TMG Scale 8.0 P Factor 2.0
Starring Paul Rudd, Sean Scott, Chris Mintz-Plasse, Elizabeth Banks
Joy Lynn: A pair of energy drink reps for Minotaur [looks like Red Bull to me] Danny (Rudd) and Wheeler (Scott) are forced to enroll in a Big Brother program after they get in trouble with the law.
Danny is assigned to a classic dweeb named Augie (Mintz-Plasse) who wears a cape and is in to role playing games. Wheeler is assigned a potty mouthed little Black boy named Ronnie who is constantly causing havoc. The interactions with the boys are both entertaining and enlightening. Augie’s parents can not handle his dorky personality and wants Rudd to fix him. Rudd finally comes full circle and makes amends with his estranged girlfriend Beth (Banks) in a cute and touching scene at the end. Everyone is happy. Lots of laughs in between.
Moral of the Story – Do what makes you happy not what society or your parents expect you to do. If you enjoy role playing with foam swords in costume in the forest rather than playing soccer or football, got for it!
TMG: Wheeler and Danny are constantly being chastised by the founder and manager of the local Big Brother program called “Sturdy Wings.” Jane Lynch as Gail [head coach Sue in TV’s Glee and Christy Cummings in Best in Show (2000)] is a former drug addict but now is just addicted to trite cliches. She calls the adults “Bigs” and the kids “Littles” She is way too much which makes her very amusing. Danny and Wheeler are overshadowed as mere set ups for her scenes. She claims to be “BS proof”…but all she is is pure, 100% USDA BS. You gotta see it. This is a Friday night film with fun friends and beer.
I did learn why Starbucks calls a large coffee a “venti.” TMG is much like Danny in this sense–he just hates all kinds of dumb things we encounter every hour in life, like people that say “ASAP” or “24/7” or make you order a “venti” sized coffee. TMG would add overcute spelled names like hair salons called “Curlz” or Split Endz” or male movie star with a hyphenated name like Mintz-Plasse. Life is too short to get very bent out of shape about such things but it should not stop some of us from poking fun at them.
Since we are covering this as a DVD for our September 3, 2011 radio show, I went back and added a P Factor. Danny actually refers to their Red Bull style energy drink a “nuclear horse piss.” He and Wheeler then proceeded to pee it out in vivid green.
This movie did help me to begin to accept that some kids are dweebs like Augie, some guys are sharp and witty and overly cynical like Danny and some guys are just male goofballs, like Wheeler. Maybe we are best to just let everyone be who they are and not try to change them too much. Who are the real role models anyway? Personally, I’d pick Paul Rudd…but to each his own.