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School For Scoundrels (2006) DVD Review
School For Scoundrels (2006) DVD Credits:
School For Scoundrels (2006) Directed by:
Todd Phillips
School For Scoundrels (2006) Written by:
Scot Armstrong, Todd Phillips
School For Scoundrels (2006) Cast:
Jon Heder, Billy Bob Thornton, Michael Clarke Duncan, Jacinda Barrett, Dan Fogler, Sarah Silverman
School For Scoundrels (2006) Released by:
Not available at this time
Region:
2
School For Scoundrels (2006) DVD Release Date:
24th June 2007
Our Rating: Extras Rating:

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School For Scoundrels (2006) Synopsis:

In SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS, Jon Heder plays Roger, a beleaguered New York City meter maid who is plagued by anxiety and low self-esteem. In order to overcome his feelings of inadequacy, Roger enrolls in a top-secret confidence-building class taught by the suavely underhanded Dr. P (Billy Bob Thornton). Aided by his assistant, Lesher (Michael Clarke Duncan), Dr. P uses unorthodox, often dangerous methods, but he guarantees results: Employ his techniques and you will unleash your inner lion. Surrounded by a band of misfit classmates – Walsh (Matt Walsh), who’s dying to move out of mother’s basement; Diego (Horatio Sanz), a punching bag for his hen-pecker of a wife; and Eli (Todd Louiso), a shy guy just looking for female companionship – Roger’s confidence grows and he makes his way to the head of the class, even finding the courage to ask out his longtime crush, Amanda (Jacinda Barrett). But Roger quickly discovers that star students have a way of catapulting Dr. P’s competitive side into high gear. Soon enough, the teacher sets out to infiltrate and destroy Roger’s personal and professional life. Nothing is off limits for Dr. P, not even the object of Roger’s affection. In order to show Amanda Dr. P’s true colors, Roger must rally his new friends and find a way to beat the master at his own game.

School For Scoundrels (2006) DVD Review:

Roger’s (Heder) confidence is non-existent. Constantly made fun of at work, women ignore him and he can’t even volunteer as a big brother as the local youth centre because none of the kids want him but as the final straw breaks him, his friend Ian (Cross) gives him a number to call. The voice on the other end of the phone tells him to come to the learning annex and bring $5000. When he arrives he is greeted by Dr. P (Thornton) who tells Roger and the rest of the group that his class is going to change their lives.

Hollywood fascination of remaking classic movies continues but can this US set version of an Ealing classic live up to its illustrious predecessor?

The 1960 Ealing comedy ‘School for Scoundrels or How to Win Without Actually Cheating’ starred illustrious Ian Carmichael and the legendary Terry Thomas in the main roles and rightly considered a British comedy classic but with the current lack of imagination at the major studios in Hollywood, the film has been remade for the American market.

The premise is simple. There is a secret class for men with extremely low self-esteem that teaches them how to gain confidence in themselves and actually enable them to talk to and date women. The problems start when one of the group, Roger, starts to put his training into practice and actually starts to turn his life around. This brings out the competitive spirit in instructor Dr. P and he pursues Roger’s new love Amanda. Of course high-jinx ensues but coming from the director of ‘Old School’, ‘Starsky and Hutch’ and ‘Road Trip’, you should be expecting more laughs.

The problem with the remake of ‘School for Scoundrels’ is that it doesn’t really deliver when it comes to providing genuine laugh-out-loud moments. There are scattered moments when you will raise a smile and mutter the odd chuckle. This is mainly because of the rivalry between Billy Bob Thornton’s Dr. P and Jon Heder’s Roger. A competition of one-upmanship ensues but most of the best gags were revealed in the theatrical trailer (a problem with many a comedy movie). This takes nothing away from some fine comedic performance from Thornton and Heder but both of them are becoming typecast in these types of roles. The support is OK as well, with Michael Clarke Duncan sharing the butt of the jokes, Jacinda Barrett looking beautiful and Ben Stiller making a funny cameo.

‘School for Scoundrels’ is a comedy that delivers laughs but no real big ones. While the performances make up for some of the scripts shortcomings, there is not enough here to keep you amused or interested in what is going on.

Star Rating = * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Feature commentary with writer/director Todd Phillips and writer Scot Armstrong
Commenting on their fourth film together, writing partners Scot Armstrong and director Todd Phillips provide a chatty and fun track for ‘School for Scoundrels’. The pair talks about remaking the British classic and how they wrote the screenplay with Billy Bob Thornton in mind. They also discuss, in depth, the rest of the cast, highlighting the contributions of Jon Heder, David Cross and the lovely Jacinda Barrett. This is a good commentary that fans of the film and the director will enjoy.

Alternative Ending (4.06 mins)
See a different final confrontation and confession by Roger as he tries to win the girl of his dreams from Dr. P.

Inside the World of School for Scoundrels (19.27 mins)
Writer/director Todd Phillips and stars Jon Heder, Billy Bob Thornton, Jacinda Barrett, Matt Walsh, Sarah Silverman, David Cross, Paul Scheer and Michael Clarke Duncan take you behind the scenes of ‘School for Scoundrels’. Taking a more comedic approach and not seriously as you might have expected, the cast talk about their chances of getting an Oscar and Billy Bob Thornton and Jon Heder perform in the style of their characters from ‘Sling blade’ and ‘Napoleon Dynamite’.

Gag Reel (2.11 mins)
Watch the cast and crew have fun on the set of ‘School for Scoundrels’

Theatrical Trailer (1.41 mins)
Watch the footage that previewed the film in cinemas and on the internet.

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for ‘School for Scoundrels’ is fun. The commentary track is very good and the featurette provides many a laugh, especially from David Cross. Fans of the film should be very pleased.

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School For Scoundrels (2006) DVD review written by: Jamie Kelwick

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