Classes are back in session, and we're getting back in our grooves. It's great! Day in, day out, we're getting up, going to classes, going to bed, and doing it again... okay, maybe it's not so great. If the back-to-school blues are getting you down, check out these rentals which should make you laugh about the anxiety you experienced before you got to college, remind you about the party it's supposed to be, or just make you smile.
The first flick on your rental list should be the 1978 college classic, Animal House. The film takes place at fictional Faber College, where it seems there are only two fraternities. The first is Delta house, which is comprised of party-animal types and led by the juvenile antics of Bluto, played by the hysterical John Belushi. The other fraternity is a magnet for self-serving, tight-assed rich white boys. Dean Wormer wants nothing more than to kick Delta house off-campus, and enlists the goodie-two-shoes to help him carry through with his plan. This is the college movie that mainstreamed the toga party and brought John Belushi the fame he deserved before his untimely death in 1982. It's definitely a must see, if you haven't see it yet.
Ten years ago, How I Got Into College was released, starring an unknown actor by the name of Anthony Edwards. The movie quietly came and went from the theaters. However, thanks to the increasing fame of Edwards (Dr. Green of NBC's ER), and some air time on a little network called Comedy Central, the film has become a cult favorite. A movie with a fairly unoriginal plot, How I Got Into College actually has its moments. Basically, high school screw-up Marlon applies to college so that he can be with L'il Miss Perfect, his high school crush, Jennifer. However, in between the banality, the movie manages to shed some sarcastic light on the stupidity that has become college applications. It's a perfect movie for freshmen whose application/acceptance process is still fresh in their minds.
If a satirical look is what you're looking for, PCU is a great off-center look at the political-correctness that has overtaken campuses today. The Port Chester University depicted in PCU is "fictional," but it is a little-known fact that most of the film is based on the not-so-fictional Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. Starring David Spade, spewing forth more cynicism than a New Yorker on a hot day, the movie's got enough laughs to be worth renting.
For those seniors experiencing pre-graduation anxiety and thinking that their dreams of making it big are going to have to be traded for less glamorous jobs, The Muppets Take Manhattan is the perfect flick. Successful actors in their college shows, Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo and all their friends decide to take their show to Broadway and see if they can hit the big time. When nobody helps them, the gang has to split up and give up their dream. Still, with a little determination from Kermit, they accomplish everything they set out for and more. The last Muppet movie made before Jim Henson's death, The Muppets Take Manhattan has music, comedy, and a heart-warming ending besides. Sigh. It makes graduation look not so scary after all.
