Futurama: Bender's Game Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES PLOT SUMMARY
At once a merciless skewering of all things fanboy and an extremely satisfying addition to the Futurama franchise, Bender's Game is among the best of the animated series' feature length adventures. The game in question is Dungeons and Dragons, and Bender wants in—only robots aren't programmed with the necessary imagination. Naturally, Bender's plans to develop one go completely awry and land him in an android asylum. The role-playing plotline later re-emerges—in typically convoluted Futurama fashion—via a subplot involving Professor Farnsworth's conversion of dark matter into spaceship fuel, which created a key to a very D&D-influenced universe where our hapless heroes eventually find themselves. The alternate world storyline allows for much lampooning of fantasy tropes, with Lord of the Rings receiving the lion's share of the tweaks. Seeing as how the writers have already devoted much of the movie's running time to parodying Star Wars and Star Trek (and their Lego offshoots), one might think that Bender's Game might suffer from pop-culture overload, but surprisingly, it all feels fresh and frequently funny, and the writers are wise to ground the story in their eccentric characters rather than pinballing them through an endless string of gags. The result is probably the strongest of the direct-to-DVD Futurama releases to date, and one that newcomers to the show's cracked universe can appreciate as much as longtime fans.As with previous Futurama DVD releases, the extras come fast and furious on Bender's Game: commentary by members of the cast and production team (including Matt Groening) is both informative and funny, while interviews with the writers and producers discuss, among other topics, the influence of Dungeons and Dragons on the series and the 3D models used in the feature. Aspiring animators might appreciate "How To Draw Futurama in 83 Easy Steps and the storyboard animatic for the first part of the story, while the "Genetics Lab" feature allows for some amusing Dr. Moreau-style cross-breeding of the characters. Recording session bloopers and a deleted scene offer their own laughs, but the most enjoyable extra must be the preview for the next Futurama feature, Into the Wild Green Yonder, which suggests a shocking development for one of the show's regulars.
| John Di Maggio | Bender/Additional Roles |
| Tress MacNeille | Additional Roles |
| Phil LaMarr | Hermes |
| Rich Little | |
| George Takei | |
| Frank Welker | Nibbler/Additional Roles |
| Billy West | Fry/Dr. Zoidberg/Professor Farnsworth/Additional Roles |
| Katey Sagal | Leela |
| Lauren Tom | Amy |
| Dwayne Carey-Hill |
7.40 out of 10 (1829 votes)
Visitor Reviews
A good film but Futurama was much better on television
posted on 08 Aug 2009I have already said it on another commentary but I like repeating it : I had an enormous admiration for the TV programme Futurama because it shook sarcastic,incisive and irreverent humor with intelligent concepts of sci-fi,exotic characters and a well structured mythology.That twist resulted on one of the best comedies the TV has ever produced.Unfortunately,this series was very underrated,and after four seasons of declining ratings,Futurama was cancelled in mid-2003.But,the surprising DVD sales of the series and the success of the repetitions of the series on channels like Cartoon Network,made the executives from Fox to re-considerate their (stupid) decision and now,we can enjoy the rebirth of Futurama,not on TV,but on movies made straight-to-DVD.But,as a huge fan of Futurama,I have to say Futurama : Bender's Big Score and Futurama : The Beast with a Billion Backs,in spite of being funny and entertaining,did not leave me completely satisfied.It seems that the creators of Futurama perfectly dominated the half an hour format (22 minutes without the commercials) but they have found difficulties in telling fluid and natural stories in the format of a full-length film.That problem is still on Futurama : Bender's Game.Minute by minute,Bender's Game made me laugh pretty much and it kept me entertained.But the whole does not result totally satisfactory,because the film suffers from lack of cohesion and from a fractured narrative.At the end of the first half hour,there is a sudden change of tone and it seems a totally different movie from there...in other words,the film keeps being funny and entertaining but that sudden change makes the film a little bit forced.I think the best format for Futurama was the one for TV but I have to be grateful for back to have Futurama.As the other Futurama films,Bender's Game is entertaining but I expected more from it.Still,I can recommend it because I had a good time watching it.
