Hot Rod (2007)
April 6, 2022 2:05 PM - Subscribe
For Rod Kimball, performing stunts is a way of life, even though he is rather accident-prone. Poor Rod cannot even get any respect from his stepfather, Frank, who beats him up in weekly sparring matches. When Frank falls ill, Rod devises his most outrageous stunt yet to raise money for Frank's operation -- and then Rod will kick Frank's butt.
The Lonely Island members look back on the movie 10 years after its release.
Roger Ebert gave it 3 stars and had some nice things to say about the movie and Sandberg
Richard Propes at The Independent Critic did not have nice things to say.
The Lonely Island members look back on the movie 10 years after its release.
Roger Ebert gave it 3 stars and had some nice things to say about the movie and Sandberg
Richard Propes at The Independent Critic did not have nice things to say.
I don't know why this movie hits so perfectly but every minute of it hits so perfectly with me. I honestly think it's one of the best comedies ever made.
"Cool beans" gets a lot of play but I don't think it's even in my top 20 of things from this movie.
"I am green with jealous rage right now!" and "because it's super badass" and all of Bill Hader. The whole acid trip. The purity of their goddamn friendship.
"Whiskey"
All the rage-dancing.
AM Radio Man; I spent a few years of my life working at a small-wattage campus-community radio station and I feel Chris Parnell so hard. "I've got a tattoo here that fully illustrates my point. It's of this rebellious young man..." I would never get this tattoo but I really, really want to get this tattoo.
Grilled cheese v. Taco.
The absolute apex of everything is Scrooge. If you do not think that bit is funny, you can probably still be my friend because you might be an all right person with good values, but you will never be my pal.
I really really really need to edit a graduate thesis but I just want to watch Hot Rod now.
posted by Shepherd at 3:43 PM on April 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
"Cool beans" gets a lot of play but I don't think it's even in my top 20 of things from this movie.
"I am green with jealous rage right now!" and "because it's super badass" and all of Bill Hader. The whole acid trip. The purity of their goddamn friendship.
"Whiskey"
All the rage-dancing.
AM Radio Man; I spent a few years of my life working at a small-wattage campus-community radio station and I feel Chris Parnell so hard. "I've got a tattoo here that fully illustrates my point. It's of this rebellious young man..." I would never get this tattoo but I really, really want to get this tattoo.
Grilled cheese v. Taco.
The absolute apex of everything is Scrooge. If you do not think that bit is funny, you can probably still be my friend because you might be an all right person with good values, but you will never be my pal.
I really really really need to edit a graduate thesis but I just want to watch Hot Rod now.
posted by Shepherd at 3:43 PM on April 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
I like this movie so much because it's got heart. The characters and the movie itself are not really laughing at or humoring Rod which is what most similar movies would do. Obvious exceptions are Arnett and the in-movie film screening but those were plot drivers and not just for point and laugh humor. They all just take him at face value. I was a kid kind of like Rod and his buddies (not into my mid-twenties, but I'm a little sad some of that was beaten out if me) so if they were just laughed at for 90 minutes it would have been a sad movie.
A lot of the negative reviews say stuff like 'You could see the major plot points coming' and yeah, but that's part of the charm. You see the big plot point coming but you likely won't see the wacky bits it's infused with.
Cool Beans is probably my least favorite part of this movie and I don't even hate it - it's just not my thing. Similarly the Babe, BABE, babe, Baaaaabe scene. It was funny the first time and Arnett nails it but it loses something on a rewatch.
> The absolute apex of everything is Scrooge.
There is a relevant bit in the Lonely Island oral history above about that:
Another amazing bit from that article is that all fo the stunts were done with people. None of the bodies rolling, flying, crashing, etc. were dummies. Maybe that actually made it easier or cheaper but I would guess a lower-budget movie would just throw a rag doll down the hill and film it from further away.
There are a ton of great quotes but my favorite has to be "They've done it! They've raised $50,000 for Frank's conveniently priced surgery!"
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 4:28 PM on April 6, 2022 [4 favorites]
A lot of the negative reviews say stuff like 'You could see the major plot points coming' and yeah, but that's part of the charm. You see the big plot point coming but you likely won't see the wacky bits it's infused with.
Cool Beans is probably my least favorite part of this movie and I don't even hate it - it's just not my thing. Similarly the Babe, BABE, babe, Baaaaabe scene. It was funny the first time and Arnett nails it but it loses something on a rewatch.
> The absolute apex of everything is Scrooge.
There is a relevant bit in the Lonely Island oral history above about that:
Taccone: The reason Ebenezer Scrooge came out at the end, originally when the number hits $50,000 and it’s like, hooray they did it, they won the day, church bells were going to start ringing, and it was going to start snowing and become Christmas because it was such a joyful moment. But we just left Ebenezer Scrooge in, because we couldn’t afford the rest.I'm not sure if it would have been funnier with all of that or if the absurdity of Scrooge coming out of nowhere is better.
Another amazing bit from that article is that all fo the stunts were done with people. None of the bodies rolling, flying, crashing, etc. were dummies. Maybe that actually made it easier or cheaper but I would guess a lower-budget movie would just throw a rag doll down the hill and film it from further away.
There are a ton of great quotes but my favorite has to be "They've done it! They've raised $50,000 for Frank's conveniently priced surgery!"
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 4:28 PM on April 6, 2022 [4 favorites]
Just chiming in to say I love this movie so much.
All the lines are gold, but one of my favorites is:
"I used to be legit. I was too legit. I was too legit to quit. But now I'm not legit. I'm unlegit. And for that reason, I must quit."
Who can argue with that reasoning?
posted by Four-Eyed Girl at 7:29 PM on April 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
All the lines are gold, but one of my favorites is:
"I used to be legit. I was too legit. I was too legit to quit. But now I'm not legit. I'm unlegit. And for that reason, I must quit."
Who can argue with that reasoning?
posted by Four-Eyed Girl at 7:29 PM on April 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
I have watched and rewatched the scene where the triumphant slo-mo march of Rod and his crew suddenly degenerate into a full-blown riot. One of the biggest WTF moments in cinematic history.
posted by whuppy at 6:42 AM on April 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by whuppy at 6:42 AM on April 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
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Also: "GOD! I go to church every goddamn Sunday! You gonna bring the DEMONS outta me?"
We saw this movie on cable after a loooooong drive getting me to Canada from Atlanta. It was either that or Skinwalkers. We made the right choice.
posted by Kitteh at 2:37 PM on April 6, 2022 [1 favorite]