Welcome to episode 36. Today, we discuss the 80′s comedy, “Revenge of The Nerds”.
Not familiar with the movie? Take a look at IMDB for more information.
Join Scott, Randy, Brian and Ibbott as we install giant obvious cameras in your dorm.
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As usual, a HUGE thanks to Scott Fletcher, the official announcer of Film Sack Central.
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Up next episode? Another bonus sack! This time, for Speed.
Watching this was….weird.
When I was a kid, I enjoyed the slapstick elements of this movie– there are these guys who are outcasts at college, and some bullies are picking on them in humiliating ways, and the outcasts in turn make the bullies look ridiculous and win the day, hooray (hey, I was eight or nine at the time).
Watching it now, I could barely see the film through all of the social crap going on. Might obviously makes right at this university– even among the adults. The administrator guy was completely cowed by John Goodman the coach. The nerds don’t get respect from the Lambda Lambda Lambda guys until they put Liquid Heat in the jocks’….jocks, and the LLL guys choose to support the nerds by showing up at the end of the movie looking tough and threatening the Alpha Beta crowd. Physical intimidation and humiliation are what it’s all about. Tne nerds can’t seem to get any girls to show up at their party, so Judy calls up her Omega Mu friends, who apparently suck (even though they’re just female nerds) because some of them are fat (or Indian? That was odd) and the others wear cast-off prom dresses. But hey, at least they’ve got boobs. Gilbert sticks with Judy the accordion player (who is a “hair clips and glasses” nerdy girl, see her in The Outsiders), but Lewis isn’t happy with the Omega Mu he hits it off with and has to go off and put topless Betty on some “pie” tins and rape her on the moon instead. But that’s okay, because her character was written so that she liked it.
I felt like an anthropologist watching this, studying a foreign culture. Like Scott said the comic timing was good, but the nerds did come off as bad guys. Pretty much all of the guys did, in part because the guys were the only ones who did anything, good or bad. The girls just exist as potential “dates” with varying qualities of hair pie. That’s certainly not specific to this film, though.
What’s that you say? Chill out and enjoy the movie? I did, for the most part….but this kind of stuff is pretty much impossible for me to ignore.
Check out John Goodman today. He’s thinner now than when he made this movie.
Yes there is another Star Trek connection: Bernie Caisey as U.N. Jefferson was in Deep Space Nine playing Cal Hudson in the episodes the Maquis part 1 and 2.
God I’m such a Nerd… REVENGE!!!
I thought I recalled you guys saying that the next commentary track was going to be for Independence Day? I’m not complaining about you doing a commentary for Speed, I’m just wondering if I made that up in my head… I was actually looking forward to it, too.
Also, Brian “Takashi” Tochi appeared in episodes of the original Star Trek and Next Generation.
I still laugh at this movie. It’s a great, silly 80′s comedy. Learning that there was a lot of improvisation involved makes it even funnier. Although, I never really thought about the fact that the revenge was actually pretty vicious and criminal.
Looking forward to Bubba Ho-Tep. It is one of my favorite movies and I’m anxious to hear the film sackers’ take on it.
I loved this movie (Animal House is only slightly better – double secret probation …AWESOME!). But again I think Randy is over analyzing..it was a silly goofball comedy, not a poltical commentary on the injustices of man on man. And finally, without question, Booger was the man:
Booger: Big deal! Did you get in her pants?
Gibert: She’s not that kind of girl, Booger.
Booger: Why? Does she have a penis?
The Jock strap scene reminds me of one of those police academy films where they replaced the deodorant of the derpy jerk captain with Mace.
cromwell’s not in inception, michael caine is
Oh– also, the Datarock song “Computer Camp Love” is basically Revenge of the Nerds combined with “Summer Nights” from Grease. Excerpt from the lyrics:
I ran into her on computer camp
Was 1984, not sure
I had my commodore 64
Had to score
(Not with a — tramp)
She’s not a tramp
Her name is Judy
That’s a nice name
Yeah she’s a nice girl
Big deal
Did you get in her pants
She’s not that kind of a girl Booger
Why, does she have a penis
Seen as supremus
You better know she’s a genus and a Venus
Tell me more was it love at first sight
That’s right this was god giving grace with a face you could praise
Tell me more did you put up a fight
I don’t think so but before we tour the chorus stall let’s all explore a more a
Computer cabin war
Did you notice that there is not one classroom scene in the whole movie. The closest thing to a class scene is the computer lab scene.
I remember Cromwell from All in the Family. He played Archie’s pal “Stretch” Cunningham. still love this flick today. Didn’t make it to any of the sequels though.
Drinking Game: Take a drink every time Randy or someone else says “trope” or “exploitative”.
“Trope” is the new trope. (*DRINK x2*) It rings a bit snooty in my ear, but the word is certainly accurate and appropriate. What other word(s) could you use? “Cliche” is not quite correct. Perhaps mix it up with “Standard Convention” or “Storytelling Device”, or would that mess up Robinson’s drinking game?
I like it, Robinson. Further suggestions, (though some of these might not work for the commentary tracks):
1. Drink every time Ibbott:
- does a voice
- says “Oh no no no”
- makes a completely off-the-wall observation about something
2. Drink every time Scott:
- compares an actress to Skeletor or a horse
- recoils in horror about seeing some part of a man
- adds a new actor/actress to the list of “I’d see anything with him/her in it.”
3. Drink every time Dunaway:
- refers to “shorty shorts”
- mentions having to evict his children from the room while watching the movie
- does his Super Southern accent
- makes a euphemistic reference to male or female naughty bits
4. Drink every time Randy:
- deems any actress worthy of copulatory relations (had to include that)
- declares that the movie being discussed is a poor imitation/sequel of some superior film
- disagrees with someone so vehemently he gets offended
5. Drink every time Scott Fletcher:
- says “Boobies!” (though that’s in Scott’s control)
- inserts color commentary into his Netflix introduction to the movie
- growls, groans, guffaws, or makes some other inarticulate noise
6. Drink every time anybody:
- sings
- takes the conversation off on a tangent about another movie for more than 3 minutes
- gets mad at Scott for making them watch that week’s film selection
@Gretchen & @Robinson – I’m already drunk so to include you guys in one of the new showss I’m going to double up on all my habits so you can join me face down on the floor.
Anybody seen any good movies lately? What a trope.
Brian D.
Haha – thanks for the reply — Well, the problem with the (very cool) TVTropes site it that they’ve added so many to it that there are some really obscure ones….killing the “trope” concept in a way.
Trope: storytelling devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members’ minds and expectations.
“Sexy Jester” is *not* a trope by any definition I can imagine, but you can find it under the Circus section!
Ahhh, the old The Sexy Jester trope~!
Oh, and great ones Gretchen. Don’t forget the comments Scott will make about the good looks of male actors (except for Charlton Heston), then claim: “Not that I’m into guys or anything”.
Scott Fletcher, I think “It’s the old Sexy Jester *thing* again” — half as snooty to say “thing” (if not as accurate)!
Loved the show, but what about short circuit(Johnny 5)?
Gretchen’s drinking game is all kinds of awesome.Even more awesome than huge, silent drills that install huge, apparently invisible cameras.
Just listened to this podcast…
The Math doesn’t hold up? there are 6,127 students at the school; 58% of which are Female…
that’s 3533.66 females, *2 = 7107.32 Boobies!
He was right on the mark.
See Number 5