I first heard about this movie when Richard Christy (Howard Stern) talked about it on the radio and how he had a "moment" with another guy after they saw it in theatres, back when it came out. Pretty good radio segment. Later on a coworker recommended it so I finally took the bait and bought a copy on VHS off eBay. This genre isn't something I normally watch at all, so it took a while for me to even start paying attention when it came on.
I have a low attention span for movies that aren't comedy but this wasn't too much of a slog. I feel it ended at the appropriate time, it didn't drag. Well, anyway, here are my official thoughts. I've kept them written on a slice of receipt paper for the past year. Yesterday I found the piece of paper in my wallet and decided to type it up. Here goes...
This movie is full of Hollywood beefcakes parading around in women's glam makeup. It stars Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, and Antonio Banderas.
The plot is pretty convoluted but followable, I guess. After I watched it, I read the Wikipedia page plot and it matched up, almost exactly, with what I saw. It's kind of tough to figure out who is turning who into a vampire.
The best part, or, my favorite part was when Brad Pitt burns down a cathedral full of theatre vampires and slices this douche vampire in half with a long scythe.
The part of the movie that kind of lacked for me was the hero arc. At first, Pitt doesn't want to kill humans. But he does, twice... so this kind of cancels out any empathy I might have for his constant "whining" as his vamp mentor calls it. - Mike
I picked this VHS tape up off eBay for a whopping $15. I think I might've been scammed at that price, but it was the only copy for sale I could find floating around on the web.
I was watching David Spade on YouTube and his appearance on the Bad Friends podcast when I realized I'm a big fan of his, including from his character (portrayal) on the sitcom "Rules of Engagement."
I used to wander the street of Manhattan while I was in between jobs back around 2016 and I once found myself sitting in a comfy booth seat at a local diner I usually didn't go to. The reason why I never went to this particular place is because there was always construction going on right around the entrance, so it was kind of annoying. I remember, though, the food was good. I usually ordered a pizza burger. Anyways... the one afternoon I found myself there alone and the TV screens had on re-runs of "Rules of Engagement," my favorite. I finished up with some coffee and a linzer tart and headed back home.
I had seen parts of this movie way back during my own college days. I watched it front to back the other day. The movie starts off with some cool music that I guess was a Steve Vai song with Jimi Hendrix vocal samples played over the top. It gives a cool vibe to introduce the viewer into the world of college.
The best parts of the movie are pretty much in the beginning of the film and my personal favorite scene is where we find Jeremy Piven sleeping inside his basement dorm. I like what happens when he wakes up.
Being that I was a "frat guy" myself I can confirm this movie is very accurate. I love college movies and this depiction is pretty spot-on to what I experienced while at college. Definitely the long afternoons wherein you're doing nothing, yet enjoying it. I enjoyed the scenes in the dorm hallways that also seem pretty accurate to what I remember. I also liked the quest that one character goes on to retrieve kegs and how he gets lost on the way. I found myself in similar situations, particularly when he misreads the old lady's lips when she is asking for directions to campus.
The whole preppy frat vs. outsiders frat subplot is decent, and I also liked how the main character finds himself in between two prospective recruiting frats. I'd say this type of scenario is accurate in several ways. In my experience, the two frats could've probably united against the administration at some point if they were really going for a perfect movie in terms of real-life accuracy.
The love interest theme of the prospective freshman and the girl who hangs out at the frat was decent, though in reality I'd bet this guy wouldn't get the time of day, but hey... you never know. I think it could probably happen.
I also enjoyed how Jeremy Piven's character is a super senior who is balding. He's on his seventh year. These super seniors are usually pretty popular and I guess able to sway the opinion of the underclassmen at times so, again, pretty good.
I also enjoy the funk band element and whoever scored the movie and decided on the music did a good job as I alluded to previously.
There are some cool guitars in this movie and I believe we see what couldn't be newer than a 1993 Gibson SG with a beautiful blue and black finish, a guitar I'd love to play in the current era. We also see an explosive scene featuring what I think is a Gibson Les Paul, also a 93 or older.
The one character who sits and watches TV constantly is somewhat dated and would probably be replaced with a gamer or phone addict at this point, but I appreciated the concept. We had TV at college but I can't remember many marathon TV-watching sessions. There was usually too much going on to be stuck to a TV, which I guess was the point of this character. All the chaos unfolds around him.
I think we're in serious trouble when it comes to smart phones and I don't see any end in sight. I find reprieve from this modern era of technological overload by watching these old VHS tapes and I appreciate that PCU was able to bring me back in my mind for a short while. It's a relaxation thing for me really. Certain aspects of the movie also made me thankful for specific events that unfolded while I was at college, though at times I've second-guessed what truly went down. This movie reaffirmed what happened was good. I can elaborate if you ask me in person.
Anyway... PCU delivered and I will be re-watching to try to memorize some of the better lines in the movie. I'd score it a 10/10. Highly accurate and also relevant to the modern day. It's great.
