Mock Squid Soup: Better Off Dead

MOCK! and The Armchair Squid are proud to welcome you to Mock Squid Soup: A Film Society.  Each month, on the second Friday, we shall host a bloghop devoted to a particular movie.  We invite others to watch the same film and post their own reviews.  Our dear friend Suze is joining us as this month's guest co-host.  Also, Nancy Mock is standing in for MOCK! at her new blog home: Hungry Enough to Eat Six. This month's movie is...

Title: Better Off Dead
Director: Savage Steve Holland
Original Release: 1985
My Overall Rating: 4 stars out of 5

via Wikipedia

Back in June, I had the great honor of co-hosting a bloghop with Suze, Nancy and Nicki Elson.  The idea was to showcase a movie from our youth for which our perception has changed as we have aged.  I chose Say Anything... at the time but Better Off Dead would have been a great choice, too.  I don't know if I'd watched Better Off Dead since the 1980s and life experience has definitely made it funnier for me.  I giggled the whole way through - a much needed laugh during our recent, five-night power outage.  Just as with Say Anything..., sympathy for the father character (David Ogden Stiers in this case) was a major part of the new experience.  When I first watched this movie back in the day, I'm sure I did not realize the father was played by the same actor who'd been Charles Emerson Winchester III on M*A*S*H.   His feel for the put-upon, just-trying-to-get-through-the-blessed-day Al Myer is pitch perfect.

The story: Lane Myer (John Cusack) is a neurotic teenager who concocts various suicide scenarios when his dreamy girlfriend (Amanda Wyss) dumps him for a more popular jerk (Aaron Dozier).  On the surface, it's standard teen movie fare but Better Off Dead is relentlessly wacky, beginning with Lane's family.  Mousy mom (Kim Darby) cooks everything to the same horrifying shade of green, including boiled bacon.  Silent genius younger brother (Scooter Stevens) is building a spaceship.  Hapless dad is waging war with the local paper boy.  Thankfully, the French exchange student across the street (Diane Franklin) saves Lane from himself. My favorite characters are the Japanese drag racing brothers, one of whom (Brian Imada) speaks no English while the other (Yuji Okumoto) learned Howard Cosell English.   

The film is not exactly overflowing with cultural value but it is extremely funny.  Stereotypes tend more to the insensitive than outright offensive - nothing compared to Sixteen Candles.  If you seek meaningful commentary on the human condition, you'll be disappointed.  But if you're looking for a good laugh... I'll bring the popcorn.  I'll even give you the mail-in coupon.  And $2.

We hope that you, too, will watch Better Off Dead and join in our discussion.  I'll post February's sign-up list tomorrow.  Our feature on Friday, February 13th shall be... Napoleon Dynamite.

via Amazon

Our guest co-host for the month is Cherdo, who blogs at Cherdo on the Flipside.

If you, dear cinephile, would be interested in suggesting a film and co-hosting Mock Squid Soup one month, please let us know.  In the meantime, for the Better Off Dead discussion, please sign on to the list below.