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Rating:  -
What would comedy be without Rodney Dangerfield? After decades of trying to make it big, took his self-depreciating stand-up act of one-liners to new heights in the 1980's & paved the way for thousands of a new generation of comics to do the same. Eventually Hollywood called, and after a noticable bit part (Caddyshack) and a middle-of-the-road starring piece (Easy Money), it was time for Rodney to get the respect he always deserved with what now most consider his greatest film, 1986's Back To School.
Playing Thornton Melon, a successful clothing chain owner, he decides to join his college-going son by enrolling himself, having a grand ole party and fun every step of the way. This was a role tailor made for Dangerfield, and still after all these years is as funny and fresh as ever. However, MGM first released this film in 2000 with a bare-bones edition that at the most would earn it a D+. So seven years later, it now has been given an "Extracurricular Edition" that for the most part makes the grade.
First off, the picture has been completely cleaned-up, barely a blemish or speck to be seen all the while with still keeping it's '80's film look. 2000's included a new 5.1 audio mix but now offers the original 2.0 as well for purists. But the main reason to double-dip would be the brand-new-to-DVD extras that fill most of it's second layer. Ranging from 5 to 18 minutes each, there's six new featurettes here discussing the making of the movie, to the styles of the film's signature dive "The Triple Lindy", to a very thoughtful looking back of the life of Rodney Dangerfield as told by those who knew him personally (Rodney passed before this version came out in 2004). Each new feature is entertaining, informative and quite a trip to see some of it's actors & crew today, like Harold Ramis, Sally Kellerman, Burt Young (with even a feature about his rise in acting from Rocky to BTS), 80's Blond-Haired Bad Boy William Zabka (yeah, he talks about his career typecasting here...finally!), and as Rodney's son Keith Gordon (wow, he really looks different now!). These are worth the double-dip alone besides the great presentation of the movie it belongs to. Of course it would have been nice to have a commentary track with these people and more stock footage of maybe Rodney himself being interviewed during the time of the film, but MGM did do a pretty good job here and what we got should do quite nicely.
Back To School unfortunately did such a good job for Rodney, that he never made another comedy that came close to it in his career again (No, Natural Born Killers doesn't count...put down that Little Nicky case too). But he'll always be remembered in film history as the funniest, oldest college freshman ever. A great look back at what fun we had at the movies in the 1980's and at a man that always received our respect no matter how many times he said he didn't.
(RedSabbath Rating:9.0/10)
Rating:  -
[[A
SIN:B000QQKVY8 Back To School (Extra-Curricular Edition)]]
my husband just loves silly movies.The sillier the better.
Rating: -
Great Movie to watch anytime of day. Classic Rodney at his best. Manages to workin a lot of his stage material throughout the movie. Also features a young Robert Downey Jr.
Rating:  -
There's wide agreement that the three greatest American film comedies are It Happened One Night from 1934, The Lady Eve from 1941 and 1986's Back to School. Some might quibble that It Happened One Night is no match for Miss Congeniality when it comes to female snorting or that The Lady Eve doesn't have the consistent belly laughs of Turner & Hooch, nor does it have a lovable, slobbering dog unless one counts Henry Fonda. Back to School, however, remains one of a kind.
But seriously, folks...I like this movie a lot. It's not just that the film pokes hard at complacent academia, or that there are a string of great comedy moments given to us by several first-rate actors. Mainly, there's Rodney Dangerfield, himself an idiosyncratic comedian who at times can be easy to get tired of. As Thornton Melon, an up-from-his-boot-straps wealthy clothier -- he owns the Tall & Fat stores -- who signs up as a college student determined to help his wimpish son become popular, Dangerfield is something else. He's not just the loud, wisecracking, eye-popping comedian. Dangerfield gives Melon a layer of good-natured intentions, likeability and even a little lost pathos that is eventually quite endearing.
Some parts of the movie don't work too well for me, mainly the parts of the storyline that involve Melon's son, played by Keith Gordon, his son's pal, played by Robert Downey, Jr., and his love interest, played by Sally Kellerman. Gordon is wimpish enough but, in my view, not very interesting. Downey is little more than an over-the-top exaggeration, and Kellerman puts me off with her above-the-salt manner and accent. But to compensate there is a great comedy turn by Ned Beatty as the obsequious university dean, Dean Martin, a man who knows endowments are worth more than an unseemly attention to student entry requirements. He'd be right at home in the Ivy League. Sam Kinison is terrific as a crackpot right-wing professor of history. Adrienne Barbeau is amusing and unlikable as Melon's high-spending wife who likes to show off her Klimt. And Paxton Whitehead as an over-civilized, professor of marketing with an aquiline nose can give us all useful lessons in condescension. The set up and follow-through with the Kurt Vonnegut joke is a classic. Part of the joy of the movie is watching how Melon deals with these people.
Still, what makes Back to School work is Rodney Dangerfield, his way with comedy, his delivery and his timing. I'll leave the movie where it started, with Thornton Melon's new television ad for Tall & Fat stores. I hope you can hear Dangerfield in your mind..."Hi there. Are you a large person? Pleasantly plump? A little on the hefty side, perhaps? Well, let's face it: Are you FAT? When you go jogging, do you leave potholes? When you make love, do you have to give directions? At the zoo, do the elephants throw YOU peanuts? Do you look at a menu and say 'OK'? Well, now you can eat all you want, because at Thornton Melon's "Tall & Fat" stores, we've got you covered. That's right. Fine woolen, and woolen-blend suits and sport coats, in all the larger sizes -- husky, stout, extra-stout, and the new Hindenburg line. And for you ladies we have caftans, muumuus, and our own exclusive A-frame in all colors and patterns. Yes, we have miles and miles of fabric. So take it from me, Thornton Melon, if you want to look thin, you hang out with fat people."
The DVD disc I have has wide screen on one side, pan-and-scan on the other, with no extras. It looks just fine.
(And for the record, I'm also fond of Miss Congeniality and Turner & Hooch.)
Rating: -
In the course of cinematic history, many standup comics have crossed over into films, and most of the films have been truly abysmal. Even a comic like Richard Pryor, who is considered the best standup of all time, made some of the worst films I've ever seen (like The Toy). Some will argue about Robin Williams and Bill Murray, but Williams's work is uneven (he's been great in some dramatic films like Good Will Hunting and has done some true crap like RV), and Murray is in another league together, as he is doing much more dramatic work, much more introspective than most comedians would ever dare. Some of John Belushi's work is very good (notably The Blues Brothers), and Eddie Murphy made a few great films (48 Hours is probably the best), but the most notable exceptions to this rule is Rodney Dangerfield. Rodney didn't make any cinematic masterpieces like Satantango or Berlin Alexanderplatz, but a good number of his films were hilarious, true to life, and they are still good today. This is his best work, a consistently hilarious film where he plays a successful, street smart businessman who decides to go back to college to help out his son. It works so well because Rodney himself is so damn engaging and so likeable one forgets the rather predictable (but still funny) plot. Dangerfield is my favorite standup comic (a part of the entertainment field that I have to admit I don't really like). His comedy never became dated (like many comedians), it was never topical, it was always universal, it was never cruel, never crass, never smug (a quality I hate about most modern comics), and his films had these qualities too. He was just a real guy who never got any respect. He plays a character like that here. Despite his character's success, the faculty at the school still looks down on him (except for Sally Kellerman, who kind of loves/likes him). Dangerfield one liners abound, and the rest of the cast is very engaging as well. It's a very good picture, Rodney's best and one of the few examples out there of a standup making a pretty damn good film.
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