Animal House (1978) 40 Years Ago!

I didn't get into it, but said the same earlier. The scene with Stork leading the band down a dead end alleyway and the girl landing in the bedroom of the boy reading Playboy are just a couple of things that really are cartoonish and really do take away from the rest of the movie. I blame drugs

 

Belushi was already 29 when Animal House was released, it was hard enough to imagine him being a college student. Chevy Chase was like 34.

 

It's called suspension of belief, part of the movie experience.

 

John Vernon had a long career as a character actor and appeared in many films, but I cannot help but think "Dean Wormer" whenever I see him, regardless of what role he happens to be playing.

 

Mark Metcalf reprised his Doug Niedermeyer act in the Twisted Sister ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ video.

 

It's actually 'suspension of disbelief', but I dig it. Anywhoo...I must have snuck in to see this movie about 20 times back in 1978. It had boobs. I was 13. Good times...

 

Aren't you forgetting "Seven years of college down the drain"?

Not much of a stretch when you take that into account.

 

Those were two of the funniest bits in the movie.

 

The boy with the Playboy mag "Thank you Jesus" scene got one of the biggest laughs when I saw the movie. I did think, then and now, that Stork leading the band down the alley was kind of dumb.

 

Stork was one of the original writers and developers of the movie. He was a lampoon genius who died in Hawaii a few years later.

 

Liked it on release, but way too many cringe inducing scenes now, peeping tom and contemplation of date rape, to name but two.

 

Well, Ok, but.....if youre going to use that standard, then 80% of the movies coming out of Hollywood today shouldnt get released.

 

Also the follow-up I Wanna Rock.
Twisted Sister - I Wanna Rock (Official Video)

 

Only 80%??...you're very generous with benefit of doubt !

 

BTW this movie really shows how great a director John Landis was. One of the best comic directors in cinema history.

 

LOL......I was trying Not to be myopic or didactic......

 

While I think the ending of Animal House is weak, the finale of Landis' "The Blues Brothers" (1980) is much worse -- rivaled, at that time, closely by Spielberg's "1941" (1979).

However, in fairness, these over-the top endings are as much the writers fault as the directors -- probably more so.

 

The ending is fine,how was it suppose to end? classic like the Naked Gun,but even better

 

Agree. Having them get caught leaving the ballroom would've been a better way to end it. By that point we know the orphanage got the money from the record advance. We didn't need the 15 minute car chase and ridiculous Wile E. Coyote ending for the Nazi's in the Pinto. The ending takes a 3 1/2 star movie and makes it a 2 1/2 star movie. Animal House isn't quite as bad an ending, but it still lessens the movie for me a bit.

 

Endings of Animals and Blues Brothers are great.
2nd half of Stripes is the one to focus on .

 

Comedies with weak endings were all the rage.
Animal House -not too bad an ending, but not up to the rest of the movie's quality
Blues Brother -a pointless excuse for a car chase
Stripes -forget the fun first 2/3rds and end it with just an implausible, not funny, action sequence
Revenge of the Nerds -The "lets all celebrate being nerds" come together at the end was hard to take after a pretty well executed comedy

 

One of my fondest childhood memories was spending a morning with my Dad helping him work, which I did often. One particular afternoon, he suggested we catch a movie. Animal House was the flick we saw. Dad laughed so hard I was almost embarrassed. Wonderful memory.

 

I'll defend Stripes. It's at least "somewhat" plausible, fits the story and actually has some funny moments too. Plus, without it you don't get the great magazine covers at the end.

 

The magazine cover part is pretty funny.

 

Remember seeing it in an older theater, like an auditorium...crowd was hammered and all through the movie you heard the sounds of beer cans rolling down the slope towards the screen on the linoleum floor.