The great thing about "Billy Madison" is you're not suppose to take it nor judge it too seriously. They knew while making it that it wouldn't be an Oscar winner, nor would it be the next "Citizen Kane", nor is it suppose to be some intriguing and involved plot, but it in return has rightfully earned itself a major cult classic status among youth and film lovers since it's release. It has also become one of the most quoted and memorable films over the past 12 years.
It's about a 27-year-old man who makes a bet with his dad that if he repeats and passes grades 1-12 (Where is K?), he will take over for his dad's hotel company, instead of his dad's obnoxious and sociopathic friend Erik (played to perfection by Bradley Whitford; despite Billy not having any experience in the field at all...). The film from there follows him in each grade.
Does that sound like much of a plot? No. It is inept, idiotic, unrealistic and bizarre, but it is one of the funniest movies ever made. It has endless amounts of memorable gags that will make you laugh over and over again, it has the type of sense of humor that makes you laugh because it is so damned strange and nonsensical. Most of its gags rely on a hybrid of black humor and slapstick that produces hysterical results.
I feel like I'm 10 years old quoting the movie to all of my friends, but it's the type of movie that will make you do that. If you are in the mood for a very good and thought provoking movie, this isn't your movie, but if you are in the mood to laugh your ass off and not pay attention to how good it actually is... here is your movie.
But that aside, "Billy Madison" isn't just awful like many other goofball comedies of the 90's and 00's, it is very entertaining and memorable... because it just manages to really make you laugh. And it's not dumb characters making stupid mistakes (like Black Sheep for example), just very weird characters making "What the hell was that?!" situations.