I watched this movie for the first time ever yesterday. First off, the leading lady (Sally Field) isn't attractive enough to be the female star of such a big-budget Hollywood blockbuster. Just my opinion.
The movie itself is entertaining for the full runtime: 96 minutes. If you ask me, 90-99 minutes is the perfect length for a movie. Any longer and I start to lose interest.
The film is surprisingly realistic. Disbelief is suspended while Reynolds does 130 mph in a Pontiac Trans Am for 90 minutes straight, whilst conducting conversations with the film's co-stars. It never seems fake. Re-releases of the film have inauthentic car sounds dubbed in. I watched an original version, with the real Trans Am sounds.
The movie is based around a car chase scene. While modern films rely on effects like super slow mo, and computer graphics to enhance scenes like this, "Smokey and The Bandit" shows you don't need all of that for a compelling story. There are a couple of major car "stunts," but these are more-so improbable than impossible. Most of the time it's quick-thinking from "The Bandit" when the police are eluded, rather than a major Hollywood stunt.
Anyone who has driven a similar route to the one "The Bandit" takes on during the movie can confirm the film is visually accurate. I recently drove through Mississippi, Alabama, Virginia, all the way down South, and several of the rest stops looked just as they do in the film, which was released in the late 70's.
As for what goes on inside the car, the interactions between Sally Field and Burt Reynolds are kind of strained. Field isn't much of a seductress, but rather, willing to give in to whatever "The Bandit" asks of her. I guess there is a touch of 'Girl Power' in the movie, when Field's bride-to-be character takes the wheel of the Trans Am. "The Bandit" does call his hitch-hiking lady-friend "Frog," though, which comes off as less-than-endearing. Reynolds isn't much of a looker, either, if you ask me. It's not quite James Bond and Twiggy on screen, and I guess that's supposed to add authenticity.
The Snowman, who is Burt Reynold's sidekick, has some good scenes by himself. At one point during the movie, he faces adversity at a truck stop. Why was this included in the film? Was it a message to the audience that not every truck stop is a friendly place to stop? Or was it a way to express that the "Snowman" isn't as quick-thinking as The Bandit?
The other major star of the movie is Jackie Gleason's sheriff character. His performance is both humorous and quotable. He never breaks character which is impressive considering how outrageous "The Sheriff" is as a fictional police chief.
Overall, the car scenes are great, and the rest stop scenes are just as interesting. The film moves at a rapid pace. It's both enjoyable and lighthearted. Definitely worth watching, and there's replay value for all of the one-liners.
I just watched this classic for the first time since the movie's release, in 1994. I may have caught bits and pieces of the film on TV re-runs, but haven't seen the full movie from start to finish since at least 1996, or so.
Watching it back at age 32 gave me an opportunity to understand the movie more thoroughly. Before I dive into all of my opinions, a quick note. "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," at just under 90 minutes, is the perfect length.
The plot of the movie back then was confusing for me, because I was 8 years old in 1996. I didn't understand the twists and turns of the story-line, and didn't understand all of the jokes.
What's actually hilarious is that when I was a little kid, in the climax of the movie, when Finkle is revealed to be Einhorn... I thought that Lois Einhorn had crapped her pants and there was a big load in her underwear, which is why it was funny.
As an adult, I realize it's actually because Finkle had just tucked his junk in between his legs and the "load" is actually his man parts. Heck, maybe I'll re-watch this film in my 60's and realize I was wrong back in my 30's as to why this scene is humorous. It's all up for debate.
My other takeaways from the film involve some of the less than kid-friendly humor that's thrown in, and how it's sort of like a rapid-fire collage of scenes. "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" doesn't drag whatsoever. The relationship scenes between Courtney Cox and Jim Carrey are pretty enjoyable. I'd even venture to say the scene where they argue while in poolside lounge chairs is borderline endearing and dare I say, realistic.
Another scene that stuck out for me is when Ace breaks into a Los Angeles apartment complex. There are some shots interspersed that present a cool juxtaposition between a realistic look at life for some (either hard-working, or lazy) American one who likes to relax at his home and watch TV, and the cartoonish and very Hollywood character that is Ace Ventura, who scampers down the apartment complex walkways to eventually interact with this person.
I think the reason why this movie became so popular and such a phenomenon is because of the easy-to-understand, facial-expression-based humor from Ace. The over-the-top slapstick humor appeals to small children who relate to the type of interactions you see on Bugs Bunny, where every gesture is hyper-exaggerated.
The film also appeals to adults, with a somewhat complex detective/mystery subplot, and the macabre look into a disgraced football player who goes mental, and then changes his identity to become a woman in order to plot revenge on... a mega-famous archetype of Americana and pop culture, but also someone who is flawed himself in never having won "The Big Game," ... Mr. Dan Marino.
The writers certainly tossed every idea into the script except for the kitchen sink, and Jim Carrey pulls it all together with his performance.
"Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" combines gags, a light-hearted and easy-to-follow detective story-line and more complex and sort of "scary" elements. It accomplishes a lot in a short amount of time.
