An abundance of dick jokes and a sex-positive story make for a raunchy and rowdy time.
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What do you do when your girlfriend of five years decides to dump you during your proposal? If your answer is to go to Thailand with your friends and get laid, you probably have the same mindset as Luis Carpio, the lead character of I Am Not Big Bird.
From director Victor Villanueva comes this tale that follows Luis (Enrique Gil), who, after a string of fails, decides to bring his two friends, Macky (Nikko Natividad) and July (Red Ollero), on a trip to Bangkok to have a wild time. But this comedy gets even wilder when Luis is mistaken to be the long-lost famous porn star, Big Bird, as his arrival in the city brings together a colorful cast of characters who all want a piece of Big Bird.
Both as a vehicle for Enrique Gil’s acting comeback and a movie from a mainstream production house, I Am Not Big Bird is not what one would expect. But apart from its R-rated madness, the movie is pretty decent and doesn’t let its absurdity get in the way of telling a story of friendship and love that goes beyond the private parts. Curious to know if this mature comedy is for you? We break down the things we enjoyed about the film.
THE TRIO AT THE CENTER OF THE MOVIE GET THE JOB DONE
Enrique Gil, Red Ollero, and Nikko Natividad make for an unlikely trio to lead a comedy. But they make it work with their strong and dynamic chemistry. While Luis, Macky, and July may fall more into certain stereotypes, they bring the fun as they make their way through Thailand on this porn-fueled adventure filled with its ups and downs.
Gil plays double duty as Luis and Big Bird, and it’s fun to see him really go all out and play outside what people have come to know him for. Natividad captures July’s flamboyance to a T. Ollero, meanwhile, serves as the movie’s lowkey standout as the blunt but level-headed Macky. Given his background as a stand-up comic, Ollero’s comedic timing is impeccable and delivers some of the movie’s best lines and laughs.
IT’S ABSURD COMEDY FROM START TO FINISH
If you want to know how crazy I Am Not Big Bird can get, the opening scene of the film has a guy lose an eye after his friend’s semen hits him as he was masturbating to a porno of Big Bird’s. There’s a joke in the movie about how Big Bird’s penis is so big, it ends up hitting people who pass by him. There’s a scene where the three main characters are arguing while their pants are down and their private parts are seen. Oh, and one of the characters can shoot bananas out of her vagina like a machine gun.
The sexual comedy on display here is a lot, but the film mostly doesn’t fall into the trap of being absurd just to be OA. The jokes aren’t mostly cringe and are quite funny as the slapstick humor has a purpose behind it. Depending on your taste, your mileage may vary on the heavy amount of penis jokes, but there’s no denying the movie isn’t afraid to push the envelope when it can, making for a memorable time.
UNAFRAID TO TALK ABOUT SEX
Despite the strides we have made as a society, Philippine mainstream media still has its way to go when it comes to talking about sex as something not to be embraced or ashamed of. This is why it’s nice to see a movie like this have its narrative unapologetically focused on the human body. It doesn’t shy away from talking about dicks, sex, needing sexual pleasure in a relationship, and more. And it does so without demonizing its characters or topics.
Luis’ issue of having a small penis symbolizes how he’s insecure about himself, which lends itself to the topic of toxic masculinity. Big Bird, meanwhile, feels that people just see him for his big dick and not as an actual human being, which speaks to the issue of sexualizing people. It’s fair to say that I Am Not Big Bird is sex-positive, at least in how it doesn’t sermonize the audience into hating what it talks about. While it’s unlikely that this will become the standard for how local mainstream media should approach the topic, it’s still progress.
UNSERIOUS YET DECENT STORY
I Am Not Big Bird tells a fairly decent if basic story that, while wholly unserious, lands on its feet with a raunchy, rowdy, and satisfying conclusion. The movie does suffer from a few plot holes and underbaked and one-note supporting characters, but it is a boys-trip-abroad-gone-wrong that knows how to have fun and not take itself too seriously. Ever since I Am Not Big Bird dropped its first trailer, the movie has not been shy about what it is. And it’s commendable that it doesn’t sanitize itself. This is a wild, mature, and R-rated comedy about people finding their purpose, no matter the size of their manhood.
A movie can be a serious deep dive into what goes on in society, but it can also be stupid fun, which is where this movie falls. When you have a film that features a scene of a character beating up goons with his big penis, you know you’re not getting a thorough examination of the human psyche. And there’s nothing wrong with that. While not everything in this movie works, it is unique and a nice change of pace for local cinema that can elicit a few chuckles.
I Am Not Big Bird is now showing in cinemas nationwide.
Continue Reading: Enrique Gil’s Comeback Role? A (Mistaken) Porn Star In Thailand
