Old School review

Coming on like the latest in a long line of Animal House wannabes, Old School rises above its mainly undistinguished rivals by actually being funny. Any resistance to its base charms are quickly forgotten the moment a hilarious Vince Vaughn shows up as the brash Beanie. No one takes having fun quite so seriously. What distinguishes Old School is that while it mines familiar ribald frat humour, because its protagonists are three 30 something men who have become ensnared by the trappings of adulthood like wives and children, they bring with them an evolving if underdeveloped sense of decency.

It is the reserved Mitch (Luke Wilson) who is shocked to discover his spacey girlfriend (Juliette Lewis) participates in a swinging lifestyle. As a result he moves into a new home on the university grounds. To the partying Beanie, the house offers the perfect venue to revive their college days. This proposition is less appealing to Mitch who is looking for a somewhat more peaceful environment in which to put his life back together. For the immature Frank (Will Ferrell), the home becomes a refuge when he quickly determines that he's not quite ready to cope with married life, a realisation that comes as a bit of a shock to his new bride (Perrey Reeves). With the university dean (Jeremy Piven) threatening eviction, the only way for them to remain in the house is to form a fraternity.

As one would expect, bedlam ensues, mostly involving Frank's naked and flabby backside. But alongside the broad humour, director and writer Todd Phillips has included plenty of touching and restrained comedy. Beanie barks out orders or chastises a pledge, always being careful to shield his child's sensitive ears from the ensuing profanity by warning "ear muffs" at which the child covers his ears. While Beanie is comfortable balancing his arrested development with married life, Mitch is always trying to deny or disown the fraternity, particularly when an old high school crush, Nicole (Ellen Pompeo), re-enters his life.

Old School makes little pretension to be anything other than funny and stupid, which it undoubtedly is. But in addition it shows that although the appeal of returning to our carefree adolescence often looms large, especially as we become burdened by responsibility, when given the opportunity, going back is never quite the same.