Depending on who’s asking and who’s telling, the 80’s are defined by slasher films or raunchy comedies. It’s just too close to call and boils down to preference. What both both genres can agree on is this: their common celluloid ground is gratuitous nudity. Lots and lots of glorious gratuitous nudity.
The Hollywood Knights (’80) was first out of the gate, but tends to get remembered as a late ’70’s movie because of its “American Graffiti meets Animal House” reputation. Porky’s (’81) tends to get the credit then for launching the raunch era with one hilariously memorable scene involving a peephole into the girl’s locker room shower. Fast Times At Ridgemont High (’82) followed, introducing the world to Sean Penn. Upon its late summer release, the movie earned its budget back six times over and the teen sex comedy officially became a profitable commodity.
Predictably, a wave of raunchy comedies poured out of the studios. Bachelor Party (’84) rode the crest into theaters, putting most of the other wanna-be’s to shame. Raunchy? Do hookers and drugs and booze count? Vulgar? There’s a scene involving male stripper Nick the Dick and a hotdog bun, you tell me.
Bachelor Party wastes no time getting to the hot sauce. Less than ten minutes in, we meet designated handsome guy, O’Neill (Adrian Zmed, basically the George Clooney of his day… if Clooney never made the successful leap to the big screen and sang bad pop songs.) Combining the good natured absurdity of the bombshell blonde mom (Angela Aames) allowing O’Neill to scoot her child over to make room for their own frisky portaits to having Hanks showing up to join in on the photo op sets the tone for the rest of the antics to follow.
It’s just boob clean fun.
TINSELTOWN TAKEDOWN 