Animal House could be called the “grandfather” of all R-rated comedies today. It was a rude and crude comedy when “rude and crude” comedies weren’t hip. It is no doubt considered among the top comedic films ever made. It has now been 30 years since John Belushi and the rest of the remarkable cast has graced the big screen. So that must mean it’s time for an “anniversary special edition of a classic film” to be released. Is this version of the iconic comedy worth the money, though, and how well has Animal House aged over the years?
For John Landis’s comedy, decadence, debauchery, and delinquency prevail at Delta House, the scourge of the fraternity system at Faber College in 1962. In an effort to rid himself of the troublesome brothers, Dean Wormer (John Vernon) hatches a plan in cahoots with the brown-nosing Greg Marmalard (James Daughton) of rival fraternity Omega to have the Deltas kicked off campus. Unfortunately for them, the determination and drive of the Deltas is more than anyone counted on. In their last stand against the uptight dean, the antiheroes of Delta drink, smoke, romp, frolic, and dance–going out with a bang.
Animal House is pure comedy in every sense of the word. Forget “romantic comedies” or “sentimental rude and crude comedies” by famous today by Judd Apatow and his crew. From start to finish, there is nothing but laughs in Animal House. Unlike recent National Lampoon-sponsored films, the jokes in AH are actually funny. The film is 30 years old, but it never feels dated. The people on screen may look dated, but the comedy in this film still gets presented over and over again today.
Originally written for Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and John Belushi a.k.a. “The Breakout Stars of Saturday Night Live in the ’70s”, Animal House only ended up with John Belushi as its star. The others had too big of an ego to be in this ensemble comedy. Fortunately, Belushi doesn’t try to be the “star” of this film. Everyone is given their chance to shine, even though the rest of the cast is mainly made up of unknowns. But in the end the real reason why this film works so well, and has become such an iconic film, is the chemistry between the entire cast. Belushi does steal every scene he is in, despite his character hardly ever speaking, but the complete collection of actors and characters are what push Animal House to another level.
This comedy started that ball rolling for all the Judd Apatow and American Pie films we see today. No doubt vulgar and often times insane, it, at the time, was reasonably accurate in its portrayal of college life. John Belushi was branded a star, but make no mistake about it this is an ensemble comedy. It’s rare to find a comedy that features mostly unknown actors deliver near flawless lines at the right time and in the right way, and still have those lines actually be funny. But Animal House is the perfect example of such a comedy, and 30 years later it is still as memorable and hilarious as it has ever been.
The video is given in both 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen color, which is enhanced for 16:9 TVs. This film is 30 years old, so it is about as good as you can expect. This version of the film looks a little better than previous version of the films, though. No major problems, but not the greatest looking film around. Given its age, it still gets a passing grade.
The audio included is available in either English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound. The dialogue and music come out loud and clear, so no major problems here either. But like the video not the best sound quality, but good enough for its age.
“Where Are They Now?” Featurette –
This runs 30 minutes and it’s a “documentary” of a different kind. It lets the actors reprise their roles from the film to update the audience as to what they’ve been doing since, all while in character. It’s interesting to see these actors again and it’s fun to see them play their characters again while updating everyone on what they have been doing.
“Animal House Reunion Featurette –
This is a look at the making of the film, its repeated rejections by studios, and eventual success. There are interviews with the cast, crew, and writers.
“Animal House: The Inside Story Featurette –
This is an absolute complete 98 minute documentary on the film. Some of the information and stories is repeated in the “Reunion” featurette. But overall this is extremely in-depth. It’s too bad that Belushi didn’t live long enough to participate in this. It’s also worth noting that “bigger stars” from this film, Kevin Bacon and Donald Sutherland, aren’t involved in this at all either. But everyone else involved in this film is on here and for any Animal House fan it’s worth checking out for sure.
Scene-It DVD Game – There are two versions of this game that contain nothing but questions related to this film.
The Faber College Yearbook –
It takes stills from the film and turns them into what looks like an actual yearbook, only if the Deltas got their hands on it first.
Some consider Animal House the greatest comedy ever. That may be debatable, but hardly anyone would debate the influence of this film. You can see many elements of Animal House in many of the comedies that have come since then. Now is it worth buying this “30th Anniversary Edition” of the film if you already have the previous version? I would lean slightly in the “yes” department there. The documentary that is added here is just as long as the film and there is a lot of great stuff in there. If you want to try and find that elsewhere, then you can probably stick with the previous version of this film. But any hardcore fan of this film will no doubt want to buy this version of the film, if they don’t have it already. Everyone should at least give this film a watch just based on its continuing influence on comedies today.
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Home Entertainment presents Animal House. Directed by John Landis. Starring John Belushi, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Tom Hulce, Cesare Danova, Peter Riegert, Mary Louise Weller, Stephen Furst, James Daughton, Bruce McGill, Mark Metcalf, DeWayne Jessie, Karen Allen, James Widdoes. Written by arold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, Chris Miller. Running time: 109 minutes. Rated R. Released on DVD: August 30, 2008.
Available at Amazon.
