It was the summer of '81. I was stuck in small town Alaska, Mtv just came on the air (actually playing music), and this group was having a great Wet Hot American Summer. Sure the movie was actually made 20 years later, but I remember those summers and going to camp every year (after my stint up north), and this movie captured the feel of life back then and the style of the teen sex comedies of the age (only with the off center comedy of The State thrown in the mix).
The characters are all genre stereotypes (often exaggerated) but they feel real enough to hold the crisscrossing story lines together, allowing them to all come to actual conclusions without feeling forced or sudden. It's hard to believe that a movie with this much slapstick, potty humor, sight gags, and even some very well thought out jokes actually has this well constructed of a story format. Set aside the continuity issues (mostly caused by the horrible rains they had while trying to film this sunny summer movie) and this low budget comedy actually very well put together. Put all that technical crap side now and just let me talk about how much fun the movie is.
I laughed a lot, and not just at the low-brow stuff. They really put a lot of layers into the humor and pulled out all the stops (when most movies would chicken out). It may help that I grew up in the age this was set in and with all the movies it is based around (Meatballs, Breakfast Club, and the rest), but I still think it works for anyone who likes the style of humor found in groups like "The State" (who were heavily involved in this) and the "Upright Citizens Brigade". Not a perfect movie, but more than enough fun to make up for the low budget and technical flaws found in it.
Plus, the DVD includes lot of great extras that are often more amusing than the movie itself. These include interviews, deleted scenes (with commentary), music montages, full Commentary Track, and even a low-brow track that adds extra fart noises for fun.
The characters are all genre stereotypes (often exaggerated) but they feel real enough to hold the crisscrossing story lines together, allowing them to all come to actual conclusions without feeling forced or sudden. It's hard to believe that a movie with this much slapstick, potty humor, sight gags, and even some very well thought out jokes actually has this well constructed of a story format. Set aside the continuity issues (mostly caused by the horrible rains they had while trying to film this sunny summer movie) and this low budget comedy actually very well put together. Put all that technical crap side now and just let me talk about how much fun the movie is.
I laughed a lot, and not just at the low-brow stuff. They really put a lot of layers into the humor and pulled out all the stops (when most movies would chicken out). It may help that I grew up in the age this was set in and with all the movies it is based around (Meatballs, Breakfast Club, and the rest), but I still think it works for anyone who likes the style of humor found in groups like "The State" (who were heavily involved in this) and the "Upright Citizens Brigade". Not a perfect movie, but more than enough fun to make up for the low budget and technical flaws found in it.
Plus, the DVD includes lot of great extras that are often more amusing than the movie itself. These include interviews, deleted scenes (with commentary), music montages, full Commentary Track, and even a low-brow track that adds extra fart noises for fun.