Really Weird Movies, Part 3
PCU (1994)
• This is one of the first features in which I remember seeing Jeremy Piven, though the first time I really noticed him was ABC's "Cupid" (I watched a lot of weird crap in high school. Deal.). Still, by the time PCU hit theaters, he was 28 years old, playing a college senior, albeit a Van Wilder kind of dilettante. But his receding hairline and naturally older appearance make him look like anything but an undergrad, however lazy. The film co-stars David Spade as another college senior, and he's actually a year older than Piven in real life. Very old men playing very young men. Always a sign of thorough casting.
• Jon Favreau plays a stoner, complete with mini-dreads. I'm a fan of Favreau, and while I used to think he was physically cut but has since gone a little downhill as a normal part of aging, upon charting the Rudy-PCU-Swingers-Made-Elf arc, I realized he's actually a pretty stout guy who just got really in shape for Swingers so he could wear those wife-beaters. Don't be ashamed, Favs. It's okay to be big. Chin up, bud.
• Seriously, the cast is astounding: Lucille Bluth as the cruel university president. The always-frightening Jake Busey as another stoner. The one and only Pixley as the love interest. If you're looking for early-'90s B-level where-are-they-now kind of talent, look no further.
• George Clinton is the musical guest/party band. Who thought that would be remotely cool? P-Funk? How are college students supposed to relate to that? This is like an episode of "Saved by the Bell" where the kids form a band and play crappy music but try and act like it's cutting-edge stuff, but you as a viewer aren't buying it.
• It was directed by Hart Bochner, aka Ellis, Who Gets A Hole Blown Right Through His Head By Hans Gruber. This makes the movie intensely awesome on like seven more levels. Since when is Ellis a director? Too nuts.
Verdict: Oddly enjoyable afternoon cable viewing, from the guys who wrote (uh oh) Bio-Dome. And even back then, Piven talked just like Ari Gold.
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