Would you like to see a movie with a talking can of vegetables and a man humping a fridge?
If you said yes, then I know a movie that's perfect for you. In 1994, a year when MTV aired programs that were actually entertaining, came a variety show that instantly garnered a cult following: The State. Introduced were some hilarious young talents who virtually disappeared when the show was cancelled after two seasons. Fans were left wondering whatever became of their favorite cast members. Well, they need wonder no more.
Director David Wain and four cast members reunited for the goofy film Wet Hot American Summer. Anyone who enjoyed the humor from the show will be happy to hear that the absurdity is alive and well in this movie.
Michael Showalter, who fans of The State lovingly remember as Doug, Ken Marino, remembered as Louie, Michael Ian Black, who is now a regular on Ed, and Joe Lo Truglio reunite with Wain while Frasier's David Hyde Pierce, Janeane Garofalo, Molly Shannon and Paul Rudd join the madness. It's the last day of camp in the summer of 1981. The teenage counselors, with their tight shorts, afros and pink lipstick (signature to this special time in our nation's history) are trying to have one last day of fun.
Garofalo is Beth, the camp director trying to keep order amongst these misfits while wooing astrophysicist Henry (Pierce). The counselors are hilarious, especially Rudd as Andy, the hot lifeguard too preoccupied with women and too uninterested in his job to save children from drowning, and Marino as Victor, the studly lady's man who desperately seeks action. Another standout performance is Christopher Meloni as the camp's cook, a wacked-out Vietnam vet whose best friend is a talking can of vegetables. None of this kookiness is ever explained and that only adds to the hilarity.
In case you haven't guessed by now, Wet Hot American Summer is a very odd and inconsistent film, but that's all it tries to be, so it works. Each scene has its hilarious moment, usually thanks to the bizarre comedic performances, and it all kind of comes together at the end, in its own strange and random way.
If you like your comedy just cheesy enough without being way over the top, or if you're a sucker for those '80s summer camp films, then you may just appreciate the humor.
