Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
I think Mr. Beaks is working on a review of this right now, having seen it the other day. When I talked to him, he seemed to have enjoyed the film quite a bit, so I’m surprised by how harsh this particular reaction is. Then again, I think comedy is even more personal and particular than porn. Either you laugh at something, or you don’t.
And it sounds like Mean Mr. Mustard didn’t.
Hey Harry, Mean Mr. Mustard here and here's the scoop on a screening I attended in LA of Old School. Old School is from the same producing/directing team that gave us Road Trip a few years back. Now, a few positive things have been posted on AICN about Old School, but readers be warned, they were PLANTS! PLANTS, I tell you, PLANTS! Truth be Told... Old School Sucks!
Here is the set up... Mitch (Luke Wilson) comes home and finds his wife (Juliette Lewis) in a Gang Bang with 4 other guys (YUP). He splits from her, and rents a house near the local university. His two best friends, Frank "the Tank" (Will Ferrell), and Beanie (Vince Vaughn) see an opportunity to re-live their youth and start up a Frat-house which becomes a success overnight. Meanwhile, the evil dean (Jeremy Piven) will do what ever is in his powers to shut down the Frat-House.
There are several problems with the film, the first being the story. Revenge Of The Nerds 1 and 2, Back to School, Animal House, Bachelor Party, Porkys, even the director's own Road Trip, it's been done before. You will not find anything fresh about Old School. The evil dean, the corrupt students that run the student government, the initiation to the fraternity, the fraternity that has to compete in a series of competitions in order to stay a fraternity, the horney thirty something men trying to relive their youths, all of it just feels repetitive. Been there, done that.
Now the cast... Luke Wilson is a good actor when given a good director and good material to work with (Bottle Rocket and Royal Tenenbaums come to mind), but here, he came across like Steve Gutenberg (sp?) or Judge Reinhold. He's the average Joe who has to react to everything bizarre happening around him, and that's about it. I hate to say it because I loved Tenenbaums so much, but Luke just seemed to be too bland in this film. Maybe he was just board.
Will Ferell is basically playing Will Ferell. He's doing the same stuff he did on SNL and yes, he is funny and gets a few laughs here and there, but a lot of Will goes a long way. I loved how Kevin Smith used him in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back... you give him 10, maybe 15 minutes of screen time and he will walk away with your film. But to have him as one of your leads and in 90 percent of the film... it just grows tiresome.
Vince Vaughn is basically playing Trent from Swingers all over again. The same fast talking asshole that gets his friends into trouble. The same mannerisms, the same dress, the same everything... been there, done that!
And the usually reliable Jeremy Piven… well my problem is that they decided to make his Dean the Grown up version of Max Fischer from Rushmore. He has Max Fischer's speech, his hair, his glasses, and his suite! But there is only one Max Fischer, and that is Jason Schwartzman. One would have thought that old Luke would have said something.
And there is a small role played by Sean William Scott, and he is basically redoing his Stiffler shtick.
All in all, it's just been done before, it's never as clever as it wants to be or thinks it is, and there is something that was bitter, and off-putting about Old School. Skip Old School, and just watch Animal House again!
