Futurama: The Beast With A Billion Backs Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES PLOT SUMMARY
The Planet Express crew must work to fix rips between their universe and another inhabited by a planet-sized, tentacle alien which soon takes over the Earth and uses it's ability to control Fry to command an entire religion which takes over and convinces the inhabitants of Earth to abandon the Earth to live in a pseudo-heaven, leaving the robots of the world to inherit the planet.
| Dan Castellaneta | Robot Devil |
| David Cross | Yivo |
| John Di Maggio | Bender/Additional Voices |
| Stephen Hawking | Himself |
| David Herman | Dr. Ogden Wernstrom/Giant Medium-Sized Ant/Additional Voices |
| Maurice LaMarche | Kif Kroker/Additional Voices |
| Phil LaMarr | Hermes Conrad/Ndulu/Additional Voices |
| Frank Welker | Nibbler/Additional Voices |
| Billy West | Philip J. Fry/Dr. Zoidberg/Prof. Hubert J. Farnsworth/Zapp Brannigan/Richard Nixon's Head/Bolt Rolands/Additional Voices |
7.40 out of 10 (5864 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Another great to add to the Futurama collection.
posted on 26 Aug 2009This is the second installment in the Futurama movie franchise and another great film to add to any Futurama collection. This movie was almost as good as the first but the story was a bit dry and un-dynamic. If this was an episode on TV, it'd be one of those middle of the road episodes. Not great but still good. The jokes seemed a tad more raunchy then with other Futurama content. I guess with the direct to DVD release they can get away with a lot of that stuff. As always this movie is another top notch animated film. I must say it looks and sounds so much better on DVD. The opening theme sounded awesome. I didn't notice any changed voices or dropped characters. All I can really say is the story wasn't great but the little comedy bits thrown in were hilarious.
Futurama without Futurama
posted on 14 Aug 2009Ever since I saw Bender's big score I had been looking forward to the "sequel". But when I finally got my hands on it I was not satisfied, I was actually pretty disappointed. It lacked everything I like about Futurama and the storyline was really boring. At first I thought that the main plot of the movie would only be a subplot since it was that uninteresting. Not only was it boring but it also robs the one thing that makes Futurama to Futurama, the characters. Fry is not even close to being himself in this film and not even the lovable Bender is as fun as he can be. Instead the film revolves more around the more or less colorless Leila. I could have lived with that if it wouldn't have been for the already boring plot which was supposed to carry the movie forward. Although in math minus times minus might equal plus but in this case it does not! The whole "movie" feels like a really long and dull episode. If every episode from the last season of the series was as boring as this one I would understand why they canceled the show!I think Matt Groening and his team should sit down and re-watch the first season, and perhaps also the second one, and try to get back to what they wanted to express with the series. Because they have really lost their way if this is the best they can offer us from Futurama.
Coffee Enemas for everyone!!
posted on 31 Jul 2009Sorry to defecate on your parade, but the latest Futurama flick was awful. Awfully funny that is! The Beast with a Billion Backs was consistently funny from start to finish. From Zoidberg puking, Brannigan bumbling, and Kiff sighing, to Kiff's father's left testicle, the Harlem Globetrotter planet, the legendary Pazuzu, Amy's fantastic bod, and yes, even a little bit of the old fashioned Snoo-Snoo, The Beast with a Billion Backs had me instantly hooked from its Mickey Mouse inspired beginning. With a bizarre and extremely silly plot involving a horny universe and circuit jealousy, it's almost impossible to be bored with this flick. I shake my head at all the poindexters out there who claim they're Futurama fans but declare that this film is a failure.It's chock full of that Futuramary goodness that we all know and love. So, get a life, suck balls, and relax with a nice, scalding hot, coffee enema.
More clever than funny...
posted on 25 Jul 2009This movie was okay, but not great. The problem with Futurama, unlike the Simpsons, is that it was always more clever than actually funny.The producers have realized that the only people who will buy this DVD are the people who followed the original series when it was ham-handed by the Fox Network and then developed a cult following on Cartoon Network. If you are familiar with the series, you will be able to follow what is going on.The plot, per se, is that a rift has appeared between universes and Fry, after breaking up with his cheating girlfriend, decides to end it all by going into it. He comes back as the new "Space Pope" for a tentacled monster who takes over the minds of everyone. Hilarity ensues... Meanwhile, Bender joins the "League of Robots". There is also a subplot with Kiff and Amy finally tying the knot.It's fun to watch, but really, they don't actually advance the characters any. They still have Leela and Fry not advancing their relationship any. (What is it with Hollywood where you think sexual tension is more interesting than actual relationships?) Fun for the fan, not much interest to anyone else.
