Stars: Sarah Silverman, David Cross, Paul Scheer, Jacinda Barrett, Michael Clarke Duncan, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Stiller, Matt Walsh, Jon Heder, Horatio Sanz, Todd Louiso

Director: Todd Phillips

Summary:

Dr. P (Billy Bob Thornton) runs a SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS at which luckless men are given a crash course in the ways of the alpha male. Dishing out trite but, to the men involved, revelatory advice about how to "initiate confrontation" and "lie, lie, and lie some more," Dr. P turns his students into virile studs who hide their still-lingering insecurities behind sunglasses and absurd bluster. When one student, the kind-hearted but painfully awkward Roger (NAPOLEON DYNAMITE's Jon Heder), starts to hit it off with the girl of his dreams, Dr. P's competitive streak goes into overdrive and a battle between teacher and student ensues. After an exchange of pranks, each with increased maliciousness and consequence, the best man wins the girl. While SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS--based on a British comedy from the 1960s, and co-written and directed by Todd Phillips--doesn't reach the rambunctious fever pitch of OLD SCHOOL (also directed by Phillips) or contain the oddly endearing, near-sublime vulgarity of THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN, it does have its fair share of laughs. The primary redeeming quality of the film is its excellent cast, which features various alumni of THE UPRIGHT CITIZENS BRIGADE, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, and MR. SHOW (including Matt Walsh, Paul Scheer, Horatio Sanz, Sarah Silverman, and David Cross). Billy Bob Thorton has developed something of a mid-career cottage industry playing foul-mouthed S.O.Bs; Heder has the lovably awkward dork down to a twitch-filled science (his panic attacks nearly induce the same in the audience); and while former REAL WORLD LONDON cast member Jacinda Barrett is stuck in the somewhat restrictive girlfriend role as Amanda, she's genuinely charming and effervescent. Fans of the early-2000s "frat pack"-style comedies should find much to amuse them in SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS.

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School for Scoundrels is the kind of stupid-fun comedy for which the phrase "Wait for the DVD" was invented. Like a lot of its jokes, it fell flat in its brief theatrical release, but there's enough funny stuff here to warrant a look, especially if you enjoyed writer-director Todd Phillips' previous films Old School and Road Trip. Of course, Phillips also directed the comedy remake of Starsky and Hutch, so you know there's going to be as many misses as hits in the movie's constant barrage of slapstick, insults, and tasteless gags. Loosely inspired by the 1960 British comedy directed by Robert Hamer, this crudely Americanized version finds a meek and geeky parking-meter reader named Roger (Napoleon Dynamite's John Heder) looking for love and not getting any, so he enrolls in a confidence-building school led by Dr. P (Billy Bob Thornton), who turns out to be Roger's #1 rival in his quest to win the heart of Amanda (Jacinda Barrett), Roger's cute Australian neighbour and the would-be girl of his dreams. As an escalating war of one-upmanship in which Roger's quick learning provokes Dr. P's competitive instincts, School for Scoundrels isn't exactly a laff-riot, but it's got some aces up its sleeve that make it worthwhile, like a crazed appearance by Ben Stiller, a fun if not-always-funny supporting cast (Michael Clark Duncan, Horatio Sanz, Todd Louiso) and a pair of stars who work well together as comedic opposites in the game of love. --Jeff Shannon

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Year:	2006
Release Date:	June 25, 2007
Runtime:	103 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	P H E 9234
Keywords:	English, School, Comedy, Scoundrels, Remake
Genre:	Comedy