Orange County (2002)

A guidance counselor mistakenly sends out the wrong transcripts to Stanford University under the name of an over-achieving high schooler.

Director:

Jake Kasdan

Writer:

Mike White

Stars:

Colin Hanks, Jack Black, Schuyler Fisk

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Colin Hanks	...	Shaun Brumder
Jack Black	...	Lance Brumder
Schuyler Fisk	...	Ashley
Bret Harrison	...	Lonny (as Brett Harrison)
Kyle Howard	...	Arlo
R.J. Knoll	...	Chad (as RJ Knoll)
Catherine O'Hara	...	Cindy Beugler
Mike White	...	Mr. Burke
John Lithgow	...	Bud Brumder
Lily Tomlin	...	Charlotte Cobb
George Murdock	...	Bob Beugler
Lillian Hurst	...	Lupe
Chevy Chase	...	Principal Harbert
Olivia Rosewood	...	Dana
Carly Pope	...	Tanya

Storyline

Shaun Brumder is a local surfer kid from Orange County who dreams of going to Stanford to become a writer and to get away from his disfunctional family household. Except Shaun runs into one complication after another starting when his application is rejected after his dim-witted guidance counselor sends the wrong application. So, Shaun goes to great lengths with a little help from his girlfriend Ashley and his drugged-out loser brother Lance to get into Stanford any way they see fit.

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Plot Keywords:

guidance counselor | transcript | writer | stanford university | surfer | 

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Taglines:

It's not just a place. It's a state of mind.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for drug content, language and sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

11 January 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Nix wie raus aus Orange County

Filming Locations:

California Institute of Technology - 1200 E. California Boulevard, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£167,051 (UK) (8 November 2002)

Gross:

£325,507 (UK) (15 November 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, MTV Films, Scott Rudin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jake Kasdan's father, Lawrence Kasdan, wrote the screenplay for The Big Chill, in which Kevin Kline starred, and which Jake Kasdan also had a small role in as a child.

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Goofs

At the end of the film when Shaun and his friends are on the beach, he decides to take up surfing again. Shaun and his friends pick up their surf boards and run towards the water. However, the sun is setting and the sea is really calm. There are no waves at all, not even a ripple.

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Quotes

Shaun: Dude... dude... dude!
[Lance stops vaccuming]
Shaun: Where are Bob's pain pills?
Lance: Here!
Shaun: No, this is Excedrin!
Lance: It's a decoy... I put all my stash in bottles... yellow are painkillers, they go in the Excedrin!
Shaun: Listen to me, I need Bob's pain pills!
Lance: Bob doesn't have any pain pills.
Shaun: Yes he does!
Lance: Not anymore, I sold them.

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Crazy Credits

During the opening credits both the font of the credits and the way they are displayed are similar to that of the output of a typewriter.

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Connections

References Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

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Soundtracks

"I've Got a Feeling"
by Andy Chase, Adam Schlesinger & Dominique Durand
Performed by Ivy
Courtesy of Ivy

User Reviews

Best comedy I've seen in ages.

I have laughed so hard or so frequently in so long, too long. Orange County is quite possibly one of the best comedies of the past few years. I absolutely love it. To be honest I had little faith in Jake Kasdan after Zero Effect (which had Zero Effect on me) but this movie shows he has a real sense of humor and he balances it perfectly with outrageous characters and an untypically good-natured comedy plot.

Shaun Brumner (Colin Hanks in a wacky performance) is refused entry to Stanford University because his dunderheaded College Counsellor mailed them the wrong the transcripts. He recruits his slobbish brother (an even wackier Jack Black) and his girlfriend to help him in increasingly desperate and far-fetched methods of convincing Stanford to reconsider. It may sound like a dumb story but the characters and situations surrounding it provoke the maximum amount of laughter.

The two leads are particularly impressive and show natural comic genius that makes me beg for more from these characters. Keep a look out for loads of cameos from Chevy Chase, Harold Ramis, Ben Stiller and Kevin Kline. And it's loads better than that crappy O.C. TV show.

The DVD is in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby 5.1 sound. The extras are great with a commentary from Kasdan, deleted scenes which actually should have stayed in the movie and loads of TV spots with scenes especially created. You must get this. Everybody needs to laugh and laugh you will.