Back to School

Starring Rodney Dangerfield, Robert Downey Jr, and Sally Kellerman
Directed by Alan Metter
Year: 1986
IMDB / Wikipedia

Continuing on my journey, I come across another classic 1980s screw-ball comedy that aligns just in time for the start of the new school year. In Back to School, Dangerfield plays Thornton Melon, an uncouth fashion mogul who enrolls at his son’s (Keith Gordon) college to get the education he missed out on while making millions while also helping his son loosen up and get the full college experience. With his trusted friend/chauffeur (Burt Young) in tow, he romances his English professor (Kellerman), makes an enemy of his up-tight economics professor (Paxton Whitehead), tolerates his son’s hipster anti-social roommate (Downey), and makes fast friends with the dean (Ned Beatty) and diving coach (M. Emmet Walsh). All of this with cameos from Oingo Boingo and Kurt Vonnegut make this one of the more quintessential 1980s films.

The most fascinating aspect of this film is that, though there’s a sports angle in the film (almost every movie about college has some sort of sports slant), it is of an unconventional sport, in this case competitive diving. Though not a popular sport by any means, the film does a good job showing the drama and the common threads of the sport as it pertains to the college social hierarchy as well as showing the bond in the father-son dynamic. I always felt this was something truly remarkable even though Dangerfield’s “Triple Lindy” is as preposterous as it is nearly physically impossible. I’m just glad the proposed remake never happened and this comedy can remain an unparalleled, yet underappreciated, classic.

Most Valuable Actor: One of the driving forces in almost every movie Rodney Dangerfield starred in (with the obvious exception of Caddyshack) is that he is allowed to be the main hub around which the film lives or dies. This can be said about this film in a positive way. Despite the fact he recycles some old lines from his comedy albums, he is still charming and downright likable enough to carry the entire production on his back. Thankfully, due to some deft casting, this wasn’t necessary, which made the film that much stronger.

Trailer:

Bachelor Party

Starring Tom Hanks, Adrian Zmed, and Tawney Kitaen
Directed by Neal Israel
Year: 1984
IMDB / Wikipedia

Now, this is the kind of 1980s comedy I can get behind, if only because it has what every good 1980s comedy has: cheap laughs, decent storyline, solid acting, and gratuitous nudity. Oh, and Tom Hanks in his natural element as a comedic actor, let’s not forget that. Almost everything else in this film could have been replaced by another actor or setting or what-have-you, but Hanks is a comedic genius. I’m not going to go so far and say that winning an Oscar ruined him, but I miss funny Hanks and the only time I get to see him anymore is on his rare appearances on The Colbert Report.

But the movie is still some good 80s comedy gold about a bachelor party for a wild man thrown by his wild friends that quickly spirals out of control into a fit of hilarity. All the while, the relationship is being undermined by the bride’s father, a jealous suitor, and a hotel manager that turn the night into one wild ride that is funny from beginning to end. If you’ve ever wondered where other movies get their ideas about how a wild night can get out of control, they often look to this film as many scenes and gaffes get recycled in later films. Still a good film to see the genesis of those laughs.

Most Valuable Actor: I know I fawned over Hanks in the starring role, but I have to give this one to Adrian Zmed as Hanks’ best friend Jay who orchestrates the entire night of debauchery all with a winning smile on his face. It’s a shame we never really saw Zmed ever again.

Trailer:

Baby Mama

Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Greg Kinnear
Directed by Michael McCullers
Year: 2008
IMDB / Wikipedia

This movie should have been made in the 1980s. It would have worked then. Films about parenting, babies, trying to get pregnant, what to do when you’ve become pregnant, and mis-matched buddy films were all the rage in that decade. If this film wanted to do something special it would have tried to give it a new perspective or a new form, not just a re-hash of something from 30 years ago.

The film is about a woman who wants a baby but cannot have one (Fey) and the surrogate mother she has chosen to carry her child (Poehler). The surrogacy is the only original part of the film that is packed with cliches: Fey, thinking she cannot find a suitable mate actually finds one in Kinnear; Poehler, trying to scam Fey actually ends up carrying a child; the list can go on but I’m done with it. The only saving grace of the film is the sparse well-written lines and the charming performances given across the board. Kinnear was an odd choice for his role, but that’s really my only acting gripe. Honestly, I would rather carry a child myself for 9 months than watch this film again any time soon.

Most Valuable Actor: The acting was solid in this film and Tina Fey did not let herself become a two-dimensional character. She adopted some of her Liz Lemon persona for the role and it worked out well. I just wish the chemistry between her and Kinnear was more convincing.

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