Tommy Boy
"Saturday Night Live" has produced its share of stars. Unfortunately, many of these personalities have failed miserably on the big screen. The 1995 film Tommy Boy is one of the rare "Saturday Night Live" alumnus films that is actually funny. In this film David Spade and Chris Farley provide a glimpse into what potentially may have been a great comedy team.
Chris Farley plays Tommy Callahan, a recent college graduate (barely) without a clue. After completing college in the seven-year plan, he returns home to his father's auto parts manufacturing plant in Sandusky, Ohio. He is in the enviable position of having a job in a company that he stands to inherit some day, and he'll have a new family when his dad, Tom Sr. (Brian Dennehy), marries his beautiful girlfriend (Bo Derek). Things, however, soon go wrong when Tom Sr. dies suddenly during the wedding reception.
After the funeral Tommy finds out that his father's business is overextended and in serious financial trouble. In order to save the company and the jobs of its 300 employees, Tommy agrees to go on the road with his dad's right-hand man, Richard (David Spade), to try and sell the company's new brake pads.
Predictably, this turns into a buddy movie as the two initially dislike each other but eventually bond and become friends. Even more predictably, they manage to save the company (I don't think that I'm ruining the movie for anyone by saying this).
Although neither Chris Farley or David Spade was/is strong enough comedically to steal a picture by himself, the two together are hilarious in this film. Farley's manic yelling and clumsiness would soon grow tiresome if not combined with Spade's condescending sarcasm. Spade has some great lines such as:
Tommy: Did you hear that I graduated?
Richard: Yeah, just a shade under a decade. Allriiiight.
Tommy: Hey, lots of people take seven years to finish college.
Richard: Yes, they're called doctors.
There are a number of memorable gut-busting scenes (such as the dead deer scene), but the king of them all is the sales call in which Tommy demonstrates the effectiveness of his company's brake pads using the client's model cars. Anyone that works in sales can take solace in knowing that their appointments could never possibly go as horribly wrong as this.
Surprisingly, a few well-known actors have smaller roles in this film. In addition to Brian Dennehy and Bo Derek, Dan Ackroyd manages a few great lines as Zelinski the Auto Parts King. Rob Lowe, however, is more annoying than funny as Tommy's evil stepbrother.
Many people expected Chris Farley and David Spade to carry over the comedic chemistry from this film to other works. Disappointingly, this did not happen. While their next film, Black Sheep, had a few funny moments (very few), it's simply not in the same league as Tommy Boy. Tommy Boy is one of the best dumb comedies to date. It's one of those classic films that for whatever reason remains funny after viewing several times over.
Why is it that overweight comedians seem to have a lifespan shorter than an Enron executive? First, John Belushi, then John Candy and Chris Farley. Chris Farley was this generation's Belushi. They both had an ability to laugh at themselves while doing physical comedy. Farley, in particular, was very agile for a large man. True, he did make some terrible movies, but his comedic potential was tragically and self-destructively cut short way too soon. His classic "Saturday Night Live" clips and Tommy Boy are a testament to how hilarious Chris Farley really was.
Send any comments/ feedback to the author.
A lighthearted flick to watch while getting wasted. Funny enough but lacks the "R" rating needed to warrant a six-beer rating.
Not very romantic, but won't hurt your chances either. If she's into clumsy, fat guys you're in -- especially after seeing Chris Farley in tighty-whities.
Buy this film from Amazon.com
Buy this video from Amazon.com
Buy This Photo At AllPosters.com
Related Articles:
1) Animal House
2) Strange Brew
3) Happy Gilmore