Shall We Play A Game?...
posted on 31 Jul 2009Matt Groening had spawned another winner with Futurama: Bender's Game. I would had never viewed Dungeons & Dragons as being that imaginative. I played Dungeons & Dragons when I was much younger, but did not possess the imagination that Bender displayed with that version. Bender was accused of not having an imagination at first, but when he finally grasped one, Bender could not separate fiction from reality. Frankly, I would had settled for Bender's version of "reality" because at least there were surprises at every corner. Sometimes surprises are better than the same mundane ruts we had forced ourselves into. The final battle between dark matter reminded me so much how we are dependent upon oil from foreign countries. At least the professor was smart enough to create another crystal that would eliminate dependency on dark matter when they were within a certain range of each other. I would certainly play this version of Dungeons & Dragons, mainly for the creativity and most importantly, for a more positive outcome for the world today. Futurama: Bender's Game was certainly worth the viewing pleasure and with Matt Groening at the helm, you cannot miss.
The best Futurama 'film' so far...
posted on 21 Jul 2009I have been impressed with the other Futurama 'films' (for wont of a better word), yet none of them achieved what this one did, the main thing I look for when watching the Futurama cartoon: laugh out loud comedy. And this has that - though not wall-to-wall, it contains enough clever plot writing to satisfy the most adamant of cartoon fans. The CGI far excels the majority of former episodes, although Futurama has always enjoyed a very shiny veneer of pure 'cool'. The character development was handled with far more maturity than in the previous longer installments, and focused on characters which were previously overlooked. In addition, the popular culture references were intelligent, amusingly accurate and, above all else, integral to the plot. No part of this film felt unnecessary - every moment of the outing felt it was necessary to the overall shape of the piece.In conclusion, this is by far the best longer-addition Futurama produced to this day. In fact, I'm only sad I saw an advanced viewing, because now I have longer to wait for the next production! The writers have proved they can provide fresh material and give it to the viewers in a non-patronising, intelligent but not pretentious manner.Bring on the next installement!
The "game" section is a little too trippy for its own good but otherwise it is the first film to feel like the series and be really funny
posted on 13 Jul 2009Despite raising costs of dark matter, Leela gets involved in a spaceship demolition derby, prompting the Professor to take action to help control her anger issues. Investigation into the reasons behind the rising costs of fuel (and the rising profits of Mom) leads to a terrible discovery far from Earth. Meanwhile, Bender's initial inability to take part in the kids' game of Dungeons & Dragons (due to his lack of programmed imagination), takes off big time – seeing him falling into a fantasy world of knights and witchcraft in his head and a mental institution in real life.The previous two Futurama movies were not that great, with overly busy plotting getting in the way of what the show was actually meant to be – funny and smart. Reading my plot summary here (and seeing the film synopsis in full) might suggest that Bender's Game is more of the same as we have different things going on with the characters all flowing together into a rather mad story. Much to my delight though this is not the case – and it is not because the plot isn't a bit messy, because it is. No, what makes it work here is that it is consistently funny and silly in a way that actually had me laughing. We do still have the plot working hard to make things move forward at times but even when this is happening, the film is still funny. It does this in the way the show always used to, by having lots of little side gags and lots of smart references that are imaginative and funny. The story is still very busy but, because of the amount of laughs in it, I never felt bogged down in the story or that I was getting story at the expense of laughter.It is hard to describe the differences between this and the other films in terms beyond this, but to me Bender's Game is the first film that felt like it was part of the series. It is not perfect though. The fantasy game section of the film is a little too trippy and long for its own good because it just suddenly "happens" in a way that feels like a different film and it is a while before the connection to the main plot is clear. Again though, what saves it is that you're laughing regularly during this. Even with the laughing though, 90 minutes still seems like a bit of an ask and it does feel longer than it is, reminding the viewer that Futurama always was about 20 minutes long and making the same thing work in a product about five times longer is not easy and doesn't totally work.Despite these minor qualms, Bender's Game is the Futurama film I have been waiting for and it is the first one of the three that has captured what I loved about the actual series. It is funny in the way the series used to be funny and, although the plotting is not its strongest point, the laughs cover up a surprising amount of the problems.
