The noble tradition of men in drag hits an all-time low in "Sorority Boys", whose makers apparently believe that women's clothing can cover up any deficiency in acting, writing or direction. A bare-bones script by Joe Jarvis and Greg Coolidge steals from all the obvious sources -- most notably, "Tootsie" and "Some Like It Hot" -- but leaves untouched the wit and sparkling dialogue that makes those films so memorable.
Thrown together in a slapdash manner, where gags lack logic or continuity, Touchstone Pictures' "Sorority Boys" will draw a young crowd for this opening weekend but is unlikely to develop legs any more attractive than those belonging to its three frat boys in drag. Prospects in cable and video appear brighter.
The filmmakers hustle these three male chauvinists into high heels as quickly as possible so they can learn how the other half lives. All three are members of the K.O.K. fraternity house. The theft of the house's money, for which they are unjustly blamed, forces them to hide out in drag at a nearby sorority for losers, the D.O.G. house. Now if you think those Greek acronyms make weak jokes, be forewarned that those are among the comic highlights.
There is little if any connection between the boys putting on makeup and pantyhose and uncovering the true culprit behind the embezzlement. This simply sets up a series of gags in which three men, who have spent their college careers mistreating women, get paid back in kind.
None of the three looks the least bit like a woman. If the men of the K.O.K. house truly don't recognize their frat brothers dressed in drag, then the house is deeper into drugs and liquor than even the "Animal House"-style party scenes portray.
Dave (Barry Watson), posing as Daisy, comes closest to passing. But he risks exposure when he falls for the sorority's most ardent feminist, Leah (Melissa Sagemiller). Daisy finds herself taking nightly showers with Leah, which renders her nearsightedness closer to legal blindness.
Adam (Michael Rosenbaum) looks very butch as Adina and constantly falls off his heels. Roberta, aka Doofer (Harland Williams), is a complete mess, with body parts flying off in all sorts of inappropriate if not anatomically impossible directions.
Nevertheless, one K.O.K. brother, pint-size Jimmy (Tony Denman), lusts after Adina, a chase highly reminiscent of the diminutive bellboy's pursuit of Tony Curtis in "Some Like It Hot". Meanwhile, the ungainly Roberta bonds with the D.O.G. house's "freaks," these being women with builds too tall or voices too shrill.
Under the sluggish direction of TV writer Wally Wolodarsky, the pacing and payoffs of the gags are haphazard affairs, making laughs far too scattered to sustain the anemic comedy. One senses genuine desperation when the filmmakers resort to a catfight between Daisy and Adina in which the weapons of choice are rubber dildos.
Technical credits in "Sorority Boys" barely rise to the level of adequate for a studio-produced film.
SORORITY BOYS
Buena Vista Pictures
Touchstone Pictures
Producers: Larry Brezner, Walter Hamada
Director: Wally Wolodarsky
Screenwriters: Joe Jarvis, Greg Coolidge
Executive producer: Michael Fottrell
Director of photography: Michael D. O'Shea
Production designer: Edward T. McAvoy
Music: Mark Mothersbaugh
Costume designer: Melinda Eshelman
Editor: Richard Halsey
Color/stereo
Cast:
Dave: Barry Watson
Adam: Michael Rosenbaum
Doofer: Harland Williams
Leah: Melissa Sagemiller
Jimmy: Tony Denman
Spence: Brad Beyer
Patty: Kathryn Stockwood
Katie: Heather Matarazzo
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Thrown together in a slapdash manner, where gags lack logic or continuity, Touchstone Pictures' "Sorority Boys" will draw a young crowd for this opening weekend but is unlikely to develop legs any more attractive than those belonging to its three frat boys in drag. Prospects in cable and video appear brighter.
The filmmakers hustle these three male chauvinists into high heels as quickly as possible so they can learn how the other half lives. All three are members of the K.O.K. fraternity house. The theft of the house's money, for which they are unjustly blamed, forces them to hide out in drag at a nearby sorority for losers, the D.O.G. house. Now if you think those Greek acronyms make weak jokes, be forewarned that those are among the comic highlights.
There is little if any connection between the boys putting on makeup and pantyhose and uncovering the true culprit behind the embezzlement. This simply sets up a series of gags in which three men, who have spent their college careers mistreating women, get paid back in kind.
None of the three looks the least bit like a woman. If the men of the K.O.K. house truly don't recognize their frat brothers dressed in drag, then the house is deeper into drugs and liquor than even the "Animal House"-style party scenes portray.
Dave (Barry Watson), posing as Daisy, comes closest to passing. But he risks exposure when he falls for the sorority's most ardent feminist, Leah (Melissa Sagemiller). Daisy finds herself taking nightly showers with Leah, which renders her nearsightedness closer to legal blindness.
Adam (Michael Rosenbaum) looks very butch as Adina and constantly falls off his heels. Roberta, aka Doofer (Harland Williams), is a complete mess, with body parts flying off in all sorts of inappropriate if not anatomically impossible directions.
Nevertheless, one K.O.K. brother, pint-size Jimmy (Tony Denman), lusts after Adina, a chase highly reminiscent of the diminutive bellboy's pursuit of Tony Curtis in "Some Like It Hot". Meanwhile, the ungainly Roberta bonds with the D.O.G. house's "freaks," these being women with builds too tall or voices too shrill.
Under the sluggish direction of TV writer Wally Wolodarsky, the pacing and payoffs of the gags are haphazard affairs, making laughs far too scattered to sustain the anemic comedy. One senses genuine desperation when the filmmakers resort to a catfight between Daisy and Adina in which the weapons of choice are rubber dildos.
Technical credits in "Sorority Boys" barely rise to the level of adequate for a studio-produced film.
SORORITY BOYS
Buena Vista Pictures
Touchstone Pictures
Producers: Larry Brezner, Walter Hamada
Director: Wally Wolodarsky
Screenwriters: Joe Jarvis, Greg Coolidge
Executive producer: Michael Fottrell
Director of photography: Michael D. O'Shea
Production designer: Edward T. McAvoy
Music: Mark Mothersbaugh
Costume designer: Melinda Eshelman
Editor: Richard Halsey
Color/stereo
Cast:
Dave: Barry Watson
Adam: Michael Rosenbaum
Doofer: Harland Williams
Leah: Melissa Sagemiller
Jimmy: Tony Denman
Spence: Brad Beyer
Patty: Kathryn Stockwood
Katie: Heather Matarazzo
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 3/22/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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