The first must-see film of the year.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I bought this movie at a discount store for several reasons: 1) The IMDb reviews give it nearly a "7"(???); 2) I LOVE Jeremy Piven, David Spade, Chris Young, et al; 3) I was NOT expecting a high budget, true "Animal House" experience for an indie film; and, 4) I genuinely love college comedies/spoofs if they are done well and have a heart/direction. I should also preface the fact I don't like Hart Bochner as an actor so I went in trying to forget he was behind the lens for this experience.I wanted to love it. I really did. I was NOT expecting Shakespeare or even "SNL" actually. Nothing will touch "Animal House" on the originality scale but I appreciate people trying to put out a quality movie. I love to laugh and enjoy even low-brow humor when done with good intentions by the actors/writer/director. Unfortunately, this movie was neither funny nor inspired. Don't get me wrong, there are some smile-worthy moments - how can you not giggle a little when Jeremy Piven goes into his pre-stardom everyman-speed-riff humor he patented in such later gems as "Serendipity" and "Just Write"? However, this mess of a storyline with every possible college cliché or ridiculous stereotype thrown at you seems like they were straining to come up with valid story points on the fly to complete the project. Seriously, even in a spoof/satire of college life there needs to be at least some resemblance of reality.I won't give any spoilers away, but if you have ever attended any college - from the Ivy League/Cambridge-caliber all the way down to the local community college -, I can honestly say I never, ever saw some of the deliriously brazen disregard for college life or the wonderfully odd, individual students who attend. Even by the lowest standards of any institution in the world, students need to attend a class and maintain a resemblance of a GPA. Honestly, for all the people who watched this movie (and I understand the story was over ONE weekend), were these based on any real students? They all looked and acted like a ridiculous caricature of spoiled rich kids, dopey addicts/activists with no direction and/or frat kids with zero intention on truly attending class and/or receiving any sort of degree. It was simply -- an unmitigated mess.I don't believe it is a total waste of time as, like I stated above, there are a few "smile" moments. That's why I gave it a "2" instead of lower. But as a whole, the story is such an "Animal House" rip-off without being remotely inventive or funny it doesn't bear a comparison in the slightest. Nobody should ever be ashamed of the work they do on a movie unless they "mail it in" (think Bruce Willis lately ;-). I believe the director seemed to have mailed it in. I believe the actors gave their all to a very weak, uninspired, unmemorable script. They all deserved better. So did the viewer. I will be either giving my copy to Goodwill or the trash. Sad... I really wanted to love this one. Maybe next time...

The movie wasn't as bad as this guy makes it out to be. I find it pretty funny, although it certainly has its bad parts and occasional cheezy lines. Overall, it's not a total waste of time. It catches that whole 90's druggie/nirvana/i wish i was a hippie sorta vibe. Along with all of the other stupid mentalities of the time, without making you go insane. Some really good actors in it too. Without them, the movie wouldve stunk even more. Spade, Favreaux, (and the other main guy who i forgot) especially. The funniest line: (short monologue inside The Pit) "This is a cry for help...I wanna get laid!" Try it- if you're going to college, it'll give you a laugh. Its actually based on PCU's apparent history of stupid daily protests. Who knew.

Good talent assembled here. Spade is at the top of his game. Piven is very natural and Favreau is strong as usual. However, the film as a whole tends to disappoint. It just tries too hard to be the "Animal House" for a new generation. The problem is there is no real story, at least not one that you care about. Coupled with this is way too many weaker actors getting way too much camera time. Spade disappears for way too long, when he is obviously carrying the film. Moreover, there is also a lack of affection for the characters here. Oh yeah, it was meant to be a stinging indictment on "political correctness" run amok. The problem is that the main characters, the supposed good guys, are a bunch of jerks that are simply trying to be cool. They are not cool! You will laugh at some scenes, laugh hard. However, then you will see five minutes of garbage that is just lame. Could have been a lasting movie, well, no, probably not.

A lot of people call this movie a third rate Animal House. I can't really argue with that assesment, but at the same time...I really, really love PCU. I watch it whenever it is on Comedy Central. I love the cast of the movie, I love the making fun of sacred cows like the PC movement of the mid 90's, I love that this movie gleefully embraces every cliche of the college comedy. I am a film student with film studenty tastes most of the time, but I really love this movie, and can't quite explain why.