Big Bully (1996)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Steve Miner

Writer (WGA):

Mark Steven Johnson (written by)

Release Date:

26 January 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

A comedy for the kid in all of us.

Plot:

A writer returns to his hometown where he faces the childhood nemesis whose life he ultimately ruined, only the bully wants to relive their painful past by torturing him once again.

Plot Keywords:

Bully | School | Victim | Revenge | Haunted By Past

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Rick Moranis	...	David Leary
Tom Arnold	...	Rosco Bigger (Fang)
Julianne Phillips	...	Victoria Tucker
Carol Kane	...	Faith Bigger
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Art Lundstrum
Curtis Armstrong	...	Clark
Faith Prince	...	Betty Lundstrum
Tony Pierce	...	Ulf
Don Knotts	...	Principal Kokelar
Blake Bashoff	...	Ben Leary
Cody McMains	...	Kirby
Harry Waters Jr.	...	Alan
Stuart Pankin	...	Gerry
Justin Jon Ross	...	Young David
Michael Zwiener	...	Young Fang

MPAA:

Rated PG for mean-spirited pranks, some crude humor and language.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Alphacine)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Finland:K-10 (video premiere) | Norway:11 | Spain:7 | UK:12 (video premiere) | USA:PG (certificate #34058) | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Kitsilano Secondary School, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Lee Rich Productions

Trivia:

The librarian says that "Green Eggs And Ham" is 8862 days late, which is roughly 24 years and is more accurate than when David tells Victoria that he owes $6886.10 at 5¢ a day; that would be 137722 days or 377 years. He actually owes $443.10 at 5¢ a day (at that time).

Goofs:

Continuity: When David climbs the rope in the gym to hide from Fang he is at the top of the rope but when Fang finds him he climbs higher by several feet after Fang sets the rope on fire.

Quotes:

Art: I remember the first time I tried to kill Betty.
David Leary: ...What?
Art: Let me finish...
David Leary: You tried to kill Betty?
Art: Oh I see. I see, Mr. High-and-mighty. Hey, I didn't kill the shop teacher! Who killed the shop teacher? YOU killed the shop teacher! You killed 'em!

Movie Connections:

References "America's Most Wanted" (1988)

Soundtrack:

I'm An O.G.

Watchable... just

I like this film. Not that the plot, acting, script, etc. would worry any kind of awards ceremony on a bad year because they are pretty awful. It's just that the film is watchable at 2am when you need to be bored to sleep by a sappy American movie. That's all I can say about it.

The plot is so transparent and formulaic that a five-year-old could have told you the ending, and has more holes than fine lace. The acting is notably bad on all counts. When the established leads get upstaged by an unknown 10 year-old you have to worry. Rick Moranis plays his usual weedy character and Tom Arnold plays his childhood bully. Not challenging parts and this shows; they aren't even trying.

I, like many others, was bullied at school and found the story interesting in that it showed both sides but the cheezy(TM) subplot involving their children was forced and let down the one saving grace.

All in all, I give this film 2/5. Watchable but certainly not worth missing anything else for.