Porky's

Porky's
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Bob Clark
Produced by	Don Carmody Bob Clark Gary Goch Harold Greenberg Arnold Kopelson Melvin Simon
Written by	Bob Clark
Starring	Dan Monahan Mark Herrier Wyatt Knight Roger Wilson
Music by	Paul Zaza Carl Zittrer
Cinematography	Reginald H. Morris
Editing by	Stan Cole
Studio	Astral Films
Distributed by	Twentieth Century Fox
Release date(s)	March 19, 1982 (1982-03-19) (United States)
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United States Canada
Language	English
Budget	$4 million
Box office	$111,289,673 (USA)

Porky's is a 1982 comedy film about the escapades of teenagers at the fictional Angel Beach High School in Florida in 1954. It was released in the United States in 1982, and spawned two sequels: Porky's II: The Next Day (1983) and Porky's Revenge! (1985) and influenced many writers in the teen film genre. It is the second-highest grossing Canadian-produced film in history behind Resident Evil: Afterlife.

Plot

The main plot concerns the efforts of a group of Florida high school students in 1954 intent on losing their virginity. The group consists of bad boy Tommy Turner, socially-awkward Edward "Pee Wee" Morris, star athlete Anthony "Meat" Tuperello, proud redneck Mickey Jarvis, Billy McCarthy (who acts as the voice of reason for the group), and bigot Tim Cavanaugh. They (minus Billy) travel to Porky's bar located outside of town on the basis of a rumor that if one pays Porky the owner, one can hire a prostitute. Initially reluctant, he takes the kids' money and promises them "a night to remember" and then humiliates them by dumping them in the swamp. When the group demand their money back, the sheriff, who turns out to be Porky's brother, arrives to drive them away, but not before his minions extort the rest of their money and cause them more embarrassment. After Mickey (who returned to Porky's for revenge) is beaten so badly he has to be hospitalized, the gang becomes hellbent on exacting revenge on Porky and his brother, eventually succeeding in sinking his bar in the swamp. Porky and his men, joined by the sheriff, chase after the group, but they make it across the county line (where Porky's brother is out of jurisdiction), where they are met by a group of the local police officers, one of whom is Mickey's older brother Ted, and the high school band. After Ted repeatedly damages Porky's car, he says that all charges against Porky for driving an unsafe vehicle will be dropped if the night's events are forgotten. Because the boys were too young to be legally allowed in Porky's in the first place, he and his brother have no choice but to agree. The film ends with the group getting their revenge and Pee Wee finally losing his virginity.

A subplot of the film concerns the boys' peeping on female students in their locker room shower through unused drain openings. After (apparently) several unsuccessful attempts, Tommy, Billy and Pee Wee hit "the mother lode ... the biggest beaver shoot in the history of Florida" (several naked girls showering), but Pee Wee gives them away when he shouts at a particularly fat girl (who has been blocking his view) to move so he can see. While a few girls run out, most stay, finding the situation funny. To test their attitude, Tommy sticks his tongue out through his peephole, but gets it smeared with soap. Infuriated, he drops his pants and sticks his penis through the opening just before female coach Beulah Balbricker (who has a running feud with Tommy) walks into the shower area. Spotting the protruding member, she sneaks up on Tommy, grabs his protruding part and pulls with all her might. Fortunately, Tommy finally manages to pull free and escape, but Beulah is now determined to prove that the offending member (which has a mole on it) belongs to Tommy, going so far as to request that Principal Carter hold a police-type line-up of the boys in the nude so she can identify it. The film ends with Ms. Balbricker sneaking out of the bushes to ambush Tommy and actually dragging his pants down, but she is pulled off of him by police and dragged away screaming that she saw "it" and that she can identify him.

Cast

• Dan Monahan as Edward "Pee Wee" Morris
• Wyatt Knight as Tommy Turner
• Mark Herrier as Billy McCarthy
• Roger Wilson as Mickey Jarvis
• Tony Ganios as Anthony "Meat" Tuperello
• Cyril O'Reilly as Timmy Cavanaugh
• Kaki Hunter as Wendy Williams
• Scott Colomby as Brian Schwartz
• Nancy Parsons as Coach Beulah Balbricker
• Boyd Gaines as Coach Roy Brackett
• Bill Hindman as Coach Goodenough
• Doug McGrath as Coach Warren
• Eric Christmas as Mr. Carter
• Kim Cattrall as Miss "Lassie" Honeywell
• Chuck Mitchell as Porky Wallace
• Art Hindle as Ted Jarvis
• Isle Earl as Mrs. Morris
• Alex Karras as Sheriff Wallace
• Susan Clark as Cherry Forever
• Rod Ball as Steve
• Jack Mulacahy as Frank Bell
• Lisa O'Reilly as Ginny
• Wayne Maunder as Cavanaugh
• Randy Rosenthal as Student

Reception

Critical response

Porky's received mixed to negative reviews. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 32% based on reviews from 22 critics.

Film critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel were offended by Porky's and later called it one of the worst films of 1982^{[citation needed]}.

Box office

Although it was written and directed by an American and was filmed in Miami, Florida, Porky's was produced by the Canadian company Astral Media. As a result, Porky's can be classed as the highest-grossing Canadian film of all time in Canada's domestic box office, with a total of C$111 million by 1999. In October 2006, Bon Cop, Bad Cop appeared to surpass Porky's in nominal box office revenues, but as of the end of its theatrical run, Bon Cop, Bad Cop had not surpassed the inflation-adjusted revenues for Porky's. Taking inflation into account, Porky's has grossed more than twice what Bon Cop, Bad Cop has earned to date. Porky's is also the second highest-grossing Canadian film of all time internationally.

History and significance

The first two Porky's films were directed by Bob Clark and produced by Harold Greenberg, who founded Astral Communications (now known as Astral Media). James Komack directed the third film, Porky's Revenge. Clark based the original Porky's on actual occurrences at Boca Ciega High School in Gulfport, Florida and Fort Lauderdale High School in the early 1960s, and on a joint called Porky's in Oakland Park, Florida.

The first film featured Canadian actors Art Hindle, Doug McGrath, and Susan Clark. The British-Canadian actress Kim Cattrall appeared in one of her first major roles in a sex scene in the boys' locker room. Her character's nickname was "Lassie" due to the way she howled during intercourse.

Home media

On May 22, 2007, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released all three films in an "Ultimate Collection" box set.

External links

• Porky's at the Internet Movie Database
• Porky's at AllRovi
• Porky's at Rotten Tomatoes