Orange County seem to be a movie that tries to pander to everyone, but ending up satisfying nobody. It tries to be a satire, but it is interrupted too frequently by slapsticks. Then it tries to be sentimental or inspirational, only to be followed more gags and bad jokes. Ultimately, it is not funny enough in either way for it to succeed.
Some things that was funny were portrayals of odd characters and the satires nature of the film. The discussion between Shaun Brunder's (Colin Hanks) and the writer and the revelation of his short story is quite touching.
Shaun's brother Lance (Jack Black), is just plain annoying. It seems as if his whole purpose in this movie is to unintentionally sabotage anything anyone is trying to do. I presume Shaun having lived with his brother his whole life, would know better than be in proximity of him in which there will be a remote chance of him screwing things up.
Much of the story defies logic, like the concept of giving up the chance to give up study under a famous writer and going to the equivalent of 13th grade just to be with some high school sweetheart, the family who doesn't even know what college is. I mean these are not Beverly Hillbillies, and he is only going to college a few hours away, not permanantly relocation to another country. Also, the sudden turnaround of a surfer bum who somehow in a year has a cumulative GPA of 3.5 and SAT score of 1530 baffles me. Even if it is just the character tha has changed, it wasn't portrayed as a like scenario.
Much of the other charicatures seems also obviously set up purely for gags, like the mom who gets drunk right before and during the visit by a school board member. I thought schools likes people who overcame disadvantaged childhood like Shaun, but they make it look like Stanford only wants children of foreign leaders.
Other scenarios are set up so clumsily that you knew it was coming a mile away, like the urine sample on the table, the handling over of the bottle of asprin found in Lance's jacket (even when Lance handed his sweater to Shaun's girlfriend, its like, a drug mixup is coming up.)
To sum it up, it is probably better than the rest of the teen movies, but it is still ho-hum for the rest of the crowd.
Some things that was funny were portrayals of odd characters and the satires nature of the film. The discussion between Shaun Brunder's (Colin Hanks) and the writer and the revelation of his short story is quite touching.
Shaun's brother Lance (Jack Black), is just plain annoying. It seems as if his whole purpose in this movie is to unintentionally sabotage anything anyone is trying to do. I presume Shaun having lived with his brother his whole life, would know better than be in proximity of him in which there will be a remote chance of him screwing things up.
Much of the story defies logic, like the concept of giving up the chance to give up study under a famous writer and going to the equivalent of 13th grade just to be with some high school sweetheart, the family who doesn't even know what college is. I mean these are not Beverly Hillbillies, and he is only going to college a few hours away, not permanantly relocation to another country. Also, the sudden turnaround of a surfer bum who somehow in a year has a cumulative GPA of 3.5 and SAT score of 1530 baffles me. Even if it is just the character tha has changed, it wasn't portrayed as a like scenario.
Much of the other charicatures seems also obviously set up purely for gags, like the mom who gets drunk right before and during the visit by a school board member. I thought schools likes people who overcame disadvantaged childhood like Shaun, but they make it look like Stanford only wants children of foreign leaders.
Other scenarios are set up so clumsily that you knew it was coming a mile away, like the urine sample on the table, the handling over of the bottle of asprin found in Lance's jacket (even when Lance handed his sweater to Shaun's girlfriend, its like, a drug mixup is coming up.)
To sum it up, it is probably better than the rest of the teen movies, but it is still ho-hum for the rest of the crowd.