Review of Wet Hot American Summer (2001) by Michael C — 24 May 2011
A pretty simple film about the last day at a Jewish summer camp and the misadventures the counselors have during its final moments. The movie in a lot of ways feels like "Dazed and Confused Lite"; it has the "last day" setting that the other film has, its a more character driven piece rather than a plot oriented vehicle, and the humor is at times pretty similar.
However, there is still enough differences in this film to separate it from that far superior movie. The most important part of a character driven piece is the characters have to actually be interesting, and for the movies running time they are.
The biggest crutch the film has to overcome is that its not insanely funny; its humorous, and witty at moments too. But there weren't really that many parts that I laughed out loud at. Christopher Meloni is one of the comedic highlights as a psychotic cook with horrendously off-kilter facial hair, and Paul Rudd as the epitome of a jerk boyfriend shows some of his earliest signs that he is a comedic genius in the right roles.
This isn't a movie I would necessarily rave about, but its still a fun way to spend an hour and a half, and seeing Bradley Cooper, Paul Rudd, Christopher Meloni, and Elizabeth Banks before they achieved stardom is amusing in its own right.
This review of Wet Hot American Summer (2001) was written by Michael C on 24 May 2011.
Wet Hot American Summer has generally received positive reviews.
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