It starts as a refreshing character comedy but when the "Game" portion kicks in the movie just curls up and dies under it's own nerdy indulgences
posted on 01 Jul 2009Direct-to-DVD movie; Genre: Animated Comedy, Science Fiction; Content Rating: Not Rated (contains animated violence and gore and pervasive scatological humor); Perspective: Contemporary (star range: 1 – 4); In the first DVD movie outing the folks at "Futurama" took on internet scammers and time travel. In the 2nd, dating and religion through an intergalactic monster movie. Now in the third feature-length film, "Bender's Game", they cobble together the energy crisis and Dungeons and Dragons. It's a melding that this time could have used a few more trips to the writing table to get it to solidify.In this self-contained adventure, the Planet Express crew suffers from the escalating price of rocket fuel dark matter, provoking Professor Farnsworth (Billy West) to go up against the maniacal head of Mom Corp (Tress MacNeille) who single-handedly controls the supply. Meanwhile, Leela (Katy Sagal) is disciplined for her violent temper and Bender (John DiMaggio) is accused of not having an imagination by the players of Dungeons and Dragons and is driven to robot madness by the game.The first act of "Game" is something of a dream come true. For the first time the crew headed by David X. Cohen, Matt Groening and director Dwayne Carey-Hill ("Bender's Big Score") take advantage of the feature-length running time to slow things down a bit. The first act is a refreshing turn of a character comedy for this normally lightning-fast sci-fi satire in which details set-up in the series are brought to a head, notably some repressed anger from Leela toward Zoidburg and her appropriately hilarious reaction to a shock collar, a somewhat clever flashback to Nibbler's first meeting with the crew and the long promised next epic confrontation with Mom. As possibly the show's best villain, it's welcome to see this Mom story finally realized and MacNeille is something of a powerhouse in the voice performance. This is her time to shine. This section of the movie is in flashes some of the best work the show has done.While D&D is established early and often, it still doesn't help cushion the wild, hard left turn the movie takes from its energy/Mom story to randomly and literally (and I do mean literally) dropping the characters into a D&D fantasy world. In this section the moderately funny, full of potential story is completely abandoned and the movie curls up and dies. Cohen, Carey-Hill and company totally indulge in their nerdiest impulses and to hell with the story. More disappointingly, they choose to parody some of the most obvious and mainstream fantasy sources – mostly "Lord of the Rings". The characters are put into a mix-&-match parody blender. All of a sudden Leela is a centaur, Fry is Frydo who acts like Gollum, the Professor is Gandolf who takes a "Star Wars" turn and Zoidburg is a giant cave monster. "Futurama's" strength has always been that it isn't mainstream. "Game" is a broad, easily accessible palette cleanser of toilet humor and forced gags after the sharp, iconoclastic and surreal "Beast With A Billion Backs" - which for my money is still the triumph of the movie series so far.The D&D section of the film didn't have to be a mindless lost cause. But the "Futurama" crew doesn't in any way make an attempt to resolve the first and 2nd acts of the movie with it. As randomly as our heroes entered the world, they leave it just in time for a quick wrap-up. The Game portion of "Game" is head-slappingly obvious filler that will probably send most viewers to the show's famously great commentary tracks for an explanation (Cohen and Groening give nothing). Instead of the creative or scientific explanation we've come to expect from Futurama, "Bender's Game" leaves us with the classically disappointing "It was All a Dream" ending. It's a punch in the face.The movie is randomly entertaining and I do love the extended mix of the show's theme that plays over the credits, but this is a hard one to recommend even to hardcore fans of the show.* * ½ / 4
Chaotic plot that is not funny nor entertaining.
posted on 28 May 2009I am a long time, big fan of Futurama, the series. The movies so far have disappointed me. Bender's Game however is in a league of its own. It is quite simply the worst Futurama ever made. How did this get passed quality control? Why did Groenig not stop this release. It is so bad, it is hard to describe it. The plot is extremely chaotic, and simply not funny.When I was browsing the HMV isles, I stumbled upon this DVD. At first I was puzzled... a Futurama movie I did not know yet? The release date was 2008, so it was a new one. Then me and my girlfriend got excited... a new Futurama! Oh boy... it was a big let down. She even stopped viewing it half way though. I managed to finish the movie the next morning.What on earth were they thinking? In the future, I will think twice before buying. Oh, and I think the publisher knows it is bad as well... the movie retailed for 9.99 Canadian dollar, less than normal. I think they need to dump unsellable produce.
