Python Hyena Orange County (2002): Dir: Jake Kasdan / Cast: Colin Hanks, Schuyler Fisk, Jack Black, Catherine O'Hara, John Lithgow: A place or happening for the good of inspiration as Colin Hanks discovers a book in the sand that spellbinds him into pursuing a career in writing. He applies at Stanford but the counsellor sent the wrong transcript thus leading to the standard road adventure to set the record straight. The screenplay is simplistic but director Jake Kasdan plays up screwball references. This is his second film, his first being Zero Effect. Hanks does a superb job at mirroring his frustration at family, school and the yearning to succeed. Schuyler Fisk uses blackmail to assist Hanks. It is obvious that she is set up as the potential girlfriend by end credits, and her dog rescue scene is totally unnecessary. Jack Black is hilarious as Hanks's drug addict brother who means well but often makes bad situations worse. Catherine O'Hara plays his alcoholic mother who further complicates Hanks's dream of emotional peace. John Lithgow plays his wealthy father who divorced his wife and married a much younger woman. Strong theme regarding inspiration reflected here as Hanks draws upon personal issues with his family to visualize his work. In the end one can appreciate the people in their life because, as reflected here, they are the ones that create life's most noticeable plot turns. Score: 6 ½ / 10

Josh Anderson How this movie has an average rating of 6.1 at the time of me writing this review is beyond me. The semi-serious base story of Shaun, a high schooler trying to get into Stanford is a good enough drama on its own, but then you ad the social commentary (albeit exaggerated...maybe)on the southern California mindset with an all star cast including Jack Black Lily Tomlin and Chevy Chase the movie becomes outrageously funny. I think Colin Hanks is an excellent actor (I have no idea why he has all but disappeared in the last 10 years), and does a bang up job of being the one kid in school who actually cares about his education all the while being pulled away by his numb-skull surfer buddies. Another of the cast who seems to have disappeared is Schuylar Fisk who plays Shaun's girlfriend Ashley. Ashley is the overly positive sweetheart girlfriend who will support Shaun through thick and thin. This is honestly one of Jack Black's funniest performances. He plays Shaun's druggie dead beat brother and when he gets mixed up in Shaun's quest for Stanford, hilarity compounds! Even 10 years after the movie was released I still laugh out loud watching this!

Steve Pulaski Shaun Brumder (Colin Hanks) is an abnormally bright child. A kid whose schoolwork comes naturally to him and grades were never something to sweat over. But instead of trying to lead an ambitious life, Shaun chooses to spend his days surfing and hanging out with his pals. But when his best friend Lonny is killed in a surfing accident, Shaun contemplates if this direction is the best one to pursue. He later discovers a novel, written by a man named Marcus Skinner, on the beach one day, reads it cover to cover, and loves every minute of it. Upon reading it a dozen more times, and practicing writing similar stories on his own, he realizes that he has a talent for writing and ultimately that's what he wants to become.Shaun's homelife is a rather strange one. His parents are divorced, with his mother (Catherine O'Hara) being a sensitive, needy woman and his father (John Lithgow) a selfish and unruly cad. Shaun's brother is Lance (Jack Black), a portly stoner who is rarely seen fully clothed. Lance continues to offer advice to Shaun, which he will inherently disregard as rambling with no meaning, yet this isn't one of those stories where the dopey character may actually be smarter than we believe. He's just dumb.Our hero's dream, however, is to get accepted to Stanford and major in journalism. His girlfriend, the neighborhood activist Ashley (Schuyler Fisk) is all support, but his chances seemingly plummet downward when his guidance counselor sends the wrong transcript to Stanford. Instead of the bright and dedicated student they should receive, the school accepts some ne'er-do-well stoner who applied on a whim.Orange County follows Shaun as he tries in every which way to get accepted to Stanford and pursue a life of intellect and creativity. One thing that becomes the top priority on his list is escaping the inherently listless and seemingly mundane town of Orange County, where nobody takes anything with an ounce of seriousness and everyone seems to be self-indulgent and careless.This is a film with a big agenda, a clear heart, but an often misunderstood soul, mainly because its headliner, Jack Black, doesn't deliver the laughs you would expect. Orange County is not an energetic, high-octane romp, but a sweet and endearing character study that is equal parts sly comedy and equal parts dramatic and deep. A scene comes early on in the film where Shaun is wasting away in a class and his teacher is asking the students if they know anyone who would be interested in speaking to the school about personal experiences. Shaun proposes a writer who has just received a high honor, but is quickly one-upped by another classmate who has connections to Brittney Spears. This scene illustrates so discretely and subtly how motivated and turned on we get as a society by popularity and publicity rather than true talent and admiration.Colin Hanks, an actor still searching for that breakout role, handles the task here beautifully, even with the challenge and notable burden of carrying a lion's weight of a film on his back. He's no idiot. His character rarely misses a beat and is a calming and simple pleasure to endure. So is his brother, despite his slow, uninspiring persona. Orange County has an indescribable beauty and charm to its screenplay, one that offers an experience that is fresh and viable, and definitely unconventional.Starring: Colin Hanks, Jack Black, Schuyler Fisk, Catherine O'Hara, John Lithgow, and Lily Tomlin. Directed by: Jake Kasdan.

tjl30218 Orange County is a movie about a kid trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life. After the passing of one of his friends he abandons his old easy going surfer life style stereo typical of where he is from (orange county) and dedicates his life to writing. His goal was to go to Stanford and escape the dysfunctional home and town he grew up in. The movie starts out kind of stupid, but Jack Black was kind of funny in his same old roll as a fat crazy guy. The main character and his crazy day sort of reminded me of a mix of the catcher in the rye and Ferris Bueller's day off. For some reason I just enjoyed watching the movie and it seemed like a good length, with a good beginning, middle, and end.http://thp-moviereviews.blogspot.com/