Aug 9, 2006

Overrated films part 17.

A good comedy is truly hard to find nowadays. If a year goes by with at least two relatively decent comedies being released audiences are thrilled. I'm no exception really. Like most everyone I enjoy a good laugh, but I find that more of the funny is brought to television rather than the silver screen.

It's gotten so bad that when a mediocre comedy is released it gets hailed as brilliant. There never has been a better example of that than Old School. Sure the first 30 minutes were hilarious, but after the infamous Will Ferrell streaking scene the movie drags into mildly amusing jokes to rather long and dull sequences.

You've all seen the film so I won't even bother with a synopsis. It tries to be a classic in the stale genre of college comedies, but Animal House it isn't. It's a good movie in it's own right, but ask anyone of my generation and they'll quote it endlessly like it was Office Space or Swingers, both of which are far superior films. Old School was refreshing given that the genre of leave your brain-at-the-door honest laugh fests is slim; however the film as a whole can be a chore to sit through.

Sadly the same phenomena occurred with another Wilson brother/Vince Vaughn film a few years later, but I'll save that for another post.

"At its best, it's a hilarious celebration of the party-animal id that's always at odds with the Apollonian superego of the house payment and 401(k). But like our own wild nights of pouring liquid soap into the fountain, it's just as easily forgotten." - Jonathan R. Perry

2 comments:

Mattbear said...

I find that where ol' Will and I differ the most in our opinion of movies is in comedy. We find very different things funny. It appears to be the same with you and I, in some ways.

I love Old School. That movie cracks me up. I also love Office Space, which is a superior film, no argument there. But Swingers? Lame. Talk about dragging. That thing was torture. With the exception of the phone calls/leaving the messages scene (which even I say is brilliant), that movie sucks.

Anonymous said...

That's a great story. Waiting for more. »