Loser (2000)

A college student, branded a loser by his roommates and booted from the dorm, falls in love with a coed who has eyes for their condescending professor.

Director:

Amy Heckerling

Writer:

Amy Heckerling

Stars:

Jason Biggs, Mena Suvari, Zak Orth

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jason Biggs	...	Paul Tannek
Mena Suvari	...	Dora Diamond
Zak Orth	...	Adam
Thomas Sadoski	...	Chris (as Tom Sadoski)
Jimmi Simpson	...	Noah
Greg Kinnear	...	Prof. Edward Alcott
Dan Aykroyd	...	Dad
Twink Caplan	...	Gena
Bobby Slayton	...	Sal
Robert Miano	...	Victor
Mollie Israel	...	Annie (as Mollee Israel)
Colleen Camp	...	Homeless Woman
Andy Dick	...	Another City Worker
Steven Wright	...	Panty Hose Customer
Brian Backer	...	Doctor

Storyline

Is there room in Manhattan for a decent kid? Can a young woman see past a cad to true love? Paul, from rural upstate, comes to New York City for college. To keep his scholarship, he must study hard and do well. That makes him a loser to his partying roommates who connive to kick him out of their suite. He's assigned a room in an animal hospital. In class he meets Dora, a pretty coed who needs a job to pay for school, and who's the very young lover of their sarcastic and selfish lit professor. When Dora is slipped some drugs at a party, Paul nurses her back to health, and a friendship follows. For Paul, though, it's more than friendly feelings. Can they work things out for them to become a truly lucky couple?

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Plot Keywords:

college | loser | love | new york city | drugs | 

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Taglines:

Dare to be different

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for drug content, crude sexual material and language

Details

Official Sites:

Sony

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 July 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Loser

Filming Locations:

Bryant Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£173,016 (UK) (3 November 2000)

Gross:

ESP 1,737,650 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Branti Film Productions, Cockamamie

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of Dora Diamond is in part inspired by Franz Kafka's girlfriend late in his life, Dora Dymant. Kafka is mentioned in the English class scene in the movie.

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Goofs

When two of the guys that Paul shares a room with, about half an hour into the film, argue about whether a girl with a pierced tongue is a lesbian, one of them calls the other one "genius" sarcastically... but his lips are clearly saying "idiot".

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Quotes

Dora Diamond: Well, you know how there are couples that stay together just because they feel like they can't do any better, or there are people who are sad and miserable and live alone? But then there's this microscopically teeny group of luck people who get to be with the person they're madly in love with.
Paul Tannek: Dora, you ever consider being in love and leaving out the "madly" part?
Dora Diamond: Well, what's the fun in that?

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Connections

References VH1 Legends (1995)

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Soundtracks

"Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)"
Written by Elliot Lurie
Performed by Erica Lively Orchestra
Courtesy of Muzak
By Arrangement with Network Music

User Reviews

Not as bad as people say

I don't know why people like to bash this movie, it is a nice little remake of the 1960 classic "the apartment" where in a businessman sells out to his bosses so they can use his apartments to have affairs with other women, but when one attempts suicide in his house, it happens to be the one he falls in love with, the same story is evident here, Biggs plays the role well, and Suvari could play Shirley MacLaine in future remakes, the same with Kinnear and MacMurray, this could become one of those films that could get young people involved into the classics.