If MTV’s Tom Green, the epitome of Canadian comedy, has taught America anything, it is that such comics have an uncanny knack for being really annoying. But if we have learned two things, it is that Canadians can be really funny in the process of annoying us.
So it is with the movie “Strange Brew.” Starring Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas (not the Wendy’s guy) as the McKenzie brothers, the movie follows the Canadian’s adventures, which revolve around one simple pursuit: beer. Normally, you wouldn’t think that this would constitute a 90 minute movie, but somehow those wacky Canadians manage to pull it off.
Mason: Beauty, eh?
Josh: Take off, you hoser.
The characters are spawned from Second City Television, the Canadian equivalent of Saturday Night Live. John Candy and Martin Short also got their start on the show.
In their movie debut, Bob and Doug McKenzie have lost their dad’s beer money and take a trip to the brewery looking for a beer handout. As it would happen, ill things are afoot at Elsinore Brewery, where our heroes (kind of) obtain jobs. The owner has died, and his brother has married the owner’s wife in a surprisingly short amount of time. The owner’s daughter, Pam, finds out that her uncle was the one who killed her father. This information is revealed to her by a vision of her father in an arcade game.
Mason: It’s like Hamlet — if he were a Canadian girl, eh.
Josh: I didn’t care about the plot, but I did want to drink a lot of beer.
Mason: Beauty.
Plot be damned, this movie has some classic moments that you won’t find anywhere else. Such as when Bob and Doug’s lawyer (they were bound to get into trouble) instigates a full-scale martial arts beat-down on the members of the press.
Mason: I was shakin’ in my boots, eh.
Josh: This movie also has the most spectacular car crash I’ve ever seen outside of “The Blues Brothers.” I want to move to Canada immediately.
What this cinematic experience boils down to is not the plot, the acting or the special effects, all of which are pretty sub-par. It’s about watching two bumbling idiots, oblivious to the sinister machinations of reality, stumble through the film causing havoc and drunken mayhem. They also say some pretty funny stuff.
“I’m getting whiplash from my burps, eh.” — Doug McKenzie
“Geez, you’re real nice. If I didn’t have puke breath, I’d kiss you.” — Bob McKenzie
We do have a few bones to pick with the film, such as the blatant non-use of the song “Strange Brew,” by Cream. Also, the fact that Canadian police cars are yellow bothers us. We know that this isn’t the movie’s fault, but dang it, we don’t want to go to Canada and try and hail a cab and get arrested instead.
Of course, if you drink enough beer during the movie, not much of that matters. So, in light of that, we are giving this movie two ratings: three stars for when you’re sober and five for when you’re inebriated.
As a drinking college classic, we would say that this ranks right up there with the University’s very own “Animal House.” This movie is an excellent way to let the brain decompress after a hard day of actual thinking.