It’s one of the go-to classic comedies that will never fail.
Old School is the perfect balance between trying to be slapstick but also having a story that makes the audience feel that what they’re watching is worthwhile.
The 2003 comedy raked in 87 million dollars at the box office, well above the average for that year. Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn, and Luke Wilson star as a group of friends in their mid to late twenties who start a fraternity to spice up their lives as they start to head into career life. Mitch (Luke Wilson) , the main character, starts the movie by finding out his girlfriend is cheating on him with multiple partners at once. This prompts Mitch to move into a new home and start a new chapter of his life that his friends help pioneer. The new chapter involved founding an unconventional fraternity. The backstory of this fraternity is that his new home is right on campus at a local college. In order to keep living there, his home needs to be tied to the university; so, what’s not better than making your home a frat house? Frank (Will Ferrell) and Beanie (Vince Vaughn), in search of rekindling the fire of their glory days, take this mission head on, recruiting everyone from college students to an 88 year old man. The movie then follows their journey in keeping the fraternity alive while facing adversity from the mean Dean of the university. Oh and yes, somehow having to balance their work lives during the chaos that unfolds from their behavior.
The Pros
Will Ferrell. He does such a great job at any role you give him in a movie, but he just is phenomenal as “Frank the Tank”. He plays “the guy that peaked in college” so well. The signature Will Ferrell yells and delivery of lines just make the movie full of laughs. His newly wedded wife finding him streaking through downtown, his relationship with Blue, and his dedication to the fraternity were all the amazing parts of the performance.
I appreciated the dedication to the plot this movie held. It’s not common that you’ll see a comedy classic stick to its tracks and not get lost in the banter. Old School did great in keeping the story engaging with Mitch and his love interest in Nicole, while also giving attention to the fight to keep his residence and the new life he started there.
Why does everybody like the movie Stand by Me? Because it’s a beautiful story of friendship. Old School is also a great story of friendship, but just a tad bit dirtier than Stand by Me. Frank, Mitch, and Beanie make the funniest trio of friends in this movie and their jokes and conversations with each other make a movie of their own. Frank seizing to be appropriate, Beanie’s blunt attitude, and Mitch’s uncertainty all come together to make a funny blend throughout this film that resembles almost any guy friend group out there.
The Cons
This is another movie that doesn’t have that many cons for me.
I understand that this movie’s characters will feel less real because of the slapstick style, but I still didn’t like Jeremy Piven as Dean Pritchard. His character’s lines were just so cliché and didn’t make him interesting at all. If there was maybe a little bit more effort in the making of his character, then I don’t think I would’ve disliked him as much as I do.
Old School, probably the go-to late night comedy to watch with your friends that aren’t so sensitive to jokes. The Shobe Score is a 94.