The Whoopee Boys (1986)

Two obnoxious and dim-witted misfits attempt to save a school for needy children by attempting to sneak into the wealthy high society of Palm Beach to get the money needed for their cause.

Director:

John Byrum

Writers:

Steve Zacharias, Jeff Buhai

Stars:

Michael O'Keefe, Paul Rodriguez, Denholm Elliott

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael O'Keefe	...	Jake Bateman
Paul Rodriguez	...	Barney Benar
Denholm Elliott	...	Col. Phelps
Carole Shelley	...	Henrietta Phelps
Andy Bumatai	...	Roy Raja
Eddie Deezen	...	Eddie Lipschultz
Marsha Warfield	...	Officer White
Elizabeth Arlen	...	Shelley
Karen A. Smythe	...	Clorinda Antonucci
Joe Spinell	...	Guido Antonucci
Robert Gwaltney	...	Humping the Butler
Lucinda Jenney	...	Olivia
Dan O'Herlihy	...	Judge Sternhill
Stephen Davies	...	Strobe
Taylor Negron	...	Whitey

Storyline

Two dim-witted street peddlers, Jack and Barney, arrive in Palm Beach, Florida, looking for a better, wealthier lifestyle. In Palm Beach, Jack falls for Olivia, a young heiress running an orphaned children's shelter being threatened with foreclosure. Jack, at Barney's insistence, enrolls them both at a finishing school so they can learn the etiquette of the upper class in order to fit in with the hope that Olivia's uncle will approve of Jack wanting to marry her and help her obtain an inheritance to save the orphanage.

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Plot Keywords:

illuminati | palm beach florida | high society | finishing school | motorcycle | 

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Taglines:

The Whoopee Boys have a thing or two to show to high society.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jack Nitzsche: man who yells at Barney and Jack for being in the pool.

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Quotes

Barney: [at another party, Barney sees the same old lady, now holding a Shar-Pei in her arm] Hey, it's my favorite dog lady again! How you doing? You have a new dog?
Woman with Dogs: Yes, this is a Shar-Pei; it's a Chinese dog.
Barney: [Barney pulls on the dog's wrinkled skin] Damn, you need to iron this dog, lady. Look at this!
Woman with Dogs: No, stop, that's just how the dog is!
Barney: Shit, you could fit two dogs in here!
[he continues to pull on the dog's loose skin]
Woman with Dogs: [Slapping Barney's hand away] No! Please, stop abusing my dog, you horrible man!
Barney: You ...
[...]

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Connections

References Bewitched (1964)

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Soundtracks

Party All the Time
by Rick James

User Reviews

Dumb and Dumber before it was fashionable

A great movie if you understand what you are getting into. Check your brain and all shreds of rational thinking at the door. The acting is over the top and the serious dialogue is completely unbelievable as there really is no true point to this movie. That is precisely why I love it.

Long before Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels made idiocy popular on the big screen with "Dumb and Dumber", two enterprising men, Paul Rodriguez and Michael O'Keefe, strove to make completely base humor acceptable to the American masses. They definitely succeeded. These two (and the able supporting cast) make what easily could have been a poor movie into something funny. One has to wonder exactly how much ad-libbing was going on in this one (at least on Rodriguez' part).

Don't miss the charm school scene with the wine tasting. The only other time I had fallen out of my chair laughing was when Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels were trying to douse the fire of the peppers in their hamburgers with ketchup and mustard. Those of you who have attentively observed both will understand what I mean.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 August 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Whoopee Boys

Filming Locations:

Miami, Florida, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$444,746

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1