Suburbia (1983).

Review #2201: Suburbia.

Cast: 

Bill Coyne (Evan Johnson), Chris Pedersen (Jack Diddley), Jennifer Clay (Sheila), Timothy Eric O'Brien (Skinner), Wade Walston (Joe Schmo), Flea (Razzle), André Boutilier (Peg Leg), Grant Miner (Keef), Christina Beck (T'resa), Maggie Ehrig (Mattie), Lee Frederick (Jim Tripplett), Jeff Prettyman (Bob Skokes), Don Allen (Officer Bill Rennard), Andrew Pece (Ethan Johnson), and J. Dinan Myrtetus (Sheila's father) Written and Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals, #806 - Wayne's World, #1019 - Dudes, #1657 - The Decline of Western Civilization, #1821 - The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years, and #1986 - The Decline of Western Civilization Part III)

Review: 

"It’s an example of the kind of movies I should have been making for my whole career and I wasn’t able to."

Yes, The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) is a punk rock documentary that one can find plenty to appreciate for its look within the punk rock scene and the documentation done by someone with the guts to just let it all hang out in Penelope Spheeris, but it was not the kind of film that screamed audience favorite. So, she set out to make a punk narrative feature, one that would take inspiration from various stories she had seen and heard, whether that involved roaming dogs or a house abandoned (apparently it was like that because the housing tract had been seized through eminent domain in order to help build a freeway). The film came about at the hands of a guy name Bert L. Dragin that apparently wanted to make movies (such as the one as presented to him by Spheeris when showing the script) because he had made considerable money as a furniture chain owner, albeit one that would like a partner to help cover the costs of making a fairly cheap movie. Naturally, this led to Roger Corman, who agreed to help with financing. Of course, because it was made with Corman as a producer, he was behind some of the ideas present in the film when it comes to what Spheeris defined as having to "either have sex or violence every 10 minutes". Interestingly, Dragin would become a director for two films of his own with Summer Camp Nightmare (1987) and Twice Dead (1988), with Spheeris co-writing the script with Dragin for the former. The film did not get much of a release besides a few festivals, but Spheeris maintains pride in the film, even once stating that she would be happy if one remembered her for this film (as opposed to Wayne's World); her next film after this was The Boys Next Door (1985).

The cast (with a few exceptions) were basically a collection of street youths and punk musicians that Spheeris recruited under the belief that it was better to try and get them to have them there and try to act rather than cast a bunch of actors and try to make them sound like punks. Perhaps not surprisingly, you can hear a few bits of live punk rock music throughout the film from bands such as D.I., T.S.O.L., and the Vandals (and yes, that is indeed Flea as a cast member in the same year he became a founding member of Red Hot Chili Peppers, although he is present in the film mostly involving rats - apparently people). Oh sure, it's not hard to find movies about wayward youths that find their own sense of family within others around them. But you sure won't find many films that ride the line of shock value and interest in the behavior of those that are shaped by the thing that surrounds them in suburbia that might as well be the second level of hell. The 1980s might have been a prosperous time for some, but it sure wasn't the easiest time for those who were left adrift and scattered in the streets to fend away. It isn't a case of judging a book by its cover, because, well, they are no angels, it is merely a case of trying to figure out how the hell the book got to be the way that it was in the first place. One is not there to watch a cry of sympathy of the punks but instead a lament for the circumstances that drew them there in the first place that happens to have a few moments to grimace or chuckle with along the way as the makeshift family hurtles towards inevitability. There are the rejected punks and the rejected when it comes to those with supposed "values" that like to discuss plans in a strip club or shoot at stray dogs (time flies when calling it in the name of "citizens against crime"). Some of the acting is hit and miss, such as with Coyne, who basically is lost in the shuffle once it gets to the group, although Clay is fairly decent. Of course, it really is a movie straight for the vibes as opposed to a collection of strong acting, and only Pedersen really strikes it best when it comes the contradictions that arise from calling oneself "The Rejected": one that would rather be around punks than his stepfather...cop. Allen in that regard, as the one sane adult figure (namely in recognizing the wasteland that folks around the suburb are wallowing in), is efficient in that regard to contrast the simple threat presented by Frederick and Prettyman that are stock but on point. If you squint hard enough, one might find a bit of The Wild One (1953) when it comes to rebels that, well, nobody tells them what to do, which in one memorable sequence involves trying to attend a funeral of one of their fallen that ends with a rough-and-tumble when the truth hits a bit too close. As a whole, it is a messy movie in the ways only a punk rock movie would make sense to be messy that doesn't try to play easy sympathy for its lead figures but instead looks at the wasteland and the ones that arise from suburbs turning from an idea of haven into a mirage. Its a rough film that rides on vibes for quite the curious experience.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

The Decline of Western Civilization Part III.

