(1998)
3
Adam Goldberg
Just when it seemed that Hollywood had forgotten about teen sex comedies in the vein of Porky's and Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the aptly titled The Party was created. Most likely inspired by the epic party scenes featured in many John Hughes flicks, screenwriters Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont envisioned an entire movie that occurred during a raging high-school gala. Later retitled Can't Hardly Wait, the film possesses the look and feel of a John Hughes classic, but lacks the heart and three-dimensional characters. The narrative features a wide variety of stock characters including the geeks, the football star, the hip-hop kid, the bitchy girl, and a foreign guy similar to infamous Long Duck Dong. Occasionally, the story strays from the typical sophomoric gags and becomes an amusing exploration of young love in the '90s. Unfortunately, Kaplan and Elfont's script lurches awkwardly from romantic showdowns to deep conversations to bathroom humor. It does manage to become charming when high school clichés aren't tossed about and the characters exist in a more "real" world. Supposedly, the funniest moments of the movie were removed (i.e. a "drunk girl" character) to garner its PG-13 rating. For fans of Jeff Spicolli and Lloyd Dobler, Can't Hardly Wait will be a bit of celluloid nostalgia. But those searching for a real-life, poignant exploration of the high school experience should venture back a decade and watch a film starring Anthony Michael Hall and Molly Ringwald.
cast-crew for Can't Hardly Wait on AllMovie
Can't Hardly Wait (1998)
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