Better than some episodes
posted on 23 Jul 2009Well, after seeing the new movie, I was actually pleasantly surprised. The voice acting was as good as ever, and the animation was just like the rest of the series.Now, I'm a huge fan of the series, and frankly, the writing doesn't quite measure up to any of the good episodes. But honestly, I was expecting to be extremely disappointed. The trailer made it look a lot more revolting and shock humor based than it really was. Though it was indeed more disgusting than the series, there was more subtle humor than expected.Definitely worth at least one watch for a Futurama fan. For non-fans, I recommend checking out the television series first.
Beast is Best
posted on 21 Jul 2009This movie brings everyones favorite crew back to their home turf. The story is a very deep science fiction plot, while at the same time a bizarre love story, but more importantly... It's funny! After watching Benders Big Score, I was almost sure their was no hope for the series, no matter how hard I tried to enjoy it. This film was laugh out loud the entire time, filled in with classic Futurama sci-fi humor. Many popular characters (and not so) are present, but unlike Benders Big Score, they aren't rammed down your throat just to prove it is a Futurama title. I believe some of the best episodes of the series deal with Fry and Leela's potential relationship and ridiculous time travel, but so do the worst. Thank god this film steers clear by presenting a solid stand alone story, instead of ripping off previous fan favorite episodes. Overall the tone is much lighter and goofier than the slow and heavy preceding film, and should be viewed by everybody.
About two and a half good Futurama episodes
posted on 13 Jul 2009The problem with "Beast With A Billion Backs" isn't the writing, the storyline, the gags, or the inside references. Those are all just fine. Not great, but a decided improvement over the convoluted and fanservice-heavy "Bender's Big Score." The greater problem -- one that all four DVD movies will face -- is that Futurama's fantastic worlds and crazy plots just plain work better in 22-minute episodes than as 90-minute stories. It's hard to keep up the energy and the gags for that long, while also involving all the characters and hitting all the notes Futurama fans want to hear."Billion Backs" had its share of slow spots, and gags that should have never escaped the Deleted Scenes part of the DVD. (The "schkler" and "schklee" thing was painful.) The Yivo storyline could have been done in one focused episode (a la "The Day The Earth Stood Stupid"). The Bender/Calculon story would have been an okay B-story for a 22-minute episode, but it was weak for a feature-length movie. The other subplots weren't any deeper than you'd see in a single episode.I realize that the movie will be broadcast as individual episodes. They should have made them that way in the first place, and cut out the dull stuff.If you don't believe me, watch the "lost episode" bonus feature on the DVD. It's a compilation of cut-scenes from the Futurama video game, made into an "episode" of about 30 minutes. While it's nothing special, its fast pace and simple plot work a lot better than the padded-out, hit-and-miss main feature.Having said all that, "Billion Backs" is a fun story that should appeal to all Futurama fans. There are some great gags, some beloved characters we missed in the first DVD movie, a Futurama-quality plot, and a fun homage to 1950s-style monster horror flicks.
