Stealing Harvard (2002)

Director:

Bruce McCulloch

Writers (WGA):

Martin Hynes (story) and
Peter Tolan (story) ...

Release Date:

13 September 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Their intentions were honorable. Their methods were criminal.

Plot:

A middle-class man turns to a life of crime in order to finance his niece's first year at Harvard University.

Plot Keywords:

Harvard | Scheme | Promise | Workout Video | Brother Sister Relationship

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Thur. Nov. 12	10:00 AM	FX
Fri. Nov. 13	8:00 AM	FX

Cast

Jason Lee	...	John Plummer
Tom Green	...	Walter P. 'Duff' Duffy
Leslie Mann	...	Elaine Warner
Dennis Farina	...	Mr. Warner
Megan Mullally	...	Patty Plummer
John C. McGinley	...	Detective Charles
Tammy Blanchard	...	Noreen Plummer
Chris Penn	...	David Loach
Richard Jenkins	...	Honorable Emmett Cook
Seymour Cassel	...	Uncle Jack
Zeus	...	Rex
Ken Magee	...	Butcher
Martin Starr	...	Liquor Store Clerk
Mary Gillis	...	Duff's Mom
Bruce McCulloch	...	Fidio the Lawyer

Also Known As:

Say Uncle (USA) (working title)
Stealing Stanford (USA) (working title)
The Promise (USA) (working title)
Uncle (USA) (working title)
You Promised (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language and drug references.

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Netherlands:6 | Argentina:13 | Canada:PG | Denmark:7 | Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:7 | Sweden:7 | UK:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38106) | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Revolution Studios

Trivia:

Even though the movie is set and filmed in the US, a few distinctly Canadian items do appear in the movie, such as cases of Moosehead beer and a Canada 3000 handbag.

Goofs:

Plot holes: John showing up late to his niece's spelling bee and promising to pay for her to go to college is all caught on home video. But since John, his sister, and his niece are all in the video, there doesn't seem to be anyone left to shoot it. More than that, the camera angle repeatedly shifts, indicating that two cameras were taping the event and that the two versions were later edited together

Quotes:

Duff's Mom: Hi John how's your parents?
John: Dead, still.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Soundtrack:

Theme from S.W.A.T.

Great brainless comedy

Been reading some of the other reviews of this movie, and I'm not sure what these other people were looking for, but this is supposed to be a screwball comedy, not anything more.

The majority of the bad comments had one element in common: they hate Tom Green. Well I can't change their mind about Tom Green, but Tom Green doesn't really play a big role in this movie -- at best he's a major supporting role. Make no mistake, Jason Lee really is the one carrying this movie, so if you detest Tom Green, don't worry. And Tom Green really is quite understated in this movie compared to how lunatic he really can get.

One storyline they could've expanded on were Megan Mullally, playing Jason Lee's slutty older sister, and Leslie Mann, playing Lee's uptight fiance. These two had detest each other dynamic going which would've been fun to watch if they interacted with each other more.

So for all of those recommending that you give this movie a pass, I say ignore them. Just come with the right frame of mind, this is not a supposed to be Shakespeare, just check your brain at the door, and enjoy.