Disney’s “Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension” is silly, smart, somewhat subversive summer fun

Jim Hill

13 years ago

You know, the "Phineas & Ferb" universe has some hard-and-fast
rules (WARNING !! There are spoilers ahead. If you're not already familiar with
the inner working of this Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel & Disney XD
series, now would be a very good time to bail out of today's JHM article).

1) The show's title characters are unaware that Perry, their
pet platypus has a secret identity. That he's Agent P, a secret agent who
continually does battle with Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz.

2) Dr. Doofenschmirtz is never able to connect the dots
(i.e. realize that Phineas & Ferb's pet is the exact same platypus who keeps thwarting
his schemes).

3) Phineas & Ferb's sister Candace is obsessed with A)
busting her brothers and B) mooning over her boyfriend Jeremy.

Which is what makes this Friday night's Disney Channel
Original Movie, "Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2^nd Dimension" so much
fun. In that series creators Dan Povenmire & Jeff "Swampy" Marsh – working with
Jon Colton Barry – have crafted a teleplay that gleefully tosses all of Phineas
& Ferb's hard-and-fast rules right out the window.

Take – for example – what happens when young Mr. Flynn
discovers that his pet platypus has been hiding his secret identity from the
step brothers for all of these years. The normally upbeat & sunny Phineas suddenly
becomes irate. He turns to Perry and says "Wait a minute. I just realized. You
could have been cleaning your own litter box this whole time. Oh, we are not
done with this conversation."

You see what I'm saying? The teleplay that Barry, Marsh and
Povenmire put together for this new Disney Channel Original Movie has a genuinely
silly &subversive streak. Which is why the story of "Across the 2nd
Dimension" never quite goes where you expect it to.

Which brings me to what happens when Doofenschmirtz finally fires
up his latest invention, which is an alternate dimension-nator. And the first
image that Heinz gets to see from beyond his plain of existence is that of … a
couch. Which Doofenschmirtz immediately decides to swap for the somewhat dumpy
couch that he currently has in his lair. Which is smelling pretty funky right about
now, given that Perry the Platypus has just peed on the thing.

But it's not too long before Heinz meets up with the other
Doofenshmirtz, who is the supreme leader of this alternate dimension. Which
then leads to one of "Across the 2^nd Dimension" 's more memorable
song-and-dance numbers, "A Brand New Best Man (And it's Me)." Where – in a
witty montage sequence – the two Heinzes are then depicted as some of the great
teams from film & television history. Among them Ralph Kramden & Ed
Norton, Lucy & Ethel, Laverne & Shirley and Jake & Elwood Blues.
Not to mention Laurel and Hardy as well as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

And speaking of movies …"Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2^nd
Dimension" features all sorts of great little nods to classic genre films.
Whether it's Major Monogram's hologram echoing the sound & the underscore
from that moment in "Star Wars IV: A New Hope" where Obi Wan Kenobi first sees Princess
Leia's hologram or those swarms of Normbots flying out over Danville that
clearly reference the flying monkeys from "The Wizard of Oz". Or that cliffhanger
of an action sequence where Phineas, Ferb, Candace, Perry and Heinz are
dangling over a pool of hot lava; a scene which was obviously heavily
influenced by "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom."

"And how do they get out of that one?," you ask. Well, I don't want to give away too
much of the plot of this new Disney Channel Original Movie. But wait 'til
you see the alternate dimension version of Candace. Who's basically the general
in charge of the resistance and is this completely fearless character.

But perhaps the most important question is – if you haven't
ever seen an episode of Disney's "Phineas & Ferb" – can you really enjoy
watching "Across the 2^nd Dimension" ? Well, I have to admit that if
you're completely unfamiliar with this Disney Channel & Disney XD series,
there's at least one scene (i.e. where Phineas, Ferb & friends – as they get
ready to do battle with those swarms of Normbots that the evil Doofenshmitz has unleashed on Danville – basically trot out
every bizarre device & contraption that the step brothers have invented
over the course of this TV show) that probably won't play as well as it should.

But even if you're an adult who doesn't have any kids in
your life, you'll still undoubtedly enjoy watching "Phineas and Ferb: Across
the 2^nd Dimension." If only for this TV movie's nonsequitur-filled
dialogue (EX: "Get me. I'm a Georgia O'Keefe painting," "I don't believe it. I
am a woman of science. Or at least that's what my horoscope said." "Two words: La. Va." "You know,
my crimes against humanity had just completely slipped my mind." "I never built
an amnesia-inator. I think I'd remember building something like that").

So I guess what I'm trying to say here is … Don't make the
mistake of thinking that "Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2^nd Dimension"
is just some throwaway piece of entertainment that's aimed at the kiddies.
This Disney Channel Original Movie is a silly, smart if somewhat subversive summer
tonic. Full of the sorts of witty exchanges
…

PHINEAS: We just want to go home.

ALTERNATE DIMENSION CANDACE: So what's stopping you?

PHINEAS: Right now, quantum physics.

… that will stick with you long after this new TV movie ("In
Fabulous 2D") has initially aired on the Disney Channel & Disney XD.

"Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2^nd Dimension"
premieres this Friday night, August 5th on the Disney Channel at 8 p.m. ET/PT.