I WANT TO EAT A NUT OF LAERMA!

OLD SCHOOL

Today I saw Old School, the new comedy starring Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn and, one of my favourite actors, Luke Wilson, from Bottle Rocket, Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums (all co-written by his brother Owen). Mitch (Wilson) is a young real-estate lawyer (or soemthing like that) who returns home and finds his girlfriend is into gang-bangs... Mitch has to find new digs, and picks a house right near a college campus, vacated by the death of a professor. Frank (Ferrell) is just married but has doubts even at the altar and has difficulty leaving his party animal days behind. Beanie (Vaughn) owns a successful chain of electronics stores and is married with kids, yet he still seems to want to hold on to something from his college days with Mitch and Frank. Without telling Mitch, Frank and Beanie arrange for a huge house-warming party to be held at Mitch's place, complete with a performance by Snoop Dogg. Frank makes a promise to his wife not to revert back to the hard-drinking "Frank the Tank" of his college days, but, of course, he breaks his promise about a minute after entering the house. The party's wild, and Mitch wakes up in bed with a strange girl... who turns out to be the daughter of his boss... and still in high school. (I like how it's rather ambiguous as to whether or not body fluids actually were exchanged). Meanwhile, Frank strips naked and streaks through the streets of the town, where his wife, on a "girl's night out", notices him and this incident forces her to bring him to a marriage counsellor. Although the party gives Mitch "street credibility" at the college, it also attracts the ire of the dean (Jeremy Piven) who has the land re-zoned, making it college property (or something)... Mitch has to vacate it in a week... unless...

Mitch finds a loophole and establishes a fraternity, which includes both students at the college as well as some guys off the street. Mitch, Frank and Beanie must juggle the responsibilities of their jobs (well, Frank doesn't seem to have one) with re-living the glories of their frat days (and Beanie, although he's eager to relive his youth, must also try and protect his sons' ears fromt he language Frank and company use). But the Dean has some nasty tricks up his sleeve, including bribing the pretty young head of the student council (Sara Tanaka, also from Rushmore) with a foot in the door into Princeton through his "contacts" in orer to vote his way against the frat... Hilarious 1980s-style frat house hijinks ensue. Ahh... I didn't think they made movies like this anymore... well, okay, there was Van Wilder, last year, but that one was supposed to be so bad that I never remotely considered seeing it. Also, lots of cameos, including from Andy Dick as a gay fellatio instructor and American Pie's Seann William Scott (Stifler) as a white trash animal handler with a penchant for tranquilizer guns, and, of all people, Clinton speechwriter/Democratic political pundit/Crossfire co-host/one of Rush Limbaugh's "Dueling Bozos" James Carville. Just lots and lots of raunchy, risqu� fun bits, like K-Y Jelly wrestling, an initiation rite that involves a cinder block, a rope and the male organ, and several glimpses at Will Ferrell's "package". Not too much I can say, you'll either enjoy this or you won't.

***1/2/*****

(I'm getting the idea I'm leaving somehting I liked out... well, if it comes to me, I'll edit this thing.)

posted by Steve Brandon @ 8:54 AM