Undescribable Perfection

Simply Perfect

Really Surprised!

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

You would hope, our savage one, would be able to follow up the laughs and complete insanity of Better Off Dead. The insanity is of a lower scale, but the laughs are just not there, where intended, the gags keep missing. There are a couple of funny bits, but truthfully, I'm overriding that part. There's still a lot of originality in the slight somewhat dull film, but there's a couple of things I'd show abhor to, like dog kicking and teasing. Cusack, this time, plays Hoops who falls for Demi Moore, who's Grandfather and family are being forcibly evicted, by a boofhead tycoon, and his bully son, who hates one four letter word. His hot blonde girlfriend, Cookie, too takes interest in Hoops, where really she's just used as pretty scenery, which I'm not complaining. We have a few of the BOD cast who signed on for this one, where a couple of newbies tend to be annoying here, no more that Golthwait. The problem here, is nearly all of the gags just don't fire off, where it's last twenty minutes is very much Summer Rental'ish. There's a few repetitious traits in this one too as seen in Better Off Dead, now color cartooning, which was fun to watch, like Demi's song was good too hear. Yeah, it's a shame this self indulgent Savage product was a let down, but this is what happens mostly, and Better Off Dead, was a hard one to surpass, the bar set very high. Better Off Dead was better, a whole lot better.

John Cusack, Demi Moore, Bobcat Goldthwait, Curtis Armstrong, Joel Murray, Tom Villard, Matt Mulhern and Mark Metcalf star in this 1986 comedy. This focuses on aspiring cartoonist, Hoops (Cusack) who has just graduated high school with pal, George (Murray) and they head to Nantucket island for the summer. Hoops is about to have a summer he'll never forget when he gets into mischief with George and finds romance with singer, Cassandra (Moore) who is trying to save her house from being knocked down. Hoops also has a fear of the water since childhood, but overcomes it when he and his pals enter in a Regatta to try to win Cassandra's house back. Goldthwait (Police Academy 2) plays Egg, Armstrong (Revenge of the Nerds) plays Ack Ack, the late, Villard (Popcorn) plays Egg's brother, Clay, Metcalf (Animal House) plays Beckerstead, a shrewd, land developer who wants to build a restaurant where Cassandra's house is and Mulhern (Major Dad) plays his spoiled son, Ted who doesn't like Hoops and his friends. I grew up watching this and always liked it. It's got a lot of funny moments and a couple dramatic ones as well plus the film sort of pokes fun at "Jaws" and "Godzilla." I recommend this 80's summer classic.

...you know something's up.The movie isn't all that bad. It's got a number of humorous moments in it. When it aired on HBO all those years ago I'd watch it to kill time, but I can't recall ever really laughing at the jokes and other gags (save the "Godzilla" scene).The film making style is professional enough, but also some what spartan, and the gags (like in "Better Off Dead") are mostly telegraphed or trumped by the characters stating the obvious. There's a distinct lack of coverage with a heavy reliance on master shots and the actors' performances to carry the scenes (again much like Holland's previous film "Better Off Dead").Historical footnote; one could call this the origins of crude humor in film, but that might be giving it too much credit.I didn't find the movie all that funny way back then, and after seeing the DVD I still don't find it all that funny. Still, it has a certain appeal to it. It's worth a night's rental to see Bobcat Goldwaith if nothing else. Not great, but a decent film all around.

A very funny, warm hearted movie, it never fails to make me laugh when watching it. A shame it was never a bigger hit considering so many absolutely awful films did better. All the actors were brilliant in their roles. John Cusack, among a few of the others, has gone on to bigger films but for my mind, this is one of his best, along with Grosse Pointe Blank and Better Off Dead. Some great scenes, terrific lines and an explosively funny finale. The commentary on the DVD by Savage Steve Holland, Bobcat Goldthwaite and Curtis Armstrong is terrific as well. There's not many films you enjoy in your teens that you still love in your thirties and onwards, but this is one of them for me. A true gem.