Review #1986: The Decline of Western Civilization Part III.

Cast: 

Featuring performers Final Conflict, Litmus Green, Naked Aggression, and The Resistance, with interviews of Keith Morris, Rick Wilder (The Mau-Mau's), Flea, among others.

Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals, #806 - Wayne's World, #1019 - Dudes, #1657 - The Decline of Western Civilization, #1821 - The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years)

Review: 

"I feel that a documentarian has an obligation to tell the truth as he or she interprets it. And what I mean by that is that documentarians don't necessarily have the same sort of obligations that a journalist might have. A journalist might be called upon to be objective, whereas a documentarian is sort of forced to take sides."

Penelope Spheeris has stated that the three Decline films are what she would like to define her career. However, the road to the third film came in a distinct manner different from the last two films. Spheeris has stated that the three Decline films are what she would like to define her career. However, the road to the third film came in a distinct manner different from the last two films. The release of Wayne's World (1992) was both a hit for Spheeris and a future regret. Studios that had perceived her as not being able to do comedy now shifted to believing she wasn't there for serious material, and a rift with a star on that film meant she was not on for the sequel (as such, she has stated she would "probably not have done" that film if she had a second shot). A trip to Burning Man made her come to a revelation to come back and do a third film in the Decline series. Her aim at trying to look at the punk scene in commercialization in the years that followed would soon turn into one about the gutterpunks that were living on the streets of Los Angeles. A reminder that it is the efforts of Anna Fox (the daughter of Spheeris) who helped spur efforts to get Spheeris to get around to re-releasing these films, which is certainly better to see in a boxset rather than bootlegs. It inspired Spheeris, who acquired a license to become a foster parent in 2013. In fact, she met her future boyfriend during the production of the film (one who was homeless for years that is affected with schizophrenia). Spheeris (who had her most recent documentary with We Sold Our Souls for Rock 'n Roll (2001) suffer delays for years because of rights issues, incidentally) has been on the record about apparently working on a fourth film involving music, but whether it will reach completion is unknown. Everything has basically come full circle in the weirdest of ways. Each film has an opening with the bands being recorded about being at this show means one is consenting to being photographed and each one involves a handful of bands being shown on and off the stage in their perspectives. Keith Morris of Black Flag returns from his appearance in the first film, with his enduring line being about how he never wanted to be a rock star. One of the first questions asked in the film is about punks who saw the first film. So yes, the punk scene has moved into a different place from before, where you now see punks living on the streets making due with what they have and the people that they choose to associate with, whether that involves people named "Filth" or with people who claim they can suck an Icee through their nose. There are a handful of people shown in interviews, whether in a booth or live on the street, with such names including "Filth, Spinner, Why-Me, Spoon, Darius, Little Tommy, Troll, and Nate". The one defining characteristic that comes through is the conviction that these people have for who they are in the moment. 

There are other perspectives besides the gutterpunks, because there is still some music shown through the film, and one probably isn't surprised to hear from a cop as well. Honestly, the music is mainly just fine, with the perspectives of the groups probably being more distinct to look into (one of the groups in The Resistance basically practices in an abandoned building), but the film in general is more one of casual decay more than anything. People are reduced to asking folks on the street or taking photos for money ("not begging, asking" being the key here). It has gotten to a point where these punks are the outcasts of society that believe the best way forward is to be who they are in that moment, which mainly involves being away from their family and the use of substances. I think nearly every punk asked in the film admits to a regular habit of drinking alcohol (because if punk is any one thing, it is what you are not). Forget what they look like (like the one with a pen tube) and instead listen to them for who they are beyond appearances, whether that involves them talking about the upbringing they had before they became who they are (namely abuse, which is recounted by every single one of them) or their short-term plans for the future because of how much they believe they will die soon anyway. The shock isn't the fact that there is homeless people who wander the streets every day trying to make a living, the shock is instead the fact that this is even that big of a problem to begin with (one that goes beyond punk music of course, but Spheeris clearly cares about what she is filming by the way she asks her questions on screen). 

