The New Guy (2002)

A high school senior branded uncool in the ninth grade gets himself expelled so he changes his image to cool kid at the town's other high school.

Director:

Ed Decter

Writer:

David Kendall

Stars:

DJ Qualls, Lyle Lovett, Eliza Dushku

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
DJ Qualls	...	Dizzy
Eliza Dushku	...	Danielle
Zooey Deschanel	...	Nora
Jerod Mixon	...	Kirk
Parry Shen	...	Glen
Lyle Lovett	...	Bear
Eddie Griffin	...	Luther
Sunny Mabrey	...	Courtney
Ross Patterson	...	Conner
Matt Gogin	...	Ed Ligget
Horatio Sanz	...	Dance Instructor
Tony Hawk	...	Himself
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Principal Zaylor
Charlie O'Connell	...	Charlie
Gene Simmons	...	Reverend

Storyline

Dizzy Harrison is an unpopular, high school geek going through a hellish senior year. In an attempt to make a new identity for himself, Dizzy gets himself expelled from his high school, learns the technics of being cool from a prison inmate, and enrolls at a new high school under the alias Gil Harris, to make new friends where he soon gains respect from the jocks and geeks alike. Dizzy then gets noticed by the head cheerleader, Danielle, and helps the school football team gain self-respect to win games. But things unknowingly begin to turn sour when Danielle's disgruntled boyfriend begins investigating into "Gil Harris'" past to uncover any dirt on him.

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Plot Keywords:

mini skirt | teenage boy | teenage girl | attempted escape | three word title | 

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Taglines:

Popularity isn't a contest... It's a war.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, language, crude humor and mild drug references

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 May 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

The New Guy

Filming Locations:

11200 Lakeline Mall Dr, Cedar Park, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,007,833, 12 May 2002

Gross USA:

$29,760,152

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$31,167,388

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revolution Studios, Bedlam Pictures, Frontier Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 92 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The theatrical version features a Patton (1970) spoof, while the director's cut features a Braveheart (1995) spoof which the director felt would better lead into the payoff at the end.

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Goofs

Kirk advises Dizzy that a girl will "powerlevel" him, as though it were a beat-down. "Powerlevel" actually refers to a concept in Kirk's beloved EverQuest wherein a higher-level character protects and/or enhances a lower-level character in order to help the lower-level character "level-up" at a faster rate. It is actually something desirable. Ironically, The New Guy and EverQuest were developed by the same company.

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Quotes

Mr. Undine: We got a homecoming dance coming up in a month or so and it has been the most god-awful experience for everyone involved, right Coach?
[Coach winces]
Mr. Undine: Do you have any ideas on how we might turn this thing around?
Dizzy/Gil: Good music?
Mr. Undine: [Enlightened] Music! Hey, that is a fantastic idea, son. You see that? Hey!

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Crazy Credits

During the credits, there are bloopers. After that, Dizzy and Danielle ride on into the sunset and Danielle falls off the horse.

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Connections

References Our Man Flint (1966)

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Soundtracks

Also Sprach Zarathustra
Written by Richard Strauss
Arranged by Ralph Sall
Performed by Interstellar Force
Courtesy of Bulletproof Recording Company, Inc.

User Reviews

as good as these movies can be

just when you think they are going to go overboard with the dork vs jocks and dissing his old dork friends conflicts, they don't, thank you. Plus, more often than not, the main villan does not even take that big of a role and his friends and girlfriend make him look like the idiot that he is. Because of these reasons,this movie is totally enjoyable and easy to watch.