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Memorable, crazy movie

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Mascots is a mockumentary in the vein of This is Spinal Tap, but this time it's sporting mascots; those who dress up in costumes to keep the crowd entertained in lulls on the field, be it football, hockey, cricket, whatever. The film follows a number of different mascot acts, from a husband and wife double act having marriage troubles to a feminist dancer who takes it a little too seriously, to a third generation British mascot to a vulgar "bad boy" mascot for Canadian hockey, and a number of others. We follow them as they all come together for a Mascotting competition, where they show off their acts and compete for the Gold Fluffy.Mascots is a little light on laughs, even though it does try it's best to be a laugh-a- minute kind of comedy. Empirically I don't think I really laughed out loud at all, maybe once. Usually it was just a little chuckle. So on a ROFL to Heh rating, it's definitely on the lower end. Most of its humour is more satirical in nature, poking fun at the event and those who take part, but honestly it's most enjoyable moments are when it ditches the satire and embraces full entertainment. By the third act I didn't care about the characters underneath the costumes and just wanted more of the performances themselves. The combination of dance and slapstick fused together to create the film's most interesting moments, like the British guy's hedgehog trying to set up a cup of tea and getting distracted by footballs, or a plumber having a dance-off with a s**t that bursts out of a toilet. Even the super- serious art/dance performance of the feminist armadillo was far more entertaining than much of the movie, despite it depicting the audience as thoroughly bored.I definitely found a nationalistic divide in the characters too. The British guy with his wife and father were probably my favourite characters, garnering the biggest laughs. Likewise the Canadian hockey mascot was also hugely entertaining. Maybe I found them more entertaining because I'm British, or maybe it's because Christopher Guest has a better grasp on British humour than American, or maybe it's because the American actors and actresses couldn't quite hit the same satirical notes that the British and Irish actors could? I honestly don't know, but the divide in quality was certainly noticeable. Other highlights include the conversation between an old-timer and a dwarf, and a conversation about Furries.There are worse ways to while away the time than by watching Mascots. Even though this is the longest I've gone between watching and reviewing, Mascots was easily forgettable after a couple of hours, but I can't really say it was bad. If you want a laugh-out-loud comedy, look somewhere else, if you want a mockumentary Mascots hits the spot as well as any other, but won't be remembered or marked as one of the greats. At best I find myself completely apathetic to it. I give it an okay 5/10.

From the preview on Netflix, this looked pretty funny, and having seen most of Christopher Guest's movies, I had plenty of reason to think the preview was accurate.But the film as a whole is lacking. It has too much down time, too many characters we have little reason to care about. The structure and plot are almost exactly the same as "Best in Show". It is as though Guest took Netflix's money and just switched from dogs to mascots.Some parts were better than others. Parker Posey, as always, is fantastic. And some of the mascot routines were good -- the Plumber routine, as well as the Hedgehog. I did like the idea of the armadillo having tire tracks on it.

Christopher Guest has always made seriously hilarious mockumentaries. Beginning with the classic comedy "This is Spinal Tap," Guest has riffed on every subject from local theater, to dog shows, and here he is taking on the world of mascots. He assembled some of his favorite actors (Jane Lynch, Parker Posey, Ed Begley Jr., and John Michael Higgins to name a few) and has released his newest film "Mascots," on Netflix. Though Guest uses the same great set-up as many of his past films, sometimes tried and true methods are more tired and false.While I have enjoyed all six of Guest's written mockumentaries, this film is a bore-fest from start to finish.For one thing it doesn't feel like a mockumentary. There's too much polish and obvious talking heads flavoring this film for it to feel like anything other than a run of the mill, factory made comedy. Though there are a couple of chuckles to be had at the witty banter, there's nothing truly incisive about the commentary of this film. The world of mascoting might be small, like the dog show circuit, but it's not one that truly lends to a lot of social discourse, or any true characterizations of small town America, which is Guest's bread and butter. It wouldn't surprise me if the entire reason Guest chose mascots is part of the film concerning the Furry community, which is the only truly interesting bit of the film.Some aspects of the film feel really stale and out of place. The entire plot turn where Cindi Babineaux's school's past is called into question, was clearly unneeded, because it does nothing but hinder the plot and confuse the audience. It's also unclear why Fred Willard and Brad Williams conversation needs to happen at all, except to show a character out of their depth. Actually a lot of the cast feels unneeded or written poorly, including the married couple, The Fist and his straight man, and all the side mascots. The routines aren't even really about supporting a team. They're often influenced more by vaudeville, or clown culture, which doesn't fit into the film at all.Honestly, this would have made for a better television show. It would be great to see these characters in a more in-depth way, and really explain mascot culture for those of us completely in the dark. Though it's clear much of the cast is trying their darndest to recapture the old magic of "Waiting for Guffman," and "A Mighty Wind," this is probably the lowest Christopher Guest has ever sunk. (Barring "Almost Heroes" of course.)

Not the greatest film, but has plenty of laughs and guffaws. Seeing this cast is like seeing old friends. There's hilarity, stupidity, and complete schizoid moments that make absolutely no sense at all. But hey, remember that this is a C. Guest film. What more were you expecting? At a budget of the listed $20,000,000, you can be sure a LOT of that went into the elaborate costumes and pro for the mascots.That is, unless they raided a lot of high school and community college storage bins. Like other mockumentary films by Mr. Guest, get past the character set-ups and the pay-off is in the competition. It does not disappoint!I will recommend this ONLY to friends who also enjoy the antics of Christopher Guest.