The film (which runs for 86 minutes) closes on numerous shots: first a scene a group of the punks walking together on the street (while a title card states that profits of the film will go to charities for the homeless and abused children) before it cuts to shots from the music scene (as one could see from certain moments of the previous two films) and a final blurb detailing the death of "Squid" (who died on July 19, 1997) from stab wounds alongside the arrest and eventual trial of "Spoon" (an account of the two in terms of a separate person shooting photographs and the apparent fate of Spoon can be found in this blog here). The film never got a proper chance to be seen by the public for years. It did make a premiere on the festival circuit (starting with the 1998 Sundance Film Festival), but the demand for a film with its tone were middling, and any offer that came had a stipulation that she refused to take: handing over the rights to the first two films. At any rate, it is hard to believe it has been 25 years since the release of this film, which manages to continue the road set out by the two previous Decline films in showing the nature of what it means to be a person in punk in the realm of oneself and in music. Each film has their own great highlights in terms of perspective and music (for which I say the first is the best in that regard), but you cannot go wrong with any of the films that were done by Spheeris and company. Check them out for yourself to see just why Spheeris holds them dear to her heart and why you may find them really worthwhile in the history of documentaries.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Next Time: Smithereens (1982).

The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years.

Review #1821: The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years.

Cast: 

Featuring performers Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, Poison [Bobby Dall, C.C. DeVille, Bret Michaels, Rikki Rockett], Aerosmith [Steven Tyler, Joe Perry], Kiss [Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley], Motörhead [Lemmy] alongside musical performances by Lizzy Borden [L. Borden, Gene Allen, Michael Davis, Joey Scott], Faster Pussycat, Seduce, London, Odin [Randy O, Jeff Duncan], and Megadeth [Dave Mustaine, David Ellefson], with Riki Rachtman & Taime Downe, Chris Holmes [W.A.S.P.], and Bill Gazzarri. Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals, #806 - Wayne's World, #1019 - Dudes, #1657 - The Decline of Western Civilization)

Review: 

If you remember correctly, The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) was one of the most engaging music documentaries ever produced involving punk rock, a chaotic affair with hectic personalities (and varying philosophies) that lingers with a viewer after they finish it without becoming a "Greatest Hits" collection. Spheeris would follow this with a group of low-budget work such as Suburbia (1984) and Dudes (1987) before returning with a "Part II" that would cover Los Angeles and a different music scene - heavy metal, inspired by what she saw of streets packed with "long-haired freaks", complete with help in funding by I.R.S. Records that would mean a budget of $500,000, which was roughly five times the budget of the original film. Of course, this is the only one of these films to receive major distribution, because this one was released by New Line Cinema. There are a handful of performers that are interviewed amidst the performances, complete with their choice of how they wanted to be filmed - Gene Simmons for example is filmed at a lingerie store (not tacky to him), while Paul Stanley is filmed in bed with a group of women and Chris Holmes is filmed in a pool with his mother by him while he drinks vodka (well, some of it is vodka, actually the rest is pool water). London was shot in Spheeris' garage, while Osbourne is shot in someone else's house, complete with a "juice pouring scene". Incidentally, the film is credited with showing "glam metal" (i.e. flashy clothing/makeup) right in its peak on the Sunset Strip before the rise of grunge and other assorted metal music; you even get to hear about the "evolution of heavy metal"...from a probation officer alongside hearing from folks in the club scene with degrees of promotion and sleaze (incidentally, Megadeth was apparently a late inclusion done as some sort of serious contrast to the glam metal groups, much to their later disappointment).

