent, aliens wreak havoc on earth with boisterously entertaining, gross-out effect. One hilarious highlight from the film includes a battle scene between life-size noses and life-size fingers that are ruled by life-size eyeballs. Plympton's whimsical animation, characterized by spastic line drawings and a fascination with facial features, has appeared on MTV and in television advertisements.