Loser (2000)

Director:

Amy Heckerling

Writer (WGA):

Amy Heckerling (written by)

Release Date:

21 July 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Dare to be different

Plot:

A college student, branded a loser by his roommates and booted from the dorm, falls in love with a coed who has eyes for their professor.

Plot Keywords:

Love | College | Loser | Party | New York City

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Dec. 29

1:00 AM

BRAVO

Cast

Jason Biggs	...	Paul Tannek
Mena Suvari	...	Dora Diamond
Zak Orth	...	Adam
Thomas Sadoski	...	Chris (as Tom Sadoski)
Jimmi Simpson	...	Noah
Greg Kinnear	...	Prof. Edward Alcott
Dan Aykroyd	...	Dad
Twink Caplan	...	Gena
Bobby Slayton	...	Sal
Robert Miano	...	Victor
Mollie Israel	...	Annie (as Mollee Israel)
Colleen Camp	...	Homeless Woman
Andy Dick	...	Another City Worker
Steven Wright	...	Panty Hose Customer
Brian Backer	...	Doctor

Also Known As:

The Loser (USA) (alternative title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for drug content, crude sexual material and language.

Runtime:

98 min | Finland:92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Finland:K-12 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | USA:PG-13 (certificate #37232) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Germany:6 | Spain:13 | UK:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bryant Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Branti Film Productions

Trivia:

The character of Dora Diamond is in part inspired by Franz Kafka's girlfriend late in his life, Dora Dymant. Kafka is mentioned in the English class scene in the movie.

Goofs:

Plot holes: In the scene where Alcott invites Dora to stay with him, Paul asks if he even knew she was in the hospital. Paul does know that Alcott knows, because the doctor already told him earlier that Alcott did not know Dora when they phoned him.

Quotes:

Professor Edward Alcott: You know, I have this crazy philosophy that your grades should represent your grasp of the material and not your negotiating skills, which are amazing, by the way.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)

Soundtrack:

Mint Car

Predictable, but still very entertaining

Yes, Loser is a very predictable film. Plotwise, it follows most other romantic comedy type movies. But still, there is enough here to make it stand out somewhat. Granted, being better than most teen romantic comedies isn't much of an accomplishment, but Loser is a good movie, even though I knew what was going to happen.

I thought Jason Biggs played his part as Paul very well. He had the loser-like goofiness that inspired quite a few laughs, but you could also tell how much the character loved Mena Suvari's character, Dora. Greg Kinnear is also very good as Professor Alcott, Dora's love interest at the beginning of the movie. When all is said and done, Paul comes out as a winner, not a Loser, because he realizes that you don't have to fit in with everyone else to be "cool." That's what really sets this movie apart from lots of other recent teen movies. It does have a point. Obviously, it's not extremely deep, and it won't change your life or anything, but it's still good, and it makes the movie very worthwhile.

I think that lots of people didn't like this movie because they were expecting something along the lines of American Pie, given that both Biggs and Suvari were in that. If you're looking for American Pie, you will not like Loser. Although billed as a comedy, there are some times when it's downright serious, especially further into the movie. If you want non-stop gross-out humor, Loser is not for you. If, however, you want to see a good romantic film, that's funny at times, but serious at other, just like real life, then I think you will enjoy Loser. Yes, the basic plot is quite familiar, but there's enough extra stuff to keep it interesting and make it stand out from the crowd of bad teen comedies that have been around lately.

Rating: 8/10