It's official- Futurama has lost its magic
posted on 20 May 2009After two mediocre straight-to-DVD movies, here's the third of four, and it's now safe to say Futurama is a show that could have just as well stayed buried. Bender's Game isn't a disappointment because after the last two, I was expecting this to fall short of the TV series.The number of laughs in this movie are pretty low. That's because some of the jokes are just silly- for example, putting lipstick on dogs. Others are just immature, a blatant joke about something sexual or bathroom humour meant to shock or disgust, as you'd expect from Family Guy at its worst- for example, having Zoidberg say "I'm getting aroused," or the endless fecal jokes. Worse, the latter turns out to become the main plot of the movie- it's about feces. Not exactly pleasant. Then it becomes a tribute to Dungeons and Dragons- I suppose that may appeal to people who love that game, but I couldn't relate. The AV Club compared this unfavourably to Simpsons episodes where the Simpsons become Biblical or legendary characters.The part about the Demolition Derby seems pointless, the only consequence is that Leela has to wear a shock collar, which disappears when they enter the fantasy world anyway. I guess the shock collar was a little funny, but Leela being shocked when first told when it would shock her (for example, when she curses) was predictable. For that matter, so was the twist that one of Mom's sons is the Professor's son. On the plus side, Leela and Amy get naked again, this time in a shower scene, but even cartoon nudity can't save this movie.
A Nice Return to Form
posted on 16 May 2009This last year has been one of redemption for several things that interest me. For instance, Chris Nolan followed the dubious "Batman Begins" with "The Dark Night, The Incredible Hulk was better than Ang Lee's version. More than that though, there are three that stand out for me. WALL-E so outstripped Ratatoulle that that film went from a studio destroying nightmare to a slight misstep, Prince Caspian was a big improvement over The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and Bender's Game turns the God-awful "Beast with a billion backs" into a misstep that can be overlooked a little more. Don't get me wrong, BWAMB is probably not horrible, but I couldn't get it, there was just some bit of life experience I'm missing for that one to resonate with me. On the other hand, I have played D&D and proved that D&D players can in fact get dates. or even wives. Because of this, this film got me right in the funny bone. They parody everything in here, the game, the controversy, the after school special on D&D which did nothing at the time except make the people involved look like complete idiots and the eating of strange things and drinking of soda.It is noteworthy that if you have EVER heard the Deadale Wives do "Dungeons and Dragons" and laughed ("WHERE'S THE CHEETOS?? WHERE'S THE MOUNTAIN DEW????"), then this is the movie for you. Even with all the love however it is my painful duty to inform you that this third movie does not and can not outshine Bender's Big Score. It's sad, but it's true. BBS had an emotional story that is replaced here by a series of more disconnected episodes. One other thing, the first shot in the film was very familiar to me and it took me a long time to figure out because I hadn't seen the film in question in almost 20 years. I comes from an obscure little cable movie called Cloak and Dagger, another movie about RPG players. That just tells you that the writers know their history and I find that comforting.There are a lot of parodies as you might expect from Futurama but they are finally doing parodies of stuff I wanted to see parodied which turns out pretty well for me.In short Fans of D&D will like this one, fans of the epic film trend will like this one and people who like it when Futurama just abandons reality and continuity completely to let the pure art of the moment will like this one. Final breakdown: Story: Good, not fantastic Laughs: Now it's just fantastic (If you get it and don't be afraid if you don't, there's a niche thing happening here so if you are not a nerd or geek of some kind then it's possible you may not get this one, but again, that's OK. Overall, It's a Futurama movie, not The Dark Night or something, it's above average.Watch it, enjoy it and move on with your life.Now we wait for the final film, which will decide it all.
