Dead Man on Campus (1998)

Two college roommates go out and party, resulting in bad grades. They learn of the clause that says, "If your roommate dies, you get an A," and decide to find someone who is on the verge, so to speak, to move in with them.

Director:

Alan Cohn

Writers:

Anthony Abrams (story), Adam Larson Broder (story)

Stars:

Tom Everett Scott, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Poppy Montgomery

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Everett Scott	...	Josh
Mark-Paul Gosselaar	...	Cooper
Poppy Montgomery	...	Rachel
Lochlyn Munro	...	Cliff
Randy Pearlstein	...	Buckley
Corey Page	...	Matt
Alyson Hannigan	...	Lucy
Mari Morrow	...	Kristin
Dave Ruby	...	Zeke
Mark Carapezza	...	Hank
Jeff Tarpley	...	Jerry (as Jeff T)
Jason Segel	...	Kyle
Linda Cardellini	...	Kelly
Aeryk Egan	...	Pickle
Judyann Elder	...	Guidance Counselor

Storyline

Josh, (Scott) a college student on a scholarship, gets taught the about crazy nightlife of being in college by his unreliable roommate Cooper (Gosselaar) and fails his midterms due to being unprepared. With Cooper's father no longer willing to pay his son's way through college, and Josh needing to keep up his grades or risk losing his scholarship, the two learn of a hidden clause in the school's rules that basically says "if your roommate commits suicide, you get straight A's." Since neither are willing to do so, they instead decide to invite a suicidal colleague in. - and push him over the edge.

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Plot Keywords:

drug abuse | college dormitory | intoxication | perscription drug | prescription drug abuse | 

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Taglines:

Roommate Wanted...For a Limited Time Only

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for drug use, language and crude sexual humor

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 August 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un cadavre sur le campus

Filming Locations:

7th Street Bridge, Modesto, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,704,688, 23 August 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$15,062,898, 22 November 1998

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, MTV Productions, Pacific Western

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Professor Durkheim is presumably named after the French sociologist Emile Durkheim, the first academic to study suicide extensively.

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Goofs

When Cooper breaks into the Admin building to steal the student records, he approaches a filing cabinet and tries to open it and says it's locked. However, the lock on the filing cabinet at the top is ejected, which is an indication that the file cabinet drawers are unlocked. If the cabinet was truly locked, the lock would have been pushed in. However, this could be deliberate - Cooper isn't exactly the brightest bulb; it's possible he just doesn't know how to properly open a file cabinet.

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Quotes

Buckley: If you see that guy, kick him in the balls!

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Crazy Credits

During the opening credits, names of cast and crew appear as answer choices on a Scantron test form and booklet.

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Connections

Referenced in LA to Vegas: The Yips and the Dead (2018)

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Soundtracks

Organizized
Written by Spider One (as M. Cummings), Dorian Heartsong (as D. Heartsong),
Allan Pahanish Jr. (as A. Pahanish, Jr.), Adam Jeremy Williams (as A. Williams) & Jordan Cohen (as J. Cohen)
Performed by Powerman 5000
Courtesy of DreamWorks Records under license from Universal Music Special Markets

User Reviews

Fun if you don't expect much

It's definitely not worth the money it cost to see it in the movie theater, but if you want to rent it on video, it's good for a laugh. The concept is a funny idea, but the execution could have been better. The film's redeeming point? Just the fact that Alyson Hannigan was in it! Although why Alyson picked this movie is beyond me. Mark-Paul Gosselarr is pretty good in his role, but the rest of the cast (with the exception of Alyson) needs to be re-cast. But if you're not expecting much from the movie other than a few laughs, go ahead. Rent it. You know you wanna. :)