Obviously, there are lots of great Netflix original movies and shows, but it seems like they give big contracts to anyone whose ever made a dime in their life, leading to disasters like Thunder Force, Yes Day, Red Notice and He’s All That that were critically poorly received. Moreover Real Rob has been given as a show by Rob Schneider which is thought by many as the worst show ever created with 0% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Judd Apatow’s The Bubble (22% on Rotten Tomatoes) or Adam Sandler’s The Do-Over (8%) seemed like sure bets to some people; maybe something along the lines of Mike Myers’ other stuff would have seemed too easy for him too, hence the six-episode series The Pentaverate. Unfortunately (and almost predictably at this point), it’s pretty bad. In comedy though stupidity, immaturity, bad writing, ridiculous special effects and just about anything else is acceptable provided it makes you laugh. But most of the time The Pentaverate doesn’t.
Austin Powers films from Mike Myers are one of the most successful parody series in comedy history with possibly the best SNL skits based film called Wayne’s World. It has been more than a decade since audiences saw much of Myers who chose not to take long form projects so as to stay close with his younger kids. Consequently he worked on Supermensch documentary and had an unforgettable appearance in Bohemian Rhapsody (and Inglourious Basterds), but that was all that happened over those years. Therefore what does he come back with? A TV series based upon a throwaway line from thirty years ago in his box office disaster So I Married an Axe Murderer?
It appears so. However So I Married an Ax Murderer has aged well; now considered a cult classic from the ‘90s that deserved better than its reception back in 1993. All the same it is a little bit strange that Mike Myers’ first major new project in ages is derived from a one-liner dating back thirty years, and also very sad that the humor in The Pentaverate feels almost 30-years old as well. It is honestly sad, given how much talent Myers has as an actor and writer alone, not to mention Ken Jeong, Keegan-Michael Key, Lydia West, Jeremy Irons and the amazing Jennifer Saunders.
However, it’s a sweet show in many ways that has its heart at least in the right place as kindness and niceness are what matter most; this kind of loving wink towards Canada was there even before (Myers published Canada about his own country in the last decade). It could be good if not for being largely unfunny. It does make some good points about conspiracies, truth dying out journalism and government but fails to get them across.
The movie is about a 700-year-old shadowy organization called The Pentaverate, which controls the world through five characters who are experts in their respective fields. One of them, a parody of Jaron Lanier’s weakness, dies and thus they decide to replace him with another one but he too dies and therefore foul play is suspected. In the meantime, an elderly Canadian journalist has been dismissed from his job as a sort of “man-on-the-street” reporter and believes that he can save his career by getting just one good story. He starts rabbit hole-ing down into conspiracy theories hoping to expose what could be considered a hidden group that hardly anyone knew exist or believe existed: The Pentaverate.
All these lives come together in the least likely and stupidest way; it’s as though Myers, along with co-writers Roger Drew and Ed Dyson thought they didn’t have to write the script at all since there wasn’t any need for narrative, character development, dialogue or plot. That aside, if a comedy actually succeeds in being funny this can sometimes be overlooked; however, scarce moments here tickle you. It’s three hours long and filled with good talent that does produce some laughs but 95% of The Pentaverate feels like a terrible waste. Funny? More often than not listening to someone who believes in conspiracies for three hours may make you laugh more.
Myers does his usual multiple-role thing playing something like nine people here but barely distinguishes each one except by their nationality (the Russian guy, Englishman, Australian man, Canadian man etc.). Even the make-up and prosthetics fail; all these individuals nearly look like 70-year-old Mike Myers only varying in degrees of hair.
The same shoddy and cheap quality extends itself even into the special effects as well digital work while atrocious results follow anytime CGI comes on board Occasionally also The pentaverate will harken back to the cheesy ‘80s special effects with the knowingness of Tim Kirkby’s previous project called Look Around You. The sets feel claustrophobic and then poorly manipulated through green screens or editing, and everything just feels ridiculously cheap and rushed, not least the storyline, which is a race to the finish between boredom and incomprehensibility, resulting in a tie.
This is one of many reasons why The Pentaverate is painful to watch but one should note that it is by no means always humorous. First of all, this talent on display in these movies could certainly do better than that; this is most evident when there are funny moments by relaying a message about what these performers can do. Also hard for anyone who grew up loving Mike Myers (whether from SNL in the late ‘80s or Austin Powers’s generation later) to watch his work come crashing down before their eyes so spectacularly he’s an icon with iconic characters, but none of those exist in The Pentaverate.
Third, The Pentaverate feels like a missed opportunity. It really could have been a great kids’ show, it is silly and zany and children’s audience does not worry so much about lack of story line or immature jokes. Nevertheless, the series goes out of its way to make sure that parents keep their children away from it by jokingly referring several times to censorship while rewinding certain scenes back and substituting curse words (which ironically make the scene even more graphic) or pixelating on penises. However, very adult language constantly prevents this from being watched by children yet, the juvenile elements in it dull attempts at comedy and poorly planned storylines will not be enough to attract most people above 20. Thus, The Pentaverate seems to be meant for ages 17-19 year olds.
Comedy is subjective obviously though there’s no shame in laughing at this one. From my own perspective as a viewer I honestly wish I had probably given in to cynicism suspicion and skepticism concerning digital era that The Pentaverate appears so contrary to. And that’s finally why this series gets painful – some genuinely noble good intentions which are either so obvious with the message that they come off as almost parody-like or completely lost amidst confusion.
Ultimately beneath endless stupid jokes and poor makeup choices The Pentaverate discusses journalism truthfulness and kindness under modern conditions when all these good notions erode quickly. A topical conspiracy theory comedy at this moment (more effectively handled by Inside Job) considering roughly 40% of Americans’ belief that the last US election was rigged or Joe Biden did not actually win etc., as well as nearly 20% of Americans’ dangerous delusionary QAnon conspiracy thoughts.
From people believing that snowstorms were fake (and taking videos of themselves burning snowballs) to the belief that COVID vaccines will tag people with 5G microchips, the conspiracy thriller is an active part of everyday life, and a massive political threat internationally. Even deliberately made-up, satirical conspiracy theories (such as the ‘birds aren’t real’ joke) have developed actual honest believers. This has led to millions upon millions of people buying into destructive, hateful ideas run by white nationalists, anti-Semites, and all-around lunatics who exploit their suspicions and conspiratorial fears for profit], resulting in consistently close elections in America, France, and around the world.
Myers does make a good point at this juncture but it is his presumably loving journalist character which is the “hero” of our times (presumably because there’s almost no character development or exposition about him or anyone else so that essentially his Canadian citizenship means he’s kind). A fair comment but one moved far from comic intervention unfortunately.
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