Oddballs (1984) User Reviews

Odd balls

[BandSAboutMovies · 3/10 · 6 May 2020]

Directed by Miklos Lente, the cinematographer of Screwballs and Happy Birthday to Me, this movie is pretty much Meatballs. It stars one of America's favorite drunk, Foster Brooks, and Canada's answer to Bill Murray, Mike McDonald.

The kids at Camp Bottomout - and let me stress kids, they are 12 or so - have an anti-virginity pact. This would be bad enough, but then they go to a singles bar with a fake ID. Oh 1984, you were wonderful.

This is a movie willing to make jokes about child molestation and still get a PG rating, all while presenting rapid-fire ripoffs of ET and Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Canada was a magical land in the 80's, killing teens on one hand and getting them laid with the other. Long may your tax shelter movies like, neighbor to the north!

Strangest film you will ever see!

[andybradshaw84 · 3/10 · 17 November 2006]

Its hard to understand how this film ever got commissioned as there is not really a plot to it, its poorly acted and a lot of scenes don't really make sense and don't add anything to the already paper thin story. I came across this as a young man and my only real reason for watching it was the very ample breasted nurse Brigid who is at least something to look at as your mind drifts away from the film. The opening scene at least sets you up for the madness which ensues and we see a blind man driving the coach to summer camp and an Indiana Jones lookalike run over. There are no real star names in this it is a severally low budget film. i guess its meant to be a comedy but you will doubtless laugh once. All in all i would not recommend this film but you certainly will never of seen a film like this before.

So bad it's funny

[thatguy_78757 · 4/10 · 28 August 2020]

Cheap copy of "meatballs" mixed with Benny hill, porkys/etc .... it's terrible with cartoon sound effects and bad one liners but if you go into it knowing it's terrible, there's a LOT to groan and laugh at

Incredible!

[cfc_can · 20 August 2000]

Some movies are bad. This one is incredibly bad. In fact, it's almost funny how bad this film is. It tries to be an Airplane- like spoof of summer camps at times and at other times, tries to be a coming of age film for twelve year olds. The film's level of humor though makes it seem like it was aimed at three year olds. In one scene for example, a guy puts on cologne and goes into the woods hoping to attract a babe who's there but attracts a bear instead. To make things worse, the actors are all incredibly amateurish and the low budget is evident in nearly every shot.

Total garbage

[jellopuke · 1/10 · 4 February 2023]

A "wacky" summer camp movie spoof of Meatballs about young boys who want to get laid, an evil land developer who wants the land the camp is on, and a drunk camp owner who hates his life and job.

Oh man, this is a terrible movie devoid of any redeeming value. It's so "zany" it uses cartoon sound effects as stingers, jokes about killing the flying nun and Mary Poppins, etc The terrible Bill Murray impression by Mike MacDonald is painful but the whole thing just falling so flat is what makes you cringe just watching it. I think I laughed twice (?) Overall not worth your time tracking down or watching.

Total Nonsense

[Cobra-10 · 8/10 · 30 October 2000]

This is one of the most intellectually-devoid movies I have ever seen. The cover mentions that this movie was made in an attempt to ride the "Meatballs" fad of the '80s. The "characters" include an incoherent drunk "grandpa" camp owner, three horny adolescents who look everywhere for sex (especially for the owner's blond granddaughter, who reminds me of "Blondie"), a homosexual aerobics instructor who has a heart attack after sniffing two poppers and exercising to death, some white guy with an afro and a huge lizard on his shirt (i.e. making fun of the "izod" shirts of the '80s), and too many more to list. This movie is so ridiculous I can't even begin to delineate the absurdities that happen throughout the movie. Not to say that it is bad; I laughed at several scenes because they were so absurd. In one nonsensical scene, after the kids learn that grandpa sold the camp to the evil antagonist, the camera zooms in on a plate of breakfast arranged to make a stupid face (e.g. eggs for eyes, sausage lips, etc.) twice, with cartoon sound effects. It made no sense whatsoever. If you like nonsense, then "Oddballs" is a surefire winner.

Definitely odd, shockingly bad, with rip roaring laughs

[videorama-759-859391 · 14 February 2021]

Here's a really, really, really bad movie, 80's, that's also frequently hilarious on a first watch. It's like, Meatballs slapstick or on acid. Patently done on a cheap budget, due to a few poor edited shots, Oddballs is a twisted 84 summer comedy, that's odd yes/ It's a tame, sex t and a flick, atrociously acted, but like I said, cheaply hilarious. If you read another review here, about how bad this movie is, think of that review, have it lodged repeatedly in the back of your mind, you will see just how right he or she is. Oddballs is trashy, and harkens you back to how 80's comedies, and other movies were. I wish I saw frickin' I saw this 35 years or so back. Foster Brooks, the best actor in this, the only good actor in this, a sort of Robert Prosky bearded looking guy, is an old embittered drunk, but really a softy, who's story about why he hates kids, just provides, an answer, equally ludicrous as many other things, attributes, whatever in the film, just reminding you, just how stupid and ludicrous, it is. Brooks, who's professionally born to truly act drunk, runs a Summer holiday camp for kids. This land barron, wants to bulldoze Brook's Summer Camp, on the other side of the lake, to make way for a big car park. He uses his brainless, hunky looking son, to seduce Brook's hot blondish granddaughter, who's come down to help Grandpa out. The plan ultimately involves hunky guy, marrying the lass, which somehow would ensue, the barron would acquire full ownershop of the camp land.. Sons off to a pretty good start, when you consider, he's doesn't know the 'seduce' definition. Stupid, ridiculous moments or dialogue, will keep reminding you, just how bad this is. The young actors are even terrible.I don't know what agency they came from, and I'm scared to know. Take Oddballs for what it is, a really bad movie, which it's only purpose is, for continual chortles on a really bad B movie night, and Brook's hot daughter.

1.5/10

Poor teen comedy

[lor_ · 17 March 2023]

My review was written in December 1986 after watching the film on Lightning video cassette.

Reviewed for the record, "Odd Balls" is a weak imitation of the Bill Murray hit from Canada, "Meatballs". Shot in 1983 and released regionally the following year, trite pic has comedian Foster Brooks going for it and little else.

Brooks plays the owner of decrepit boys' camp Bottomout, across the lake from a posh girls camp, whose owner is a corrupt land developer trying to get control of Brooks' camp. The baddie even sends his son to try and seduce Brooks' pretty daughter as part of his plan.

Lame script by Ed Naha has a heavy emphasis (within restrictions of a PG-rating) on the young boys angling to see the girl campers nude, while including idiotic spoofs of other film genres, such as an unfunny routine involving subtitles as inadequate translating ot purposely bad synchronization on a dubbed karate wiz. Even incorporated is a dated spoof of "E. T.", which was also present in the TriStar pickup "Meatballs II".

Brooks does a nice job while the youngsters make little impression.. Dumb sound effects are used to try to generate laughs much in the manner of a tv laughtrack.