"It's a good thing this theater is dark and nobody here is over 18, because I am so embarrassed that I'm actually watching this movie," my companion whispered in my ear as the lights went down on "Sorority Boys."
True enough, we were definitely the only two people in the audience with high school degrees, though the movie was rated R. This was for good reason, we quickly realized.
My initial expectations were indeed low. I figured, at best, the film would be campy like "Bring it On," but I truly expected something more like a "Tomcats"-esque cheap attempt at gross-out comedy.
To my surprise, however, I found myself consumed with peals of laughter at the outrageously revolting journey of the movie's cross-dressing protagonists.
Adam, Robert, and Dave (who is played by Barry Watson, or "the guy from Seventh Heaven") are members of the KOK fraternity — yes, it's a cheap joke — at Generic School, USA.
The film opens with one of those traditional, wild movie frat parties, complete with scantily clad members of the "cool" sorority who are consumed only with the fact that Watson's character "drives a Beamer."
The frat brothers also participate in extraordinarily offensive antics against the ugly-girl stereotype sorority, unsurprisingly called Delta Omicron Gamma, or DOG (an even cheaper joke).
Some of the cruel games include launching various sexual paraphernalia at the DOG house, or playing "DOG catcher" and removing a member of the sorority from the party using a net. So the point has really been drilled into the ground that these girls get abused.
Obviously, the guys need to face some sort of conflict in order to be forced into the movie's titular predicament.
This is how it happens: the ridiculously pretentious KOK president, Spencer, with a hairdo half a foot high and a strange voice impediment, is sick of Dave and Adam intruding on his frat rituals and poking fun at him.
As a result, he embezzles money from the frat's treasury (which it is Dave's job to guard) and then pins the theft on Dave and his two buddies. The guys are forced to flee the KOK house, and, in a scheme that backfires, essentially take refuge as women pledging the DOG sorority.
The amount of suspension of disbelief required to accept this strange dilemma rivals the amount of gratuitous breast shots in the movie. That said, however, some parts of the film are pretty darn funny.
With the assistance of makeup and some stiletto heels, the three frat boys transform themselves into Adina, Roberta, and Daisy and move into the house. In these close quarters, they end up learning more than they ever could have wanted to know about women.
One of the guys describes it as "looking behind the curtain," and is dismayed that for them, the mystique of looking at the finished product of a woman when she leaves the house is all but obliterated.
At the same time, however, the new sorority "sisters" help the women whom they have so mercilessly taunted throughout the years to discover some self-confidence and fight back against vicious comments from insensitive men. One particularly humorous moment comes when a guy in KOK tells Adina that she has a large rear end.
The guys learn to reform their mischievous ways. Adam, who once collected polaroids of various women as they left his room the morning after a party for his "wall of shame," becomes a polaroid for another guy and ceases his objectification of women.
Dave, who tried the same pitiful Shakespearean pick-up line on every girl, attempts to de-sleaze himself when he falls for Leah, the president of DOG.
Also, at this point it seems appropriate to mention that the movie plays upon the completely ludicrous idea that you can put a pair of glasses on a beautiful girl and, all of a sudden, the audience thinks she's unattractive.
Some of the acting highlights of the movie come in the form of the supporting cast of girls in the DOG house, especially Heather Matarazzo (from the indie flick "Welcome to the Dollhouse"), as a girl who, to put it euphemistically, has a unique voice. Of course, there are some trite scenes. After all, how could movie-makers resist including a shower scene between Daisy and Leah?
There are also some genuinely creative comic moments. One of my favorites was (without giving too much away) a slightly more R-rated version of the Star Wars light saber scene.
Even though the film won't win any Oscars, and the "guy-in-drag" theme has been done to death, you will laugh. A lot. That I guarantee.
Read More
Princeton Zoning Board of Adjustment approves renovations to Tower and Charter Clubs
Sena Chang and Isaac BernsteinOn March 27, the Municipality of Princeton’s Zoning Board of Adjustment approved construction developments for Tower Club and Charter Club. Renovations for both clubs are aimed towards improving accessibility.
On March 27, the Municipality of Princeton’s Zoning Board of Adjustment approved construction developments for Tower Club and Charter Club. Renovations for both clubs are aimed towards improving accessibility.
Students support local businesses with new platform Zage
Jack AllenAfter hearing about the struggles faced by a number of these restaurants after students left campus in mid-March, Dilbagi created Zage, an online platform that allows community members to send money to local businesses now to redeem as credits on their purchases in the future.
This fall, go beyond the 'Bubble'
Dora ZhaoEven though classes are picking up, weekends are the perfect time for students to escape the Orange Bubble. While going out to eat on Nassau is enjoyable, there is so much to see beyond Princeton. For those looking for a day trip or a chance to explore the area outside of Princeton, here is a list of ideas to do this fall.