Back to School (1986)

Director:

Alan Metter

Writers:

Rodney Dangerfield (story) &
Greg Fields (story) ...

Release Date:

13 June 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance | Sport

Tagline:

Registration starts Friday, June 13, at theaters everywhere.

Plot:

To help his discouraged son get through college, a funloving and obnoxious rich businessman decides to enter the school as a student himself.

Plot Keywords:

College | Party | Millionaire | Reference To Wonder Woman | Dangerous Dive

Awards:

1 win

US TV Schedule:

Sun. Nov. 15

6:30 AM

HBO

Cast

Rodney Dangerfield	...	Thornton Melon
Sally Kellerman	...	Dr. Diane Turner
Burt Young	...	Lou
Keith Gordon	...	Jason Melon
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Derek
Paxton Whitehead	...	Dr. Phillip Barbay
Terry Farrell	...	Valerie Desmond
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Coach Turnbull
Adrienne Barbeau	...	Vanessa
William Zabka	...	Chas
Ned Beatty	...	Dean David Martin
Severn Darden	...	Dr. Borozini
Sam Kinison	...	Professor Terguson
Robert Picardo	...	Giorgio
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.	...	Himself

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (prologue) | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Netherlands:MG6 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #27622) | New Zealand:M | Canada:14A | Finland:K-10 | Iceland:L | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | West Germany:6

Filming Locations:

Culver Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Paper Clip Productions

Trivia:

Kurt Vonnegut Jr. played himself in a cameo for the film in which he is hired by Thornton Melon to write a paper on the topic of the novels of Kurt Vonnegut. As a joke, recognizing the work as not Melon's own, Professor Turner tells him, "Whoever did write this doesn't know the first thing about Kurt Vonnegut."

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Oingo Boingo performs at the party, the music is obviously the pre-recorded studio version of the song.

Quotes:

Dean Martin: [begins questioning] Mr. Melon, I'm only going to ask you once:
[beat]
Dean Martin: ...Is this your work?
Thornton Melon: I can't lie to you, Dean Martin
[beat]
Thornton Melon: ...Yes, it is.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Step by Step: Back to School (#4.18)" (1995)

Soundtrack:

Twist And Shout

good natured with a lot of laughs.

I love Rodney Dangerfield. Always have. His one-liners, and all-around smartass attitude have made him a living legend and he never fails to crack me up. Back to School is a great example of what he can do and I never get tired of watching it. Keith Gordon is great as his son and Robert Downey Jr. is pretty hysterical as his best bud. The ever-reliable Burt Young is a lot of fun as Dangerfield's limo-driver/best friend and he does his duty at supplying the laughs.

It's a shame that more people haven't seen this. I believe that it's one of Rodney's best. It's got a great premise, an outstanding cast, and the laughs are nonstop.