In this sense, while one will recognize more faces when it comes to the pursuit of fame, at least one won't lose the perspective of folks that crave for it as well, no matter where the road goes (namely sex, drugs, or rock and roll). Of course, there is also the rampant amount of confidence that you see in varying levels when it comes to just how far one will take their pursuit over all others. Aerosmith, stated by Spheeris as the definitive hard rock band, doesn't perform in the film, but it doesn't mean that they don't have an interesting presence in the interview process, whether when being asked about "groupies", "toxic twins", and the things that come with having plenty of drugs to spare and trying to stay on a wagon of sobriety. Osbourne is about as engaging as one could expect from someone who describes sobriety as something that "sucks" - in short, he is offbeat and engaging to see around from time to time, while Alice Cooper is equally as engaging when depicting the usefulness of metal when it comes to rock-n-roll. Sure, it might amuse you to hear from Simmons, but one will clearly remember Stanley and his casual attitude towards...anything, really. Of course, the most insightful one might be Lemmy, photographed at a distance (he claimed Spheeris did this to try to make him look stupid, but this angle works to his advantage), where he also talks about the fast rebel appeal of heavy metal alongside not hesitating if someone tries to rip him off. It also helps that the film isn't featuring just folks that are already "names", so you can enjoy just how hard belief in oneself really can go when it meets reality. Besides, there is a plethora of interesting music (to me, anyway, but I know some have their opinions on hard metal) that goes as well as the first film did, where it still rings true when combining with the art of self-promotion, such as with Poison. Holmes is undoubtedly the most memorable interview, reflecting on who he is as a hard-drinking rock star that thinks he will be dead in ten years (as it turns out, Holmes became sober in 1996 and has remained so), and it endures as the most striking footage despite Spheeris believing it wasn't useable at first. And then there's the folks who believe they have the potential to do things...like Odin, complete with a guy who thinks they will go as big as Led Zeppelin (incidentally, the lead singer became a teamster trucker and seems fine). The 93 minutes pass on by with a consistent breeze to them, regardless of if one is for the music or interviews. As a whole, one will see plenty of distinct human quirks that come with playing music on a big stage: excess, desperation, overconfidence, crudeness, and so much more. While I think the first film manages to capture a unique scene a bit more clearly than this one, it is still quite easy to approach when it comes to looking upon humanity and music in all the weird places it can go as a piece of late 1980s rock-n-roll with a director interested in where all the pieces fall.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Next Time: Frida (2002).

The Decline of Western Civilization.

Review #1657: The Decline of Western Civilization.

Cast: 

Featuring the bands Black Flag [Ron Reyes, Robo, Chuck Dukowski, Greg Ginn], Germs [Darby Crash, Pat Smear, Lorna Doom, Don Bolles], Catholic Discipline [Claude Bessy, Robert Lopez, Phranc, Craig Lee, Rick Brodey], X [John Doe, Exene Cervenka, Billy Zoom, D.J. Bonebrake], Circle Jerks [Keith Morris, Roger Rogerson, Lucky Lehrer, Greg Hetson], Alice Bag Band [Alice Bag, Terry Graham, Rob Ritter, Craig Lee], and Fear [Lee Ving, Spit Stix, Derf Scratch, Philo Cramer], with Brendan Mullen, Bob Biggs, Philomena Whinstanley, Chris D, and Wayne Mayotte. Produced and Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals, #806 - Wayne's World, #1019 - Dudes)

Review: 

“You get to a certain age and you go, ‘OK, what is my identity?’ My identity is The Decline of Western Civilization. It’s not Wayne’s World or any of those other movies I did.”