Good, but again, way too sappy
posted on 07 Jul 2009First of all, I am a die-hard Futurama fan. I've watched the whole series numerous times, and I keep replaying them again when I have time. I'm saying this because now I will rant about how disappointed I am in the recent two movies(especially this one), and before people try to flame me, hear my reasons.I thought that the movie will be back to the roots of sci-fi comedy that the series were. I was wrong. It seems like 4 years were too much time for the staff to keep the same spirit. I don't know if it's because they want to broaden their audience, seeing as this is on DVD and has to sell, but I feel like the movies have turned from sci-fi comedy to a chick flick. The first movie emphasized of Fry and Leela's (doomed) relationship, and I thought this one will be different, but this time around the sappy love stories are about Fry and his new girlfriend, Amy and Kiff, and to top it all, a planet-sized alien that loves all of mankind. I have nothing against sappy as long as it's in norm, but this movie is mostly about it. The jokes are there in the first 30 minutes maybe, then there is nothing but love story with occasional short gags. Note to authors: don't write 10 minute romance filled scenes, and try to put in 5-second jokes about Calculon's willie, gonorrhea, or nipple stimulation for relief. It's not working. They did not keep me from getting annoyed. I never laughed out loud during the movie as I did with the series.Now that I am done ranting, I will say what I liked and didn't like about the movie. This one was good, it had less in-jokes than the first one, but it had them more overall. The story was good enough, they tried to intertwine a few different side stories into the main plot, and it sort of worked. When we exclude all the sap from the story, it's a good movie, that has scenes almost as great as the first one did(nothing can top the space battle against the solid-gold deathstars, though), nice soundtrack and good gags.The movie's weaknesses, although minor if we exclude the sap, the under-utilizing of some characters. Zoidberg, for example, keeps being used as a prop, although they can make great jokes with him when they try. Same problem as Kenny in South Park. Other weakness, is that as in the first movie, the tempo really slowed down in some parts and the scenario is somewhere between mediocre and good. For conclusion, as a big fan of the series, I tried to force myself to love it. I really did, but I couldn't. It was good overall, but that's it. If they make the next two movies as they should - sci-fi comedies - I will be really pleased. Right now they keep feeding me romantic movies with sci-fi setting, and that's not doing it for me. If I want to watch a sappy romantic movie, I will rent a chick flick. Finally I would give it a score of 6 overall, which is low for Futurama. I hope this doesn't turn into standard and the next two movies be much better.
A real disappointment from a quality show
posted on 21 Jun 2009We are now halfway through the four planned Futurama feature-length films, and any optimism that was generated by 'Bender's Big Score' has most definitely been killed by 'The Beast with a Billion Backs'. The first one was well written, cute, clever, and often very funny. Sure, the jokes didn't always work, but the story was good and the writers seemed for the most part to be able to avoid reducing the characters to mere caricatures of themselves. The second one was downright idiotic. The characters aren't funny, only annoying. For instance, there's way too much Kif. Kif should never, or at least hardly ever be on screen without Zap. In the new one, he kind of reminds me of Jar Jar Binks, which I'm sure you will agree is no flattering comparison. Zap is also used way too predictably. Fry's new girlfriend is a pointless character. Fry himself contributes little in the way of humour. The writers seem to have converted him into a sniveling, sappy wimp, apparently with the aim of playing off his schmaltziness. But that trait is only endearing when it is occasional. As for the story, it lacks the delicious complexity of the first movie as well as some of the best episodes. The first hour flows like a glacier. The end of the film is the only decent bit, but it is hardly redeeming. Furthermore, the writers had a golden opportunity to make a deep, philosophical point at the end about the way humanity inevitably screws things up when it has a good thing going, but this was shamefully squandered. And finally, the league of robots and Kif/Amy wedding subplots are uninspired and nauseating, respectively, though the former does have its moments. All in all, it will be hard for the third installment to make 'The Beast with a Billion Backs' look good. Let's hope it doesn't.
Love it or cheese it!
posted on 09 Jun 2009I simply cannot understand the reason behind the bad reviews posted here. For fans: Futurama is back! And with great difference to the disappointment of Bender's Big Score, it's back on track and on it's toes once again. For non fans: Watch it, enjoy it, judge it then. It depicts characters in a realistic manner, they're understandable and their personalities are well portrayed, it also doesn't hurt at all the series as there's no spoilers or messing with timelines.I loved this film! It made laugh, it got me excited and it entertained me, a lot! It's fast paced, it has a well strung smart storyline and it doesn't abuse it's characters like the previous film. I had hard feelings about their previous attempt, I definitely hated Bender's Big Score as it got me worried that Futurama was completely lost, but this film turned around all of that! I'm tremendously glad that Groening and co. managed to return from the dark side of over-dramatic plots accompanied of simple knock knock jokes to once again deliver great, quirky and smart episodes.Futurama is back folks!