Better than the last one, although that doesn't say much
posted on 06 May 2009Well, I guess the show finally abandoned the sappy romance and got in joke-after-joke mode. That's... kinda what I wished for, and it's still good, but a lot of the jokes aren't Futurama style, but more of a pop culture parody. Like when Leela says that "Sex and the City - now that's funny". Really? Oh well. Mom's sons acting like the three stooges was also kind of stupid. The writer, whoever he is, did better than the 2nd movie, but again, that doesn't say much. The social comment on gas prices and ecological fuel and whatnot, was covered already for a moment in Bender's Big Score, and that's where it should've stayed. Also, there is the whole "going into a fantasy world" plot hole. How? So, the two crystals combined, and how exactly did the new fantasy universe got there? How exactly did this come out of Bender's imagination? Never explained. Whatever.Now don't get me wrong, the movie was fine. And that's it. It wasn't sap-filled like the first, it wasn't total bullsh1t in the scenario department like the second, but still they can't seem to hit the perfect balance. Smart, true Futurama jokes, consistent storyline and some, but not too much Fry-Leela relationship. Futurama movies so far: 1st movie: too much love. 2nd movie: crappy story. 3rd movie: lost of jokes, but most hit-and-miss. 4th movie: Hopefully perfect.
Great movie
posted on 06 May 2009Compared to the other Futurama movies, I believe this one is one of the best. On a personal note, I might find the Futurama: Bender's big score better than Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs, but it is still a close match. This movie however, have a great deal of parody from other movies and they are implemented quite well. When it comes to the fantasy world (Bender's game), the characters there (mostly parody of Lord of the Rings) are very good impersonated, with a lot of twist of course. An example would be Zoidberg. And if your a Zoidberg fan, I believe they made him funnier on this movie compared to the other movies. The conclusion is that this is a funny movie worth watching, and if your already a Futurama fan, either this movie was great or not, you would still enjoy watching it.
Seriously, why even make the movie?
posted on 04 May 2009If you are going to make a movie, specifically a comedy, try to put some creativity into it.This thing is one rehashed joke after another, which lead to me calling what was going to happen in just about every scene.There is a complete lack of care for any of the characters, even for fans of the show. IMO they could have murdered half the cast and I would not have cared at all.There were 1 or 2 moments of elegance, which are the reasons behind me not giving this a 1.Does anyone actually laugh at the "Mom" character? She is completely unfunny. All she does the entire movie is laugh maniacally and slap her minions. I never once cracked a smile at any of these slaps. Did the writer actually think this repeated schtick would become funny?
The second best Futurama film so far.
posted on 24 Apr 2009Bender's Big Score still remains the best of the series, displaying all of the emotion, intelligence, romance, and fun of the rest of the series into one feature film. However, whereas I was disappointed with Beast With a Billion Backs (which was the perfect demonstration of why Futurama is at its best not when it's funny, but when it tells a good story like it did in BBS), I was very impressed with Bender's Game. It missed out on the emotion of the first film by a mile, which is why it's not nearly on the same level, but it is still a marvelous love-letter to the fantasy genre and role playing games. Very funny and very entertaining, with Amy on Leela action that will have the fans salivating while they role their 12-sided die, Bender's Game is not quite the impressive feat that the first film was, but is a return to form after the disappointment of BWBB. Let's hope the final film tops them all.
Best Futurama Movie!!! (... So Far)
posted on 22 Apr 2009Of the first 3 of 4 FUTURAMA movies, I love this one the best. The jokes are almost non-stop, the story moves much faster, and overall, this one was more like the regular episodes are/were...The spaceship demolition race was so cool, and the whole 2nd half was a blast (I never was into Dungeons and Dragons, but enjoyed all the references anyways. I liked LOTR movies, so that stuff was great too, and all the many references to other stuff, I always dig that junk!)Have watched this DVD almost every day since it came out, and still haven't gotten tired of it. It just is so darn good, and the characters are all in top form. Some of the best FUTURAMA writing, jokes, etc., for my money.To paraphrase that garbage scow driver, "If you's likes FUTURAMA's, then you's justs got-stas gets 'Bender's Game'!"
