I have written about Birdemic so much (SO MUCH) since it came out in early 2010. It’s just one of those movies that’s so bad… well so bad it’s still bad, but still entertaining as the visual and audible trainwreck. But it would be a lie to say I could have gotten through the movie without the help of the Rifftrax. So it only made sense to go to my city’s showing of the movie for Rifftrax Live. And considering the week I’ve had (funerals are just a delight, aren’t they?), I needed some comedy tonight.

If I can say anything against this particular live riff, it’s that I do wish they hadn’t used so many of the jokes from their original riff. Some of them were a given because this movie is so very specific about it’s bizarreness (SPRUCE BARK BEETLES). But because I’ve watched the first riff so many times, I could have used a few more variations on those jokes. However, the new jokes in the riffs were pretty hilarious. Some of them were more current references, but others just pointed out new things about how insane this movie is. And each of the guys imitating Rod in their own way throughout the movie is pretty great, too.

We also got a riff of another short starring Norman. … OK, that makes zero sense unless you saw the Manos live riff, but trust me. It was good. Maybe not quite as good as the first Norman short, but that was more the short than the riff – I missed the peppy yet melancholy soundtrack that came with the first one.

The sad thing is that the first half of the event wasn’t nearly as enjoyable for me because just a couple of empty seats away from me was this really irritating guy who laughed how I imagine Birdemic‘s “hero” Rod would laugh if Rod had enough brain cells to understand humor. Another tell was how he’d react with boisterous laughter a good two seconds after everyone else … yep, that’s Rod! My boyfriend and I actually (discreetly) moved to the other side of the theater because it got so ridiculous, only to be right by a guy who thought it was just as hilarious for him to say “solr panls” at random points as it was for the riffers to do it and right in front of a guy who laughed exactly like Goofy. This has nothing to do with the quality of the event, I just felt like sharing our terrible luck.

So yes, check out the DVD when it inevitably comes out in a few months. If anything, watch it for the shrieks of delight when the audience (many of whom had never seen the movie) was just laughing at the stupidity and ridiculousness of the movie itself. Hell, just the hack editing and cinematography is laughable … and don’t get me started on those 90s gifs.