Slackers (2002)

When geeky Ethan discovers three fellow students scamming the examination system, he blackmails them to win over the college's most popular girl.

Director:

Dewey Nicks

Writer:

David H. Steinberg

Stars:

Devon Sawa, Robert B. Martin Jr., Jason Segel

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Devon Sawa	...	Dave Goodman
Jason Segel	...	Sam Schechter
Michael C. Maronna	...	Jeff Davis (as Michael Maronna)
Jason Schwartzman	...	Ethan Dulles
Jaime King	...	Angela Patton (as James King)
Laura Prepon	...	Reanna
Travis Davis	...	Airborne Express Driver
Jim Rash	...	Head T.A. Philip
Nat Faxon	...	Karl, the Grad Student
Don Michaelson	...	Professor Markoe (as Don Michaelson M.D.)
Retta	...	Bruna, the Office Manager
Marilyn Staley	...	Singing Waitress
Jason Garner	...	Singing Waiter
Gedde Watanabe	...	Japanese Proctor
Heidi Kramer	...	Hot Twin #1

Storyline

Dave, Sam and Jeff are about to graduate from Holden University with Honors in lying, cheating and scheming. The three roommates have proudly scammed their way through the last four years of college and now, during the final exams, these big-men-on-campus are about to be busted by the most unlikely dude in school.

---

Plot Keywords:

nerd | blackmail | slacker | hot | sexy | 

---

Taglines:

Higher Education Just Hit A New Low

---

Genres:

Comedy | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and sexual content, and for brief drug use

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 February 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Scam

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,785,283, 3 February 2002, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$4,814,244, 10 February 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alliance Atlantis Communications, Destination Films, Original Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally in the singing penis scene, Michael C. Maronna's own naked penis was used with a CGI mouth added in. After being screened for the MPAA, however, the filmmakers were told to put a sock on it (literally).

---

Goofs

In the scene where Ethan is being forcibly escorted from the law firm lobby, when he turns his back, his shirt lifts up, exposing a wireless microphone transmitter clipped to the back of his pants.

---

Quotes

Sam: You know what, boys? Why don't you just let me take care of it. You treat a hot girl like dirt, and she'll stick to you like mud.

---

Crazy Credits

Outtake footage featuring Jason Schwartzman and Cameron Diaz is shown after the end credits. She looks at the camera and says, "I've never done a porno before". He responds, "Until now, bitch!".

---

Connections

Referenced in 3 Idiots (2009)

---

Soundtracks

The Sign
by Jonas Berggren
Performed by a college choir

User Reviews

While not an instant classic as a whole, there are some memorable funny parts if you like this type of movie.

Although not the best comedy in recent memory, it's not the worst either. After starting out the year with the dreadful "Orange County", this one has something worse to compare it to. In "Slackers" there are some funny laugh-out-loud moments, even if they are kind of distasteful. First time director Dewey Nicks keeps the pace rolling with this predictable, yet amusing story. As long as you're not going in expecting a comedy masterpiece, you'll probably have a good time. This one follows the gross-out trend that "American Pie" helped to re-launch. Devon Sawa ("Final Destination") and James King ("Pearl Harbor") make a cute couple being torn apart by the purposely annoying and obsessed Jason Schwartzman ("Rushmore"). Throw in a typical "bet about the girl - she finds out and gets mad" plot and supposedly you'll get a successful teen movie. But wasn't this spoofed already? The characters are fairly amusing, but it's pretty hard to pull of a comedy that's funny during its entire length, especially when there's not a lot of new ideas to offer. After the 5th title change, the unoriginally named "Slackers" was chosen and scripted by "American Pie 2" writer David H. Steinberg. While it breaks no new ground and has a pretty cheesy ending, the movie was made for teens and will probably do well with them. If you fit the demographic or just enjoy gross-out humor, go check it out. Otherwise, don't saw I didn't warn you!