Porky's
| Porky's | |
|---|---|
 Porky's movie poster | |
| Directed by | Bob Clark |
| Written by | Bob Clark |
| Produced by | Don Carmody Bob Clark Gary Goch Harold Greenberg Arnold Kopelson Melvin Simon |
| Starring | Dan Monahan Mark Herrier Wyatt Knight Roger Wilson |
| Cinematography | Reginald H. Morris |
| Edited by | Stan Cole |
| Music by | Paul Zaza Carl Zittrer |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Twentieth Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 94 minutes |
| Countries | United States Canada |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$4,000,000 (estimated) |
| Box office | Total: $111,289,673[1]  $105,500,000[1] $6,596,000 $6,749,053 SEK 6,870,224 |
Porky's is a 1981 comedy film about the escapades of teenagers at the fictional Angel Beach high school in Florida in 1954.[2] 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 highest grossing Canadian-produced film in history.
Plot summary
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 the owner Porky, one can hire a prostitute. Initially reluctant, Porky takes the kids' money and promises them "a night to remember" and then humiliates them by dumping them in the swamp. When the group seeks revenge, the sheriff, who turns out to be Porky's brother, arrives to drive them away, but not before Porky's minions extort the rest of their money and cause them more embarrassment. After this incident, the group becomes hellbent on exacting revenge on Porky and his brother, eventually succeeding in sinking his strip club in the swamp. After the group makes it across the county line (where Porky's brother is out of jurisdiction), they meet Porky and his brother with one of the local police officers, who happens to be Mickey's brother, and the high school band. After Mickey's brother damages Porky's car, he says that none of the previous events will be spoken to the authorities. Because the boys were not allowed in Porky's strip club in the first place, Porky 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.
Reception
Porky's received mixed to negative reviews, with review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reporting that 32% of critics gave the film a positive review.
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 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
History and significance
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.[3] 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$11 million by 1999.[4] 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 highest-grossing Canadian film of all time internationally.
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.[3]
The first movie featured Canadian actors Art Hindle, Doug McGrath, and Susan Clark and 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.
In 2002, talk show host Howard Stern's production company acquired the rights to remake the film. On May 22, 2007, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released all three films in an "Ultimate Collection" box set. In May 2008, American Pie 2 co-writer David H. Steinberg announced through his MySpace page that he had turned in his draft of the script and had received word from the studio that it would be made the following year, though as of October 2010, there are no plans being made for a remake.
References
- ^ a b "Porky's". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
- ^ Porkys - Questions, Answers, Fun Facts, Information
- ^ a b Goyanes, Ily (August 19, 2010). "Celluloid City: Porky's Trilogy Filmed at Miami Senior High School and Greynolds Park". Miami New Times. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
- ^ Steel, Suzanne (January 22, 1999). "Field Notes". National Post. Postmedia Network Inc. p. C06.
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External links
- Porky's at IMDb
- Porky's at AllMovie
- Porky's at Box Office Mojo
- Porky's at Rotten Tomatoes