"Worst Episode Ever"
posted on 16 Apr 2009I totally disagree with the seemingly dominating opinion that this movie was a good one. Okay, the first third (!) is decent: the usual jokes and all that about D&D seems interesting even though punctuated with obscene/nauseating bits.But after that it's going downhill. Don't expect it to get any better after you successfully endured fecal gags, plain idiocy and obvious attempts to satisfy male viewers' wishes - only to get shocked by transsexual and elder-sexual appearances.Having seen the whole series and the previous two movies I daresay: "Worst Episode Ever"
Funniest "Futurama" Movie Yet!! To Be Loved By Fans & Newcomers Alike!!
posted on 10 Apr 2009Totally. 100%. This is the downright funniest of the three films. The story isn't as strong as the first one's, but the laughs are a million per minute. From the opening hilarity of Fry declaring "I've never been more excited to see poop, well, except maybe once" to the hilarious and heartwarming ending, this movie doesn't let you down. This movie has a lot of great one-liners and fans of the show will most definitely not be disappointed. I'd also recommend this flick for non-regular viewers. The standalone story gives for a great and welcoming introduction to the hilarity of the show. The only thing missing was the star-studded guest starring list that the previous films boasted. This "shortcoming" is hardly a notable complaint when you look at the piece of work that this film truly is! I highly recommend watching it!
"Good news everyone"
posted on 29 Mar 2009I'm a huge fan of the television series and the 2 movies that followed.'Benders Game' is the best movie and episode to date.It's full of laughs,crude and sexual humor,and wacky cartoon violence.In fact,this sequel is much more violent than the first 2 movies and all of the episodes.So make sure not to let little kids see it.Save it for teens.In this episode,Bender the robot discovers that he has no imagination until he becomes obsessed with a board game that goes by the name of Dungeons & Dragons.It's an actual game to.But soon,Bender loses control of reality and his imagination causes the Planet Express crew to fall into a fantasy world where Bender is king and where everybody eats fried dwarfs.Sounds too weird for you? Well,it gets a little weirder as it continues.'Futurama: Bender's game' is the best movie of the series and is a must-see for Futurama fans.
Yet Another Great Futurama Movie
posted on 25 Mar 2009I really enjoyed the third Futurama outing, Bender's Game. The plot was great and the gags were nonstop. The Yellow Submarine opening was superb. Zoidberg was extremely funny as always. All the pop-culture references were hilarious and so were some of the scenes with Leela's shock collar. The acting, animation, and music were fantastic, as always. My one complaint: We don't really get into the whole fantasy element you see on the poster until halfway through the film, which is why my score got knocked back down to a nine. But other than that, this was a great film, but Beast with a Billion Backs is still my favorite so far. Hopefully the fourth and final film will be better than the other three combined.
its better than "Beast"
posted on 21 Mar 2009I saw it recently at a screening at a fellow Futurama nerds house. It wasn't what i was hoping as a fan but it was much better than what was in "Beast with a Billion Backs". but then again, that story was AWFUL, so i hope the next brings us fans back to "FUTURAMA" standards....It does finally bring forth new ideas other than stupid pointless ones, and it is worth buying unlike its previous offering, I really would love it if the show was resurrected, almost as much as if the original "STAR TREK" was given the chance to complete its 5 year mission rather than 3...but that wont happen... this film, while obviously a "made for video" release, is MUCH better and more entertaining that "BEAST" trust me....
Unwatchable
posted on 17 Mar 2009The predictable has happened. When I first learned that Futurama was going to be revived, I was overjoyed. But shortly thereafter caution kicked in and I instead feared that my favorite show ever was going to be ruined in a shoddy attempt to cash in on its fan base. The first movie was actually quite good and made me look forward to the second one, which turned out to be barely watchable. Turning to Bender's Game, I would like to make a comprehensive list of everything that is wrong with it, but I'm still to agitated. It's actually painful to watch, and while I will still be able to enjoy the old episodes, there is now a permanent blemish that will lessen my appreciation of them. I know you will want to see for yourself, but you really should not.
- 1
- 2
Best out of the Futurama movies!
posted on 14 Aug 2009This is my favorite Futrama movie so far. The jokes are hilarious and there is an interesting plot and theme. Dr Zoidberg is funny as always, and the D&D theme will amuse every fan of Futurama (after all, there is a little nerd in all of us, right?).Nibbler is central to one of the plots in the movie, and he's cute and fuzzy race is a welcome addition back into the fold as Fry and the Planetary express crew fight against Mom's robot empire.One of the best cartoon movies ever! I don't know how some of the other reviews can say that the jokes in this latest installment of Futurama fall flat, they are outright hilarious, a lot better than the 2nd one. Bender really shines in this movie, going crazy and turning into a giant LOTR nerd. I give it a 4/5. Go watch it now!