I disagree with the people say it doesn't live to "standards"
posted on 09 Jun 2009I know there are people saying that it doesn't live to the standards of Futurama the episodes, but granted you would have to figure since the stories have to go for a lot longer. To me this hit the spot as far as the TV series goes.What people forget is what made Futurama so funny was the subtle humor, it wasn't so, insert-punchline-here humor, it was noticeable, like you have to see the humor in it, that makes it funny. The characters isn't exactly the way it was in the show, but it is really close, fry isn't as dim witted, and that was pretty much the only character difference I could tell that was so different.If you want a real disappointment of not living to standards, see Benders Big Score, that was more of Futurama gone drama, the only funny part was the intro, after that it kept a real serious tone, which isn't the Futurama I remember, and when you still watch the old episodes as much as me (3-4 a day) you know how Futurama plays out, and how it should go.Overall: In my books better than BBS, plays out just great, and it is really funny, and if you remember a lot of the old episodes, it will be more entertaining
Like meeting your ex
posted on 30 May 2009I LOVE Futurama, watched all the episodes dozens of times, this movie brings up the nostalgic emotions - to see all the beloved characters back on the screen... but for heavens sake, couldn't you invest in the plot ?! It is obviously not enough just to draw the all familiar characters and make them move around aimlessly !!! The plot is very low grade, patches of coherent dialogs pop up without much of a connection between them, lots of micro stories embedded which have a big difficulty connecting with one another... I can say one thing - I'm not giving up on the show, will certainly watch the rest of the movies, but pray to god that they improve in the next ones...
too much
posted on 16 May 2009i like Futurama, Simpsons, Family guy, Southpark. Billion Backs is limited. the only characters i found funny were Bender and Calculon. the rest are lame, some (zoidberg) ridiculous to the point of being offensive.the movie doesn't have a start and there too many boring stories for characters. i like futurama but the first episode of series one was the best and this movie is just rubbish. watch half of it when you have nothing to do then the other half when your life depended on it. you can cross that imaginary bridge when your world is coming to and end.
Good, classic Futurama
posted on 14 May 2009Well, its a good film. It was entertaining, the story was worthy of an 1hr 30mins film. If you don't like futurama or you are not much of a fan, this film isn't for you. If you are a futurama fan you will not be disappointed by this film.All the same old gang are there, getting up to the same old nonsense, but even 1hr into the film I wasn't bored. Usually with films like this one I get bored easily and often think that it is a 'half hour show'. In this instance, though, I have been proved wrong.Although I will not rush out to watch this film again, it was entertaining and funny so its a well deserved 6/10.
From Parodying Good Sci-Fi To Making It Themselves!
posted on 10 Apr 2009The first Futurama movie felt like a collection of episodes strung together, "Benders Big Score" was enjoyable for fans, but like "the family guy movie", or "the Simpson's movie", it doesn't do anything the show didn't do, the same cannot be said for "The Beast With A Billion Backs", which while not as laugh a second as it could be(still multiple laughs per minute) is strengthened by being one of the strongest stories that Futurama has ever ran.My favorite Futurama episode finds Bender floating in space alone, and a tiny microscopic colony grows onto his back, and begins worshiping him as their God, in trying to help improve their lives, he ultimately destroys them all, and then encounters a large energy being in the middle of space, who for all intense and purposes is the God...who doesn't seem to know who he is or what he is doing, but knows that God can't please everyone and if his job is done right no one "should" know he exists at all.. moments like that are the reason I watched Futurama in the first place, and its the kind of thinking that produced "The Beast With A Billion Backs", which is possibly the most unique, thought provoking, and amusing love story, I've ever seen in an animated film, or maybe ever.It's a metaphysical love story, with inter-dimensional sea monsters and robotic demonic pirates, it's a story of infidelity and jealousy (not just with Fry, consider the subplot of Kif and Amy, compare Fry's first relationship with his last, Benders final monologue, etc). Is love personal or universal, can it be shared or must it be guarded, can any kind of perfect love exist within imperfect human conditions? Can/should God love everyone? Because it's Futurama you don't sit down, expecting to be challenged or even moved. "Sorry Bender...Robots don't go to heaven...", but that's just how it ends up.So no this does not feel like "The Futurama" you've seen a thousand times before, it's best moments are still there, but it has a sense of direction, purpose, and story structure, that's its never had before, and is damned commendable. The best adult cartoon movie since "South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut", but as much for the story telling itself as the laughs.It's the Cthulu Love story of our times!
