As a post-summer comedic caper aimed towards MTV-brainwashed teens, Stealing Harvard packs gags that don’t deserve so much as quiet snickers, yet when performed by Tom Green, one of showbiz’s most shameless players, the movie scores brief moments of laughter. The nuisance behind 2001’s critically adorned Freddy Got Fingered doesn’t come close to redeeming this embarrassing flick, which appeals mostly to kids who’ve yet to reach puberty, and God know Green is downright annoying in most scenes, but his insanity is enough to liven up Peter Tolan’s dull screenplay. 

In a role similar to those of his Mallrats days, Jason Lee plays John, an up-and-coming assistant manager who is about to marry Elaine (Leslie Mann) and purchase his first house. All is well until his trailer trash sister (Megan Mullally) reminds John of an old promise he made to her daughter (Tammy Blanchard). And that is to pay for her college education. Problem is, John’s niece got accepted to Harvard and now needs 30-thousand dollars to attend, which conflicts with his fiancé’s desire to buy a house. Desperate and broke, John turns to his unbalanced high-school buddy, Duff (Tom Green), for help.

The physical comedy can be accredited mostly to director Bruce McCulloch, a Kids In the Hall-veteran. McCulloch allows Green to run rampant throughout. During production, all he probably said to Green was “just do your thing”, and then called ‘action!’ This tactic obviously led to a very immature movie, one that never treats its characters like goofy cartoon more than human beings. But above all, two-three scenes aside, Stealing Harvard simply isn’t funny. Shaun Sages

GRADE: C-

-Copyright 2002 by Shaun Sages
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