BACHELOR PARTY

(June 1984, U.S.)

Before PHILADELPHIA...before FORREST GUMP...before SAVING PRIVATE RYAN...before CASTAWAY...before all of that Oscar-related glory, Tom Hanks was just another silly buffoon on screen. But he was the BEST damn sill buffoon I'd ever seen. By the summer of 1984, Hanks was already popular from his time on ABC-TV's BOSOM BUDDIES and his recent role in Ron Howard's SPLASH. The timing, too, was right for BACHELOR PARTY because the raunchy sex comedy was quite popular in the early '80's.

So how much can I say about the plot? It's a bachelor party, so there's plenty of cliche and predictable crazy shit going on. By my film standards today, this film would likely be a real piece of crap and waste of my time. But it's Tom Hanks that carries the film with his loud insanity and nutty dialogue. And besides, the movie brings back memories of my high school youth and enables me to fantasize about the bachelor party I WISH I could have had (or something close to it) before I got married in 2001. Actually, I didn't have one. Sucks for me!

Favorite line or dialogue:

Mr. Thompson: "Rick...I wanna cut through the B.S."
Rick Gassko: "I'd like that."
Mr. Thompson: "Good. I think you're an asshole. No, no, let me correct that - an IMMATURE asshole, which is fine. Except that you're marrying my daughter and I'm afraid that my grandchildren are gonna be LITTLE assholes."