Tag Archives: Robert Carradine

Revenge of the Nerds-1984

Revenge of the Nerds-1984

Director Jeff Kanew

Starring Robert Carradine, Anthony Edwards

Scott’s Review #1,354

Reviewed April 8, 2023

Grade: B+

Released in 1984, Revenge of the Nerds is in a similar vein to other raunchy comedies like Police Academy (1984), Animal House (1978), or Porky’s (1981).

Goofy with slapstick elements and involving unpopular or marginalized groups rising above are the thematic commonalities these genre films share.

To say the film is dumb fun is quite apt and watching it again almost forty years past the release date the stereotypes and gags are ever so noticeable. The term ‘date rape’ was not known then but known presently leaves a slightly uncomfortable feeling during one scene.

Also dated is the classification of what a nerd is. In 1984, the last name one would like to be referred to was a nerd. Today, it’s a term of endearment or even something to aspire to be!

Anyone under the age of forty will not appreciate Revenge of the Nerds or even get it’ It was made at a very different time but will be appreciated by the older folks and provide a burst of uproarious nostalgia.

Revenge of the Nerds is one of my favorite selections when I think of the 1980s and yearn for a slice of mind-numbing entertainment.

Geeky college students Gilbert (Anthony Edwards) and Lewis (Robert Carradine) are excited to leave their repressed small town and venture off to the mind-opening University where, in their minds, they are bound to score with countless women.

Once there, they are ridiculed mercilessly by the jocks and evicted from their dormitory when the Alpha Betas, who recently burned down their own fraternity house by accident, confiscate the building.

When the college forces the freshmen to live in the gym, Gilbert, Lewis, and their fellow dorks relocate to a run-down house. When the Alpha Betas, led by jock Stan (Ted McGinley), repeatedly humiliate them, the nerds plot revenge.

Naturally, in an attempt at gender parity, there is a nerd sorority named Omega Mu featuring Judy (Michelle Meyrink) who becomes Gilbert’s girlfriend.

And as a fabulous addition, there is one equivalent to Alpha Beta consisting of cheerleader types who are bitchy and mean to the nerds led by Betty Childs (Julie Montgomery), the object of Lewis’s affections.

Revenge of the Nerds succeeds well because it’s easy to root for the Nerds to exact their revenge on the jocks. But this would not be the case without the characters of Gilbert and Lewis.

Edwards and Carradine infuse them with likability and a flavor of fairness. More than just horny nerds, they choose their brethren from all walks of life. There is a gay nerd, a black nerd, an Asian nerd, and even a nerd who picks his nose and is effectively named Booger (Curtis Armstrong).

Despite the subject matter, it’s easy to see the producers were attempting some early diversity and inclusion. They exist within boxed stereotypes but at least the representation was visible.

McGinley as Stan is the perfect foil. The actor is a blonde and a surfer dude so he is the perfect ‘big man on campus’ type. The secondary jocks are all loud and obnoxious but are happy to be second bananas to Stan.

Adorable is how the distinction bubbles up to the school dean, played by David Wohl, who is at first intimidated by but finally gets the better of loud Coach Harris (John Goodman). And Lewis’s father, Mr. Skolnick (James Cromwell) is his doppelganger.

Revenge of the Nerds is successful at bringing out the thirteen-year-old boy in all of us with its incorporation of mooning scenes, belching, and a hilarious peeping tom scene in the hated popular girls’ sorority.

It’s not film art or anything in the way of classy cinematic camerawork, or visual effects, but what Revenge of the Nerds (1984) does is provide some good-humored laughs.

It’s well-intentioned and holds up surprisingly well on its own merits while some 1980s ‘quality’ films do not.

Django Unchained-2012

Django Unchained-2012

Director Quentin Tarantino

Starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz

Scott’s Review #699

Reviewed November 26, 2017

Grade: A

Quentin Tarantino, the brilliant filmmaker, can do very little wrong in my opinion, and he releases yet another masterpiece with 2012’s Django Unchained, a western story centering around the delicate subject matter of slavery.

As with several other talented director’s stories, the main focal point here is a revenge-driven tale with plenty of bloody scenes and stylistic ferociousness, making Django Unchained yet another masterpiece in the Tarantino collection.

Certainly not for the faint of heart, the film will please fans of film creativity and artistic achievement.

As with many Tarantino films a stellar cast is used and each actor cast to perfection- it seems almost every actor in Hollywood is dying to appear in the director’s films- this time Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Samuel L. Jackson are the lucky ones, all featured in prominent roles- not surprisingly the acting is top-notch.

An interesting fact to note is that whoever appears in a Tarantino film seems to be having the time of their lives- what creative freedom and interesting material to experience.

A comparable director to Tarantino- as far as recruiting fine actors- is Robert Altman- also tremendously popular with talent.

The saga begins with clear Western flair as Django Freeman (Foxx) is led through the scorching heat of Texas with a group of other black slaves, presumably, to be sold by their abusive white captors- the time is 1858, and the abolition of slavery has not yet occurred the Civil War is still two years away.

Doctor King Schultz (Waltz), a former dentist and current bounty hunter, is on a mission to find and kill the Brittle brothers and realizes that Django can help him find the men.

To complicate matters, Django has been separated from his wife Broomhilda (Washington) and vows to find her and avenge her abductors.

As circumstances lead Schultz and Django to a vast Tennessee estate, the duo becomes business partners and friends. The race to rescue Broomhilda takes the pair to sunny (and equally hot) Mississippi- the home of vicious Calvin Candie (DiCaprio) and his dreaded “Candyland”.

The crackling heat and the atmospheric nature of Django Unchained combined with the revenge theme make the film an immeasurable success.

An ode to spaghetti westerns of yesteryear, the film incorporates similar music and grit so that the result is a modernized version of those films, with lots more blood and violence.

Slavery is a tough subject matter to tackle, especially when members of the Ku Klux Klan are featured, but Tarantino does so effortlessly, and as Django gains revenge on his tormentors, there is major audience satisfaction to be enjoyed.

The indignities and downright abuse that several black characters suffer can be quite tough to sit through.

The climactic dinner scene in Mississippi is splendid and the best sequence of the film. Schultz and Django dine with Calvin at his spectacular mansion. Calvin’s sinister and loyal house slave (Jackson) suspects a devious plan is about to be hatched and a vicious shoot-out erupts between the parties involved.

The ingenious and long sequence is a cat-and-mouse affair with all of the characters carefully tiptoeing around the others in fear of being revealed or discovered as fakes.

The scene is exceptional in its craft as we watch the characters dine on delectable food and drink, all the while motivations bubble under the surface.

Django Unchained is not for film-goers seeking either a linear story or a mainstream piece of blockbuster movie-making-Tarantino is not a typical Hollywood guy.

The film is exceptionally carved and constructed in a way that challenges the viewer to endure what some of the characters (specifically Django and Broomhilda) are made to go through. This discomfort and horror make the inevitable revenge all the more sweet and satisfying.

Quentin Tarantino has created masterpiece after masterpiece throughout his filmography of work.

Proudly, I can herald 2012’s  Django Unchained as one of the unique director’s very finest and will be sure to be remembered decades and decades in the future as being able to challenge, provoke thought, and satisfy legions of his fans.

Oscar Nominations: 2 wins-Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor-Christoph Waltz (won), Best Original Screenplay (won), Best Sound Editing, Best Cinematography