Film: Mom And Dad Save The World aka: Momand Dad Savethe World
Mom and Dad Save the World is a 1992 film parody of Flash Gordon which stars Jon Lovitz, Teri Garr, Jeffrey Jones, Eric Idle, Thalmus Rasulala and other actors. Jon Lovitz plays Emperor Tod Spengo who is the cruel, silly and over-dramatic emperor of the planet named Spengo(which Spengo named Spengo after he conquerd it). Teri Garr plays Marge Nelson and Jeffrey Jones plays Dick Nelson, her husband.Emperor Spengo, with General Afir at his side, takes over a small planet at the edge of the galaxy populated entirely by idiots, and renames it after himself. He orders that all the resources of the planet should be engaged to create his "Super Death Ray Laser". The laser's purpose is to destroy Earth, thus making Spengo the greatest planet in the Universe. When Emperor Spengo looks at exactly where his Laser would strike, he sees Marge Nelson exercising — and falls in love.Using his Magnobeam (a giant magnet), he kidnaps Marge and her husband Dick as they are on their way to a 20th-anniversary weekend. He hopes to make Marge his before he blows up the Earth. Dick and Marge get separated on Spengo, Marge is sent to the lap of luxury, waited on by small people with fish or dog heads, while Dick is thrown into a dungeon. Can Dick find his way back to Marge? Can the rightful king of Spengo retake his throne? What the hell were Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon smoking when they wrote this? Weed. Bales and bales of weed. So it's a Disney movie?It won every Hugo Award that it was nominated for except Best Dramatic Presentation; it lost to Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
The Caligula: Emperor Tod Spengo. If it weren't a comedy, he could be downright frightening.
Call Back: "It's in my pants." "He does know father!"
Compensating for Something. Tod Spengo, in droves. In fact, he wants to destroy the Earth for certain reasons.
Tod: The Earth! You think you're so big. So important!
Really compensating.
Tod: Greetings, Marge Nelson. I am Tod the Destroyer, ruler of all you see. Impressed?
Marge: Oh, yes. You have an absolutely adorable little planet here. Tod:(strained laugh) Ah, hah. Oh, so... you think my planet is little? Marge: Oh, yes, it's just tiny. Tod:(barely contained rage) I'll have you know, Marge Nelson, it's not the size of your planet, it's how you use it!
And it goes on.
Marge: Todd... are you... insecure? Tod:(denial laugh) Hah! Me? Insecure? If I were insecure WHY WOULD I SPEAK SO LOUDLY? Hm? How about now, dear Marge? What do you think of me now?!
If you look at the plate on the wall which Dick and Marge stand in front of for a picture, it shows a "scale comparison" between the Sears Tower and Spengo's tower.
Ditto Aliens: Averted with the dog-men and fish-ladies, who possess differing fur/scale tones and patterns within their individual type. Marge is even able to recognize her guard from a fish-lady's family photo she'd seen earlier, and offer marriage counseling to help him get back together with his wife.
Face Palm: One of the Dog Guards during the "mutton chop" scene below.
Family Friendly Firearms: The laser weapons are especially jarring since the planet's denizens themselves know and acknowledge that they are all idiots.
Fur Bikini: Worn by the female natives. The men wear loincloths are and mostly bare-chested as well.
Gender Equals Breed: It is implied that the bulldog-men and fish-ladies are members of the same species.
Idiot Plot: Damon Knight's phrase "second-order idiot plot" is practically Lampshaded because it's explicitly stated that everyone living in the fictional society really is an idiot.
Lampshade Hanging: Give them credit - the denizens of Spengo know they're idiots.
Killer Rabbit: The Lubb-Lubbs, which resemble cute, smiling mushroom like beings. Their actual mouths are huge and sharklike, filled with nasty pointy teeth.
Also filled with another mouth that is also filled with nasty pointy teeth.
They do taste good - at least to the natives - with heavy grease. Yum!
Only Sane Man: General Afir through most of the film, even when compared to Dick and Marge.
Paper-Thin Disguise: The rebels wear large bird costumes to avoid being spotted, even though there are no birds nearly that large on the planet. Given their opposition, it might have been a pretty effective tactic anyway.
Pig Latin: It seems it's the natural language of the planet.
Sirk: Aketay offay irdbay askmay!
Pimped-Out Dress: Both really cheesy dresses Marge is forced to wear.
Poor Man's Substitute: Inverted. Tod was originally going to be named "Jon Lovitz" because the character was so heavily based on the actor, but the director and producer thought there was no way they could hire him. Lovitz ended up taking the part and loved the Tod-based set pieces so much he said he wanted to take them home and set them up around his pool.
Planet of Hats: Everyone on the entire planet of Spengo is a flaming idiot.
The rare example where the society knows it. "I'm the smartest one here, and I'm an idiot."
Though even they may be exaggerating. King Raff, when his intelligence is returned to normal, is able to speak in technical terms ("I have reversed the polarity of the Magno-Beam. I will return you to your planet forthwith and in great haste."), and General Afir is anything but stupid, though he could be the Only Sane Man.
Spengo soldier: The Earth-man has a light grenade for a head!
Strangely enough, it isn't the "Pick Me Up" message which gets them to pick it up. Only the man who picks it up before the platoon leader makes the call reads it. The rest (it's implied) seem to fall from a chain of dialogue which causes the next man to pick it up. They're just that stupid.
Tastes Like Friendship: Marge offers a dog-guard a granola bar in the course of offering marriage counseling.
The Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer: Just like John Carter of Mars was able to use his comparatively Heavy Worlder physique to become a Martian Warlord, Dick Nelson is able to take the entire planet of Spengo by storm despite being your average suburbanite because he's the only person on the planet besides his wife who is not an idiot.
Too Dumb to Live: Many examples, but aside from the "Light Grenade", this example takes the cake.
Tod Spengo: Hey you. What do you think - mutton chops or goatee? Be honest. Twin Destroyer #1: Mutton chops, my lord? Tod Spengo:(considers for a moment) No. No, I like the goatee better. Shoot yourself in the head. (a beat) NOW. (Twin Destroyer #1 complies with a blaster to his own head.) Tod Spengo: Well? How about you? Twin Destroyer #2:(a beat, then brightly) Mutton chops! (Tod Spengo glares at him. Twin Destroyer #2 sighs, then shoots himself.) Tod Spengo: Planet of idiots. (Tod continues to check himself in the mirror.) You know what? They got a point. (Dog Guard Face Palm)
Trojan Horse: The giant bust of Tod Spengo. Of course, the rebels nailed it shut so there's no way for anyone to get in... or get out.
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