Blu-ray Review: 'Weird Al' Yankovic in 'UHF'

In the 25 years since its release, UHF, the only film starring ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic, has become a cult classic and justifiably so. It’s not a great movie - in fact, calling it a good movie is even a stretch - but it’s still fun in a "so bad it’s good" way. After all, who can resist seeing Michael Richards swing a mop around with a lightsaber sound effect?

UHF has a basic plot that would probably even make Frank Capra squeamish, but no one watches UHF for the paper-thin plot. For those interested, it centers on George Newman (Yankovic), a guy stuck flipping burgers with best friend Bob (David Bowe ... no, not Davie Bowie). Suddenly, his annoying uncle gives him the keys to a terrible TV station, Channel 62.

Suddenly, the bizarro shows he airs starts getting viewers and the attention of evil network boss R.J. Fletcher (Kevin McCarthy), who sees Channel 62 as an enemy stealing his audience. He tries to shut down Channel 62, which doesn’t have the money to compete. Will the forces of good help George and his friends? Well, you can guess the answer.

UHF was conceived by a bunch of guys who really didn’t know the movie industry. Yankovic wrote it with his manager, Jay Levey, who also directed for some reason. Levey had helmed Yankovic’s popular music videos, but doing three-minute parody videos is a bit different from constructing a 90-minute comedy.

The film’s strong suit is the fact that Yankovic’s bizarre humor did survive the jump from vinyl to the big screen. It’s filled with hilarious dream sequences that parody films from Raiders of the Lost Ark to Rambo. Just thinking about Ghandi II makes me laugh. The wacky supporting cast is also brilliant. Try to keep a straight face as Kuni (Gedde Watanabe) yells “You so stooooppiiiidddd!!!” at the poor Wheel of Fish contestants. And Richards is just perfect as Stanley, who winds up hosting a kid’s show on Channel 62.

You can also find Victoria Jackson as Teri, George’s girlfriend, and Fran Drescher as the network’s secretary-turned-reporter.

UHF has been given the deluxe Blu-ray treatment from Shout Factory, a label that specializes in beloved cult movies like this. The disc includes all the previous material from the DVD, including the Yankovic/Levey commentary and deleted scenes. (The commentary is worth listening to, as it’s filled with self-deprecating humor. Even Weird Al knows the movie is terrible.) The new feature is Yankovic’s 2014 San Diego Comic Con panel.

Also, the quality of the film is remarkable for such a low-budget movie from 1989. There’s visible damage, but fans will be pleased, even if they have the DVD.

If you love UHF, you probably already bought this when it came out early this month. This is hard to recommend if you haven’t seen it, but if you like Yankovic’s music, you’ll love this movie.