Can't access Ciao through Uni (ARRGGGHH!) so that's why it's been quiet around these parts - when I ...
Can't access Ciao through Uni (ARRGGGHH!) so that's why it's been quiet around these parts - when I get home I'm too knackered to Ciao!
Member since:04.04.2001
Reviews:75
Members who trust:85
I spent months waiting for this to come out at my local cinema. I’d heard “Teenage Dirtbag” by Wheatus, found out that it was from this American film starring Mena Suvari (the naked one from American Beauty) and Jason Biggs (the pie-humping one from American Pie) and I figured it should be worth a look. Apparently I was the only one in the UK who totally missed it’s cinema release, because on today’s trip to my local Blockbuster, Loser was residing in the “£3.50 for 2 Nights” section. Considering the airplay the single received, you would have thought it would have merited more publicity for it’s cinema release on that basis alone, but I missed it totally!
PLOT – No Major Spoilers But Feel Free To Skip!
Jason Biggs plays Paul Tannek, a small town guy on a scholarship to a New York college. Sadly he’s a hard working lad, which doesn’t go down-well with his room-mates who party hard, take drugs and drop all his newly washed towels on the floor.
They decide that Paul is hampering their chick pulling ability so manage to get him thrown out of his dorm, and for some reason Paul decides moving into a animal hospital is a good next step. This makes him slightly more popular with his ex-roommates as he now has a place where they can throw parties.
Meanwhile Mena Suvari plays Dora Diamond (I kid you not!), a college student who’s having an affair with her English Lecturer (played with great smugness by Gregg Kinnear). He’s generally an all round nasty guy and so Dora loves him (the way all women love the bad guy in films!). Paul starts to fall madly in love with Dora after he falls down a flight of stairs in the lecture theatre in front of everyone and she tends to his damaged knee. After a party at the veterinary hospital Paul finds Dora unconscious in the bathroom and bundles her off to the hospital to save her. So will they get it together against all the odds!? What do you think!
So Does It Live Up To the Title?
Well, in short, kinda. There are no doubt MUCH worse films released everyday, but those expecting another American Pie or Road Trip are going to be very disappointed. I can’t honestly say I laughed out loud very often, and it’s not a gross-out humour film like they were. The actors are all ok, with Jason Biggs doing the affable but naive thing that he does so well and Mena Suvari basically on autopilot (she’s a better actress than this film suggests). I was pretty chuffed to find out Dan Aykroyd was in it as Paul’s Dad, but sadly (I’ve loved him ever since Ghostbusters!) it’s a small part and you don’t get to see him too often.
Greg Kinnear plays an utterly unlikeable person with absolutely no redeeming features at all, which is made all the worse for me as I have a completely irrational hatred with him. You just end up wanting to scream at Dora “He’s a b****d! Why don’t you leave him!?”. The whole concept of their relationship is very far fetched, but then like I said, in films women always fall for the bad guy.
High points are the band Everclear, who appear when Paul gets himself and Dora tickets to see them, but they are wasted in a very small cameo. They did handle Paul’s first concert experience quite well though – it brought back far too many bad memories for me! I also liked a scene where Dora told her mother she was staying at a friends, when she was actually stuck in a Station – she pays a beggar woman to answer the pay phone and back up her alibi, when her mum *69’s (the American equivalent of 1471) to check up on her! It reminded me a lot of my own mum. However, the single greatest thing about the film is the sound track, which includes Everclear, Wheatus, the Offspring, Elvis Costello and Blink 182, and is well worth purchasing.
The problem seems to be, that they couldn’t figure out whether it was a comedy or a romance, so in the end they do neither very well. The script should have been funnier, and the characters better developed, but they seem happy to let it drift along as a love triangle teen flick. It also tries to make date rape drugs funny, which is thankfully, a completely impossible task. I may be being incredibly hard on the film, but I really couldn't warm to it...
Conclusion - Should I See This Film?!
All in all, an ok film to watch on a boring night in, but don’t expect too much. I’d wait for it to be on TV, rather than shelling out £3.50, because you may regret it. Without doubt, a completely average film!
If you want a bit more info, pop over to the official site at www.spe.sony.com/movies/loser/
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Tony Dow - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: John Challis, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Tessa Peake-Jones, Gwyneth Strong
Excellent op on this film. I must say that I was generally dissappointed with Loser, as, considering the history of the main players, I was expecting a whole load of belly laughs, alas, they did not come!! Wait for this to hit yer TV screens as the film has no proper direction, with a standard happy ending, and is nothing more than a mildly amusing bucket of mush! Ta.
paule23 27.05.2001 22:04
I've never even heard of this fillm, let alone seen it, and after that review I think I'll give it a miss!
aljones 24.05.2001 15:53
I also missed the Cinema realse of Loser, and I was looking quite hard for several weeks. Maybe it never made it to the Welsh cinemas - LOL. Alan (aljones)
Writer-director ofLoser, Amy Heckerling, has a way with teen comedies, fromFast Times at ... more
Ridgemont HightoClueless. She manages to take the clichés of life in school and spin them into cinematic gold. Part of her secret is that she genuinely seems to re...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
American Pie's Jason Biggs will win your heart as lovable loser Paul Tannek, a small-town ... more
guy just starting college in New York City. With little cash, no friends and three hard-partying, girl-chasing roommates who taunt him when they're not ignoring h...
Writer-director ofLoser, Amy Heckerling, has a way with teen comedies, fromFast Times at ... more
Ridgemont HightoClueless. She manages to take the clichés of life in school and spin them into cinematic gold. Part of her secret is that she genuinely seems to re...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
American Pie's Jason Biggs will win your heart as lovable loser Paul Tannek a small-town ... more
guy just starting college in New York City. With little cash no friends and three hard-partying girl-chasing roommates who taunt him when they're not ignoring h...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![Loser [DVD] [2000]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78524245.jpg "Loser [DVD] [2000]")
May 20th, 2001
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