Why I Hadn't Seen It: For the same reason NONE of the people I'd seen Knocked Up with saw Superbad with me;[1] it looked like the same sort of outcasts-navigating-college story by which I've always been underwhelmed.[2]Why I Just Did: Somehow I've gone four month since my last capsule-review. I didn't realize I'd even been blogging here for four months!
Why I'm Glad I Did: Columbus Short is a star. The principal is the first gynecologist from Knocked Up. Ann Cusack is somewhere between Joan and John in terms of adorability. Scott Adsit (Pete from '30 Rock') plays one of the parents. James Garfield references are great, but James Garfield meta-references are made of awesome and win.
Most of all, it was surprisingly quotable. I humbly suggest these gems that were left off of the IMDb "memorable quotes" list:
"Stalking is an ugly word; I like to think of it as obsessively shadowing"
"This is so cheesy in the greatest way"
"There is nothing cheesy about a clap-on disco ball"
"Does the 'run-of-the-mill' college experience include stripping you of your dignity"
"If a stupid piece of paper is going to make us acceptable then let's go for it, then why not?"
"This is so cheesy in the greatest way"
"There is nothing cheesy about a clap-on disco ball"
"Does the 'run-of-the-mill' college experience include stripping you of your dignity"
"If a stupid piece of paper is going to make us acceptable then let's go for it, then why not?"
Why I Wish I Hadn't: Screenwriters Adam Cooper and Bill Collage are responsible for the Olsen twins' New York Minute, while storywriter Mark Perez also provided the story for Herbie: Fully Loaded.[3] Now I almost want to watch those, but that seems like Nathan Rabin territory.
In all seriousness, the flippancy with which Accepted tackled the question, "Is college for everyone?" made me uncomfortable. There is probably a humorous way to address it without resorting to the standard freaks-v-establishment[4] plot the writers went with. A dichotomy like that plays into the framework of society and, in the end, undercuts itself. Not to get all Althusser up in this piece, but if the cookie-cutter structure of college suppresses the imagination which would allow many "failed" students to succeed -- which seems to be the point of the movie -- then how far can the "failed" ever get appropriating that structure?
Otherwise, what happens to everyone who doesn't get into the movie's self-learning school South Harmon? Do they form their own school? Will there be self-learning rivalries? Could Harmon propose a merger with South Harmon, combining the former's superior resources with the latter's specialized curriculum in exchange for eliminating the whole point of their being separate?
In all seriousness, the flippancy with which Accepted tackled the question, "Is college for everyone?" made me uncomfortable. There is probably a humorous way to address it without resorting to the standard freaks-v-establishment[4] plot the writers went with. A dichotomy like that plays into the framework of society and, in the end, undercuts itself. Not to get all Althusser up in this piece, but if the cookie-cutter structure of college suppresses the imagination which would allow many "failed" students to succeed -- which seems to be the point of the movie -- then how far can the "failed" ever get appropriating that structure?
Otherwise, what happens to everyone who doesn't get into the movie's self-learning school South Harmon? Do they form their own school? Will there be self-learning rivalries? Could Harmon propose a merger with South Harmon, combining the former's superior resources with the latter's specialized curriculum in exchange for eliminating the whole point of their being separate?
[1]The person I saw Superbad with was, however, converted and we later saw Knocked Up.
[2]However, I will cop to crying during Amy Heckerling's Loser.
[3]Lindsay Lohan's final film as far as I'm concerned.
[4]For the record, not everybody that goes to a fraternity is an evil blonde nor is the "hot" gal always dating the "douche."
