Who hasn’t felt the hopes and fears of freshman year of high school? The movie opens with Wade (played by Nate Hartley) and Ryan (Troy Gentile) discussing their strategies for obtaining social status during their first year of high school. Neither can fill the roles of the jock and even Wade’s stepfather accuses him of being a dork. The boys are confident about their prospects until they attract a bully named Filkins (Alex Frost). From rebuttoning their shirts and attaching Wade and Ryan together, to forcing them to urinate on each other, Filkins and his henchman are succeeding in their mission to turn high school into a living hell for our heroes. Still, this doesn’t stop Wade from picking up a love interest in the Asian Heritage Club as he seeks to find ways to run into Brooke (Valerie Tian). After almost being run down by Filkins’ stereotypically black Dodge Charger, Wade places an ad for a bodyguard for himself, Ryan, and Emmitt, the lackey they’ve acquired.
Most of the major stereotypes are covered in the interview process: the hip hop headbasher, the Israeli secret service anti-terrorist, the pseudo-ninja, and even a dude who looks like he might have ridden with Hell’s Angels. Each is appealing, but pricey – then in walks Drillbit. (Who wouldn’t hire a bodyguard named Drillbit?!) Played by Owen Wilson, he claims to have been a US Army Ranger, black ops operative, amongst a slew of other achievements. The audience is let in on his mainscheme – homeless, he’s trying to make enough money to travel to Canada andbecome a Mountie. His preliminary scheme develops into a full robbery plot of Wade’s home, and he dispenses minor pearls of wisdom instead of training them for the death matches they’ll soon be facing as he contemplates cashing in. All too soon, Drillbit predictably becomes attached to the boys and sincerely hopes to help. When his fellow bums raid the place anyway, Drillbit is discovered and fired by our young crew. Will Drillbit learn to defend justice and his honor as the boys learn to defend themselves? Watch and learn, grasshoppers.
Owen Wilson, as always, gives the audience a loveable rogue who, in the end, finds redemption by succumbing to his inner good guy. Sadly, he doesn’t have quite as many punch lines as usual, but there was enough there to keep me in my seat. Troy Gentile’s suburban teenage white rapper impressions were believable – he projected the true “wanna-be” spirit. Alex Frost’s bullying was a bit much, and his “heinous laughter” sounded more like his voice was going to crack than intimidating. But then, I guess we can’t compare every bad guy in B-movies to Heath Ledger’s Joker.
Lighthearted and predictable, this isn’t a groundbreaking comedic performance for anyone involved, but it’s enjoyable nonetheless. Especially for those going into the lower end of the totem pole of high school this fall. With a few of the language choices and suggestive scenes (no skin, Mom), it makes the PG-13 mark, but I’ve seen cruder humor on all counts. (Professionally, of course.)
Features included on this disk:
–Audio AND subtitles in English, French and Spanish. Nice way to study for that 101 course.
–Commentary by Steven Brill, Kristopher Brown, Troy Gentile, NateHartley, David Dortman
–The Writers Get a Chance to Talk: Kristopher Brown and Seth Rogen
–Deleted/Extended Scenes
–Line-O-Rama
–Gag Reel
–Rap Off
–Sprinkler Day
–Bully
–Directing Kids
–The Real Don: Danny McBridge
“Irritable skillz.” The Rap Off in particular is a great segment. A plethora of deleted scenes, as well as a conversation with Seth Rogen, prolong the giggles.