Penelope Spheeris managed to hone her interests in music and film into an interesting career that spanned three decades and attracted attention for what she did with her vision of filmmaking. Spheeris was the daughter of a carnival operator, who would move the family across Louisiana through the South, but her father's death in a dispute (the elder Spheeris saw someone being beaten with a cane but was shot when defending them). Subsequently, she would live with her mother in California within trailer parks, and she would use music to (as she once put it) “get my head out of the bummer that my life was", although cinema would also prove an escape as well. She studied art at California State University (Long Beach) before being influenced to change course and study psychobiology at the University of California, Irvine. Hearing about a film school in the University of California in Los Angeles, she decided to change schools again, for which she would use money earned from work as a waitress to put herself through UCLA Film School; she would start making her first shorts in 1968 while graduating from the school with a major in film in the 1970s. She formed the first company dedicated to filming music videos in the city of Los Angeles in 1974 with Rock 'n Reel. Spheeris made her first effort in the film industry through serving as producer of the first film done by Albert Brooks with Real Life (1979). She had first connected with Brooks through serving as producer for some short subjects that featured him as director/writer/star, which were featured through the first season of Saturday Night Live (1975-76). Ultimately, Spheeris has directed eleven feature films and seven documentaries through a career of music and comedies, with mixed results in audiences and with time spent with the studio system. When it comes to this film, it makes sense that Spheeris would cross music within the world of filmmaking. While visting clubs around southern California like Club 88, she found interest in the burgeoning wave of punk music enough to want to document it because of what she found so interesting - she found her reason was the same for the metal scene, in that one could express frustration and anger at the same time with it. This would be the first of three films that Spheeris would do involving the music scene in Los Angeles: Part II: The Metal Years (1988) featured the heavy metal scene with a mix of noted artists in the genre like Ozzy Osbourne and others such as W.A.S.P., while Part III (1998) involved the punks living in poverty (predictably, the latter was less popular with distributors, who would only want to release if it Spheeris gave up the rights to the first two films) - an ironic title became a self-fulfilling prophetic trilogy (incidentally, the success of the second film would lead to the offer to direct Wayne's World (1992), which proved a blessing a curse in terms of putting her into the mainstream). It was only in 2015 that one could see the films on media besides VHS, owing to Spheeris' reluctance to revisit her films, until she was spurred to by her daughter.

The film was shot over the course of six months from December 1979 to May 1980. Four decades have passed since its release, but one certainly can see how prescient the film has been in terms of its visceral insight into what makes music and its fans tick - this balance of time could even have been seen from the time it was released in 1981. By that point, Darby Clash (who is featured on the cover as lead singer of the Germs) had died, three of the bands had already disbanded (Bags, Catholic Discipline, and Germs - although the latter would reunite decades later), while others would persist on with their own levels of varying influence such as Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Fear, and X (who, I truthfully admit I know for exactly one song, which was their cover of "Wild Thing" for one of my favorite baseball movies, Major League). Obviously, folks in the scene liked what they saw - one premiere showing attracted hundreds of punks that led to a raucous display with police and a letter to Spheeris to never show it in the city again - that city was Los Angeles. If Spheeris had to be remembered for just one film, this film most certainly serves as a crowning achievement to talk about, particularly in its portrayal of a time and place that has never looked so far from our memory and yet still seem so relevant now. It is a chaotic affair, featuring the hectic lives and philosophies (in some way) of seven bands alongside shots of the folks around the emotions expressed in those loud moments spent in the lights (there also are a few moments spent within the perspective of Slash, a fanzine dedicated to punk that ran from 1977-1980 that Bob Biggs developed alongside Slash Records to specialize in punk rock). Some of the folks stand out more so than others, moving from point to point with moments that start with living in an abandoned church and sleeping in tight spaces or a candid conversation with Crash that plays in contrast to the wild persona on stage, or Bussy and his distinct rebel voice as a journalist/singer, or even folks playing guitar like Zoom (with his wide-leg stance and grin). By the time one closes with Fear and their confrontational style with the audience (complete with storming the stage), one has fully absorbed all the chaos with satisfaction. When it comes to having a good time with nihilism and a punk spirit that never reaches hagiography or seems too distant for anyone with good sense to check into; it is a music movie that to put it mildly doesn't give a fuck what one thinks, a punk winner for those who embrace the chaos.

Next Time: Daughters of the Dust (1991)

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.

Dudes (1987).

Review #1019: Dudes.

Cast: 
Jon Cryer (Grant), Daniel Roebuck (Biscuit), Catherine Mary Stewart (Jessie), Flea (Milo), Lee Ving (Missoula), Billy Ray Sharkey (Blix), Glenn Withrow (Wes), Michael Melvin (Logan), Marc Rude (Sonny), Pamela Gidley (Elyse), Calvin Bartlett (Witherspoon), and Pete Willcox (Daredelvis) Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals and #806 - Wayne's World)

Review: 

