Thursday Movie Picks: College Movies
1) Old School
This movie is about three men who open up a frat house in a bid to re-live their more interesting college lives is hysterical. It was also the post SNL movie for Will Ferrell that I think really put him on the path to being one of the best comedic actors out there.
2) How High
Red Man and Method Man smoke their dead friend's ashes and it helps them ace their college exams and gets them into Harvard. Ridiculous you say? Try ridiculously awesome.
3) Scream 2
I love the Scream trilogy. Poor Sydney can't even escape psychos when she goes to college.
Road Trip suck!! NO! Dumb and foolish absolutely but it's mindlessly entertaining while never approaching being a good movie.
ReplyDeleteI've seen two of these. Old School, can't stand Will Ferrell so that took alot away from the film for me but it was ridiculous in a fun way.
Though I'm not a slasher film fan the first Scream was fun enough for me to watch the second which wasn't too bad either but I stopped watching them after this one.
I tried for a mix of comedy and drama though I ended up more on the dramatic side this week.
Back to School (1986)-When business tycoon Thornton Melon (Rodney Dangerfield) discovers his second wife is cheating on him he gives her the boot and decides to visit his son Jason (Keith Gordon) at college. Discovering that the stories Jason has been feeding him about his success both in school and on the swim team aren’t true and he’s considering dropping out Thornton decides to enroll and offer support. Problem is Jason is a misfit with one oddball friend Derek (a purple haired Robert Downey Jr.) and Thornton the gregarious, party hardy type who sees studying as an inconvenience which he foists off on his employees until one of his professors catches on and threatens him with expulsion. Thornton’s under the gun but everyone including the sultry classics professor he’s fallen for (Sally Kellerman) pitch in to help. What distinguishes this from other college comedies is that Dangerfield’s character is so darn likable.
The Paper Chase (1973)-James Hart (Timothy Bottoms), first-year law student at Harvard Law School feels the pressure of keeping up with all of his studies, especially when he engenders the enmity of contracts professor Kingsfield, the toughest teacher in the school (an Oscar winning John Houseman). Things don’t get any easier when he starts dating Kingsfield’s daughter (Lindsay Wagner).
The Sterile Cuckoo (1969)-On a bus heading to their different but nearby colleges uptight Jerry meets the free spirited but insecure Pookie Adams (Liza Minnelli) and they become friends. When Pookie shows up on Jerry’s campus they become more intimately involved but her increasingly neurotic behavior puts a strain on their relationship. Billed as a comedy but really a mediation of loneliness and the struggles to mature. Liza is compelling, sad and raw.
Groovylicious Time Warp-The Strawberry Statement (1970)-At a San Francisco college in the 60’s during the time of campus unrest and the counterculture, student Simon (Bruce Davison) is content to view all the upheaval from the sidelines until he meets the committed Linda. Becoming aware of the things they are protesting he becomes a leader and foments violent action during a sit-in leading to a confrontation with the police. Very much a document of its time with dialogue to match this tied for the Jury Prize at the 1970 Cannes Film Festival.
My friends loved Road Trip and I never did. To this day I can barely remember it despite seeing it several times. I haven't seen your picks, but I'm loving that last title. Thanks for sharing!
DeleteThe Sterile Cuckoo is one of the greats...LIZA!!!! So incredible in that film.
DeleteSCREAM 2!!! You also got the gif of my favorite scene. Jada is SO GOOD in that. I'm not a big fan of Old School - Will Ferrell is REALLY hit-or-miss with me.
ReplyDeleteFerrell can be hit or miss, thankfully (for me anyways) he hits far more than he misses.
DeleteHow High sounds hilarious. Not a fan of Old School and the Scream franchise passed me by.
ReplyDeleteYou should watch it, I bet it still holds up.
DeleteLOL, How High! I saw that when I was a teen and...I think I needed to be high! Ridiculously awesome, indeed.
ReplyDeleteRoad Trip did suck ;-)
Weed compliments that movie well. :)
DeleteYou aced the exam this week, Brit. Old School is easily one of Ferrell's beat movies. Scream 2 is almost as good as the original. And I have an undying love for that one. And I couldn't imagine How High being picked unless I picked it myself. Outstanding!!!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE all the love for How High. I wish I owned that movie, I want to watch it again now.
DeleteI hate that I can't think of that opening of Scream 2...without thinking of the Scary Movie version of it. I'm pretty sure someone takes a dick to the head in the bathroom stall? Dammit.
DeleteGood call on Old School, as I actually love VV in that one ahead of Will Ferrell.
And shame on me...but I've never seen How High. I totally need to up my stoner-movie game.
I love Scary Movie 1 and 2. The dick in the ear was hysterical.
DeleteI liked Road Trip while Old School is awesome. Scream 2 was cool yet How High is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like How High! So ridiculous and perfect.
DeleteOh I love Old School because I find it so funny! I loved Will Ferrell in this. Scream 2 is quite good and even though scary I can watch these.
ReplyDeleteThe Scream trilogy is great for people that don't really like horror. It's a good story and not *too* scary. Love them.
DeleteYeah, Road Trip kinda sucks. Anyway, I haven't seen any of your picks, but I've been meaning to watch Old School.
ReplyDeleteOld School holds up well! I hope you like it.
DeleteNice picks! Scream always feels really underrated as a series, and the sequel is almost as scary as the first one.
ReplyDeleteI really want to watch Scream 2 again. That ine is always the hardest to find.
DeleteI LOVE all of these picks! All on my mind when I made my picks/list. And American Pie 2!!! I should have done it.
ReplyDeleteThat one is my favorite, but I used it once before already.
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