Slackers (2002)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Director:

Dewey Nicks

Writer (WGA):

David H. Steinberg (written by)

Release Date:

1 February 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Higher Education Just Hit A New Low

Plot:

When the school geek discovers three fellow college students scamming the system, he blackmails them to win over the school's most popular girl.

Plot Keywords:

Blackmail | Prank | Bikini | Back Pack | Job Interview

Cast

Devon Sawa	...	Dave Goodman
Jason Segel	...	Sam Schechter
Michael C. Maronna	...	Jeff Davis (as Michael Maronna)
Jason Schwartzman	...	Ethan Dulles
Jaime King	...	Angela Patton (as James King)
Laura Prepon	...	Reanna
Travis Davis	...	Airborne Express Driver
Jim Rash	...	Head T.A. Philip
Nat Faxon	...	Karl, the Grad Student
Don Michaelson	...	Professor Markoe
Retta	...	Bruna, the Office Manager
Marilyn Staley	...	Singing Waitress
Jason Garner	...	Singing Waiter
Gedde Watanabe	...	Japanese Proctor
Heidi Krämer	...	Hot Twin #1

Also Known As:

Hooking Up Ethan (USA) (working title)
Les complices (Canada: French title)
Scam (USA) (working title)
The Best and Brightest (USA) (working title)
The Hook-Up (USA) (working title)
The Undergrads (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language and sexual content, and for brief drug use.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

Canada | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | France:U | Norway:15 | Singapore:R(A) | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Australia:MA | Philippines:R-18

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Alliance Atlantis Communications

Trivia:

Originally in the singing penis scene, Mike Maronna's own naked penis was used with a CGI mouth added in. After being screened for the MPAA however, the filmmakers were told to put a sock on it (literally).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In the last shot of the film, as credits begin to roll and Ethan has finished singing his song, you can see several feet of the dolly track on the floor of the diner. One of the extras sitting in a booth even comes close to tripping over it. In the wide screen version of this film the dolly track is not visible.

Quotes:

Jeff: One... two... three... four hard nipples

Movie Connections:

References Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)

Soundtrack:

No Hay Problema

Unique and Entertaining

When "Slackers" was originally released in theaters, it was given a very low rating. This is difficult to understand, when it turned out to be a very creative movie. The characters are easy to enjoy, as the antics of Dave (Devon Sawa), Sam (Jason Segel), and Jeff (Michael Maronna) make them out to be some sort of wild "A-Team", with a variety of special skills. Ethan's (Jason Schwartzman) obsession over Angela (James King) is more dark than it is comical, and is a fairly good example of a not so rare obsession which is found in young men in everyday life. What I found to be most unique about the movie were the day-dream/imagination sequences, in which there is a good look into the minds of the characters. Although their thoughts are rather bizarre, I think real-people can make a connection when comparing it to their own times of letting their imagination stretch and be non-sensical. My favorite scene has to be the swimming scene between Dave and Angela at night in the school pool. It was beautifully filmed, and combined with the appropriate music, it is a very strong film sequence that really drew me in. Overall, I am glad that I took the time to watch this movie, as I regard it highly as a favorite of mine after now having seen it.