Screwballs has to be the most contrived, cliche screwball teen comedy under the sun. That is by no means criticism though... therein lies its charm. This movie is supposedly set in the sixties, but it looks and feels a lot more like 1983 to me. Big hair, and eighties sounding tunes are all the rage at T&A high school. It's way ahead of its time for the sixties. That's right, the school is called T&A... no point pussy footing around (pardon the pun) the subject matter of Screwballs.
The somewhat minimal plot centres around a bunch of guys on detention. A ragtag bunch of stereotypical teen comedy underdogs. We have the shy new kid, who despite his dorkiness, still attracts the attentions of a gorgeous female admirer. Then we have Howie, the bespectacled buck toothed nerd genius. We also have not one, but two rich jocks. For some unknown reason, they hang out with the less-cool guys. And finally, to top it all off, we have the aptly named Jerkoffski. Jerkoffski keeps getting caught whacking off in the strangest of places around T&A high.
The members of this motley crew are men on a mission. They've made a pact to liberate the school prude of her virginity. The prude in question is Purity Busch (I shit you not), honour student, and the last female pupil of T&A high with cherry intact. She looks kind of like Cameron Diaz, but a lot better. I can't believe I wasted two paragraphs explaining the plot of Screwballs ! I'm probably giving the impression that this is plot heavy stuff, but I assure you it isn't.
Screwballs is delightfully contrived, and leaves no cliche unturned. It's all here... from the crafty nerds zany inventions, to the horny lingerie clad science teacher who keeps students back after class for private lessons. Hell, someone even slips on a banana peel ! I wish my school days were like this...
I recall many a banana peel in the quadrangle, but unfortunately nobody ever slipped on one. This is definitely up there with my favorite screwball teen comedies. Highly watchable. How many other movies can top a scene where a nerd gets his dick stuck in a bowling ball? Now that's what I call high brow comedy. |