With some colleges already in session and some starting the next week, I thought it would be fitting to review my favorite college themed film of all-time Animal House. So without further ado...
National Lampoon's Animal House is set in 1962 on the campus of Faber College in Faber, PA. The first glimpse we get of the campus is the statue of its founder Emil Faber, on the base of which is inscribed the motto, "Knowledge Is Good." Incoming freshmen Larry "Pinto" Kroger (played by Tom Hulce) and Kent "Flounder" Dorfman (played by Stephen Furst) find themselves rejected by the pretentious Omega fraternity, and instead pledge to Delta House. The Deltas are a motley fraternity of rejects and maladjusted undergraduates (some approaching their late twenties) whose main goal -- seemingly accomplished in part by their mere presence on campus -- is disrupting the staid, peaceful, rigidly orthodox, and totally hypocritical social order of the school, as represented by the Omegas and the college's dean, Vernon Wormer (played by John Vernon). Dean Wormer decides that this is the year he's going to get the Deltas expelled and their chapter decertified; he places the fraternity on "double secret probation" and, with help from Omega president Greg Marmalard (played by James Daughton) and hard-nosed member Doug Neidermeyer (played by Mark Metcalf), starts looking for any pretext on which to bring the members of the Delta fraternity up on charges. The Deltas, oblivious to the danger they're in, are having a great time, steeped in irreverence, mild debauchery, and occasional drunkenness, led by seniors Otter (played by Tim Matheson), Hoover (played by James Widdoes), D-Day (played by Bruce McGill), Boon (played by Peter Riegert), and pledge master John "Bluto" Blutarsky (played by John Belushi). They're given enough rope to hang themselves, but even then manage to get into comical misadventures on a road trip (where they arrange an assignation with a group of young ladies from Emily Dickinson University). Finally, they are thrown out of school, and, as a result, stripped of their student deferments (and, thus, eligible for the draft). They decide to commit one last, utterly senseless (and screamingly funny) slapstick act of rebellion, making a shambles of the university's annual homecoming parade, and, in the process, getting revenge on the dean, the Omegas, and everyone else who has ever gone against them.
I absolutely love this movie. It's not only one of my favorite comedies of all-time, but one of my favorite films of all-time as well. The film has some of the most memorable jokes of all-time. It is also known for giving stars like Kevin Bacon, Tim Matheson, James Widdoes and Tom Hulce their big breaks and reinforcing that John Belushi is one of the greatest comedians to have ever walked the planet. The film keeps you laughing from the very beginning and it has some memorable moments as well. I can't reinforce how awesome this movie is as not only a comedy but as one of the greatest films of all-time. I highly recommend everyone (especially college kids) to see this film. I give Animal House a 10 out of 10.
So ladies and gentlemen what are thoughts on Animal House, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
National Lampoon's Animal House is set in 1962 on the campus of Faber College in Faber, PA. The first glimpse we get of the campus is the statue of its founder Emil Faber, on the base of which is inscribed the motto, "Knowledge Is Good." Incoming freshmen Larry "Pinto" Kroger (played by Tom Hulce) and Kent "Flounder" Dorfman (played by Stephen Furst) find themselves rejected by the pretentious Omega fraternity, and instead pledge to Delta House. The Deltas are a motley fraternity of rejects and maladjusted undergraduates (some approaching their late twenties) whose main goal -- seemingly accomplished in part by their mere presence on campus -- is disrupting the staid, peaceful, rigidly orthodox, and totally hypocritical social order of the school, as represented by the Omegas and the college's dean, Vernon Wormer (played by John Vernon). Dean Wormer decides that this is the year he's going to get the Deltas expelled and their chapter decertified; he places the fraternity on "double secret probation" and, with help from Omega president Greg Marmalard (played by James Daughton) and hard-nosed member Doug Neidermeyer (played by Mark Metcalf), starts looking for any pretext on which to bring the members of the Delta fraternity up on charges. The Deltas, oblivious to the danger they're in, are having a great time, steeped in irreverence, mild debauchery, and occasional drunkenness, led by seniors Otter (played by Tim Matheson), Hoover (played by James Widdoes), D-Day (played by Bruce McGill), Boon (played by Peter Riegert), and pledge master John "Bluto" Blutarsky (played by John Belushi). They're given enough rope to hang themselves, but even then manage to get into comical misadventures on a road trip (where they arrange an assignation with a group of young ladies from Emily Dickinson University). Finally, they are thrown out of school, and, as a result, stripped of their student deferments (and, thus, eligible for the draft). They decide to commit one last, utterly senseless (and screamingly funny) slapstick act of rebellion, making a shambles of the university's annual homecoming parade, and, in the process, getting revenge on the dean, the Omegas, and everyone else who has ever gone against them.
I absolutely love this movie. It's not only one of my favorite comedies of all-time, but one of my favorite films of all-time as well. The film has some of the most memorable jokes of all-time. It is also known for giving stars like Kevin Bacon, Tim Matheson, James Widdoes and Tom Hulce their big breaks and reinforcing that John Belushi is one of the greatest comedians to have ever walked the planet. The film keeps you laughing from the very beginning and it has some memorable moments as well. I can't reinforce how awesome this movie is as not only a comedy but as one of the greatest films of all-time. I highly recommend everyone (especially college kids) to see this film. I give Animal House a 10 out of 10.
So ladies and gentlemen what are thoughts on Animal House, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
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