"Orange County" looked like a terrible movie. Generally Mtv movies aren't very good, but this was a pleasant surprise. The acting was pretty good, and the writing was surprisingly funny.
The plot of the film is pretty simple. Shaun (colin Hanks)decides to straighten up and fly right after his friend dies in a surfing accident. He gets good grades and tries to get into Stanford. When his transcript is accidentally switched with someone else's, he has to figure out a way to get in, so after all else fails, his brother Lance (Jack Black) drives him to Stanford and chaos ensues. In all it's stupidity it actually does produce quite a lot of laughs. I even found myself laughing at some of the stupid jokes, often because of excellent delivery. And even beneath it's silly exterior, it has a big heart and relatable situations. Catherine O'Hara and John Lithgow play the separated parents that try to get back together. Shaun's brother Lance is the stoner, who tries to help. The characters are over exaggerated, but relatable.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable film with a great back-up cast full of veteran actors and comedians including Garry Marshall, Harold Ramis, Lily Tomlin, Chevy Chase, Kevin Kline, Ben Stiller and many others.
My rating: *** out of ****. 82 mins. PG-13 for drug use and some nudity.
The plot of the film is pretty simple. Shaun (colin Hanks)decides to straighten up and fly right after his friend dies in a surfing accident. He gets good grades and tries to get into Stanford. When his transcript is accidentally switched with someone else's, he has to figure out a way to get in, so after all else fails, his brother Lance (Jack Black) drives him to Stanford and chaos ensues. In all it's stupidity it actually does produce quite a lot of laughs. I even found myself laughing at some of the stupid jokes, often because of excellent delivery. And even beneath it's silly exterior, it has a big heart and relatable situations. Catherine O'Hara and John Lithgow play the separated parents that try to get back together. Shaun's brother Lance is the stoner, who tries to help. The characters are over exaggerated, but relatable.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable film with a great back-up cast full of veteran actors and comedians including Garry Marshall, Harold Ramis, Lily Tomlin, Chevy Chase, Kevin Kline, Ben Stiller and many others.
My rating: *** out of ****. 82 mins. PG-13 for drug use and some nudity.