Admittedly, I didn't really have any expectations for this film. How can one have expectations for a movie involving punk rockers becoming vigilantes that hunt bikers in the Southwest after one of them is killed by the group? Especially one that has not only a metal soundtrack, but also a Daredevil Elvis impersonator and ghostly cowboys? Actually, that sounds pretty interesting in writing, and this is a film that somehow works more often than not. Obviously this is an offbeat kind of movie, complete with aspects of a Western along with adventure and comedy, even with subject matter such as this. Cryer and Roebuck prove to be a decent enough duo together, neither becoming too clownish nor anything too unreal. Stewart is fairly charming, especially when teaching Cryer how to fire a weapon, and Ving proves to be fairly rough but fairly satisfying villain. As mentioned, there is a Daredevil Elvis impersonator (played by Willcox), and I will say that he provides amusement in the brief amount of time he is on screen. At 90 minutes, the movie is never boring, and I can at least say that the movie keeps you watching no matter what happens on screen, for better or for worse. The movie itself really isn't that special, but there is just something about the movie rolls itself together, becoming something that is satisfying in its entertainment while having a useful plot that doesn't veer into hard vigilantism nor hard absurdity. Would I recommend it? If you have a chance to find the film, I suppose that it is worth one watch, preferably late at night, where the odd bits really make an impression in darkness. There is no one real genre to classify this as, but that is likely why this deserves the label of a "cult classic", for better or for worse.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Wayne's World.

Review #806: Wayne's World.

Cast
Mike Myers (Wayne Campbell), Dana Carvey (Garth Algar), Tia Carrere (Cassandra Wong), Rob Lowe (Benjamin Oliver), Lara Flynn Boyle (Stacy), Michael DeLuise (Alan), Lee Tergesen (Terry), Dan Bell (Neil), Sean Gregory Sullivan (Phil), Brian Doyle-Murray (Noah Vanderhoff), Colleen Camp (Mrs. Vanderhoff), Kurt Fuller (Russell Finley), Chris Farley (Security Guard), Meat Loaf (Tiny), Frank DiLeo (Frankie 'Mr. Big' Sharp), and Ed O'Neill (Glen, the manager at Stan Mikita's Donuts) Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals)

Review
From the opening minutes, Wayne's World pulled me in, with the Bohemian Rhapsody scene being one of the first highlights of the film. There's something entertaining about seeing people listening to that song and enjoying themselves with such energy. Everything about the movie feels enjoyable, from Wayne (and sometimes Garth) talking to the audience and breaking the fourth wall to the numerous amount of gags played all throughout the film, including the ending(s). The characters are enjoyable to watch, with our main duo especially having great chemistry, right from their opening scene on the aforementioned show they host. Lowe is enjoyably smarmy, making for a neatly fit villain. Carrere is also a good highlight, even doing her own vocals for the songs; my favorite scene is when her and Myers share a conversation in Cantonese, with the subtitles on the bottom playing even after they stop talking. My personal favorite minor character is Ed O'Neill as Glen, who while only having a few lines manages to fit into a quirky environment like this, what with his observation on steam leaving out of a body. Alice Cooper makes a fine cameo appearance, in part because of his interaction with Wayne and Garth, who were certainly not worthy, but we at least were, enough to see a fun little scene. On the whole, Wayne's World has enough jokes and fun characters to make for a (wait for it) truly excellent movie.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: The Little Rascals.

Review #238: The Little Rascals.

Cast
Bug Hall (Alfalfa), Travis Tedford (Spanky), Brittany Ashton Holmes (Darla), Kevin Jamal Woods (Stymie), Zachary Mabry (Porky), Ross Bagley (Buckwheat), Sam Saletta (Butch), Blake Jeremy Collins (Woim), and Blake McIver Ewing (Waldo) Directed by Penelope Spheeris.

Review
Like many other (and I do mean many) movies adapted from television, this was based off a classic without any of the original members (not even a cameo). But even with those strikes against it, does the film have any hopes of doing something decent? In a few words...Meh. While the actors try at least to do something useful with their performances, the film isn't really memorable or even that fun. Youngsters will like it, but others might not as well. It made me ask a few questions though: Why is it they even have a club in the first place? Wouldn't their mothers object to it? What's with the random cameos? Why would a rich kid compete in a little car race? Why does Alfalfa's clothing remind me of the Doctor? And why am I asking questions? But oh well.

Overall, I give it 5 out of 10 stars.