Another 90 minute long episode.
posted on 08 Apr 2009'Futurama' is one of my favorite shows that's up there with 'Family Guy' and 'South Park'.The series was so good, that it actually spawned 4 movies.'Futurama: The Beast With A Billion Backs' isn't excellent, but it does deliver the same entertainment that the television series delivered.Add in some rude and sexual humor, and you have a 90 minute long television-based-movie that doesn't let up for a minute.In this episode, a rip in the universe causes tentacles to pour out on to Earth in order to take over humanity.It's up to the one eyed alien Leela to stop the infestation and save Earth.If you enjoy funny one-liners and lots of rude humor, then you should enjoy 'Futurama: The Beast With A Billion Backs'.
Starts off slow, but becomes quite good when the tentacles show up
posted on 29 Mar 2009The second of the direct-to-DVD Futurama movies, following Bender's Big Score. The previous movie was okay, but in my opinion felt like it was just a bit too giddy to be back, bringing in dozens and dozens of side-characters and, in the end, feeling overstuffed. I can't say I like The Beast with a Billion Backs a lot more, but it's definitely a step in the right direction. In fact, if I were just to judge from the second half of the movie, I'd say it feels like we have classic Futurama back. Yes, the second half or so, where the titular monster, a tentacly universe named Yivo (David Cross) that invades our own universe, is extremely clever and funny. The revelation of what it's actually up to is awesome. It takes way too long for the movie to get to the best stuff, though, instead spending a lot of time with a B-story that would stand only as a half-decent episode, where Bender becomes Calculon's stalker. This story descends into the oft-visited theme where Bender is jealous of other people taking up Fry's time. There's also a halfway amusing plot where Fry discovers he's just one of five boyfriends to his new girlfriend, and another fairly forgettable story where Kiff and Amy get married. Most of the duller stuff in the first half of the movie does pay off very well when Yivo shows up.
Please Don't watch this movie!!!
posted on 21 Mar 2009This is probably the worst movie i have ever seen.I am a big fan of Futurama.The first movie even though not as good as the show was very watchable.But i seriously don't know why they even remotely thought of making this movie.There is no story line.There is no comedy.They haven't used benders character well.And the love life of fry is also very stupidIn fact i was waiting for the 1 hour 28 min to get over.I think was watching my watch for more time than watching the movie.I finished the movie just because i started it.So please don't waste an hour and a half of your life.
Love is a many-tentacled thing.
posted on 15 Mar 2009"Good news, everyone".First off, this is not as good as the first Futurama movie. There just isn't the same high quality for most of the gags and the story itself isn't quite as funny (although it IS funny).Now that I've said that I want to add that this is still funnier than about 90% of theatrical releases from the last 5 years and for Futurama fans there really is very little to complain about.The plot involves a beast from another universe falling in love with absolutely everyone on Earth, Bender doing his usual immoral acts, characters enduring heartbreak and even death and . . . . . . a number of disputes being settled by the superb game known as Death Ball.If you love the show then you'll be pleased to know that most of the characters get their share of good lines and screen time (although the focus, as ever, tends to stay with Fry and Bender) and there are some enjoyable cameos along the way too. But, as with the first movie, it's not really going to win over too many new converts. Of course, we fans know that everyone else is just missing out anyway so enjoy another outing with the Planet Express crew and keep your senses peeled for more visual gags, references and clever wordplay than you can shake a bunch of tentacles at.See this if you like: Futurama, Invaders From Mars, Earth Girls Are Easy.
Good but not completely satisfactory
posted on 30 Aug 2009I have always been an enormous fan of the TV series Futurama.I think that programme is very funny and,although it does not seem at first sight,the stories from the different chapters are really intelligent.So,I had a lot of interest in watching the film Futurama : The Beast with a Billion Backs.And,although the film entertained me,I have to say it disappointed me a little bit.Let's go with the fails first.I did not feel the story was well structured and some elements feel incoherent and forced.I would have preferred more focus on the screenplay.Plus,some moments of humor do not flow too well.Having said all that,I have to admit the film has many good elements.It undoubtedly entertained me and some moments are very funny.I also appreciated the dynamic tone from this movie.In summary,Futurama : The Beast with a Billion Backs is a good film which entertains.But the whole does not totally satisfy.Still,I can recommend this movie if you wanna have a good time.