- Actors: John Belushi, Karen Allen, Tom Hulce, Stephen Furst, Mark Metcalf
- Directors: John Landis
- Writers: Douglas Kenney, Chris Miller, Harold Ramis
- Producers: Ivan Reitman, Matty Simmons
- Language English
- Classification: 15
- Studio: 4 Front
- VHS Release Date: 8 May 2000
- Run Time: 109 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00004T0XM
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 3,794 in Video (See Top 100 in Video)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
A groundbreaking screwball caper, 1978's National Lampoon's Animal House was in its own way a rite of passage for Hollywood. Set in 1962 at Faber College, it follows the riotous carryings-on of the Delta Fraternity, into which are initiated freshmen Tom Hulce and Stephen Furst. Among the established house members are Tim Matheson, Peter Riegert and the late John Belushi as Bluto, a belching, lecherous, Jack Daniels guzzling maniac. A debauched house of pranksters (culminating in the famous Deathmobile sequence), Delta stands as a fun alternative to the more strait-laced, crew-cut, unpleasantly repressive norm personified by Omega House. As cowriter the late Doug Kenney puts it, "better to be an animal than a vegetable".
Animal House is deliberately set in the pre-JFK assassination, pre-Vietnam era, something not made much of here, but which would have been implicitly understood by its American audience. The film was an enormous success, a rude, liberating catharsis for the latter-day frathousers who watched it. However, decades on, a lot of the humour seems broad, predictable, boorish, oafishly sexist and less witty than Airplane!, made two years later in the same anarchic spirit. Indeed, although it launched the Hollywood careers of several of its players and makers, including Kevin Bacon, director John Landis, Harold Ramis and Tom Hulce, who went on to do fine things, it might well have been inadvertently responsible for the infantilisation of much subsequent Hollywood comedy. Still, there's an undeniable energy that gusts throughout the film and Belushi, whether eating garbage or trying to reinvoke the spirit of America "After the Germans bombed Pearl Harbour" is a joy.
On the DVD: Animal House comes to disc in a good transfer, presented in 1.85:1. The main extra is a featurette in which director John Landis, writer Chris Miller and some of the actors talk about the making of the movie. Interestingly, 23 years on, most of those interviewed look better than they did back in 1978, especially Stephen "Flounder" Furst. --David Stubbs
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Although the film is as good as it always was. This DVD has been ruined by the complete changing of some of the music in the film. I counted at least four songs that have been changed, including Money, and the Sam Cooke song Wonderful World.
I have given this DVD 2 stars not the film as the original was 5 stars.
27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Just bought the new Animal House dvd. After all these years it's still a classic! Most people mention Belushi's performance but for me the underrated Tim Matheson as Otter steals the show. (Tim Matheson should've been a major star). However the big disappointment on this version is they've changed much of the music featured from the original film. No "Wonderful World", "Theme from a Summer Place", "Let's Dance" (from the foodfight scene). And what's worse they've replaced it with bland "modern" music and it's awful. This is the first time I've ever heard of this happening to film music. But at least they've kept Elmer Bernstein's classic original score. A superb film but one star deducted for the changes.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Most films in National Lampoon's canon are interesting, funny in a fairly juvenile way, and you sometimes feel they are for Americans only.
This little devil, however, was amongst the first they made, and bucks all those later trends. You can easily watch it once a month, the humour is broad and black at the same time, and it's got such universal appeal, I've always wished I'd still been at Grammar school when it came out, so I could've tried a few tricks from the movie here. Unfortunately, I'd have been a peculiar retard to still be there aged 27!!
One good reason for its' success is the excellent weaseally performance of John Vernon as Dean Wormer. His crypto-Fascist efforts to squash Delta fraternities fun and excesses have remained ursurpassed, even by Alan Rickman as Sheriff of Nottingham in Prince of Thieves-talk about the pantomime villian incarnate.
But, of course, it helps to have a hero to match and finally outwit that villian. Luckily, it isn't an anaemic and tree-hugging one-it's the one and only John Belushi. There's probably no point in anyone else being on screen in every scene he's in-he just dominates events quite wonderfully.
I'll leave it there & not spoil the ending-let's just say the final battle between the WASP's and the anarachic Delta frat is something to behold, and beats Star Wars or Lord of the Rings hands down!
This little devil, however, was amongst the first they made, and bucks all those later trends. You can easily watch it once a month, the humour is broad and black at the same time, and it's got such universal appeal, I've always wished I'd still been at Grammar school when it came out, so I could've tried a few tricks from the movie here. Unfortunately, I'd have been a peculiar retard to still be there aged 27!!
One good reason for its' success is the excellent weaseally performance of John Vernon as Dean Wormer. His crypto-Fascist efforts to squash Delta fraternities fun and excesses have remained ursurpassed, even by Alan Rickman as Sheriff of Nottingham in Prince of Thieves-talk about the pantomime villian incarnate.
But, of course, it helps to have a hero to match and finally outwit that villian. Luckily, it isn't an anaemic and tree-hugging one-it's the one and only John Belushi. There's probably no point in anyone else being on screen in every scene he's in-he just dominates events quite wonderfully.
I'll leave it there & not spoil the ending-let's just say the final battle between the WASP's and the anarachic Delta frat is something to behold, and beats Star Wars or Lord of the Rings hands down!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Over rated
Lots of friends recommended Animal House to me. They love it but I found it pretty poor with John Belushi the only strong cast member. So many better comedies out there.
Published 10 months ago by Mr. Richard Rosson
One of my all time favourites
Must have watched this over 50 times. Always makes me laugh. Silly, smutty, very funny. Exactly what you need to brighten your day.
Published 11 months ago by Smiler
A great film ruined
Yes, they removed all the original, and classic, music from the film. When I looked it up on the internet - it happened for copyright reasons apparently. Read more
Published 12 months ago by ComedyGirl
Original music!
The English version from 2001 (or feb. 4 2002) has the original music (Let's Dance in the foodfight scene). Read more
Published 12 months ago by Mirko Mihaljevic
VIOLATED BEYOND BELIEF
I should have known from reading one of the reviews warning me of changes in the music. I put this on for someone who had never seen it, hoping to enrich their lives a little, but... Read more
Published on 2 Jan 2010 by K. Taylor
A Classic !!!
The film is basically about a bunch of frat boys in the early 60's, who attend Faber University and live in a fraternity. Read more
Published on 27 Sep 2009 by MOR :
the greatest john belushi
one of the best college comedy movie of all times. brilliant work of the director john landis and the outrageous rock and roll comedian existing ever mister john belushi. Read more
Published on 19 Sep 2009 by Jesăs Garcăa Repăraz
Give me an F! Give me an A! Give me a B! .....
It is remarkable to me how well this film's appeal has held up over the years since its initial release 30 years ago. Read more
Published on 3 Aug 2007 by Robert Morris
Toga! Toga! Toga!
It's the undisputed heavyweight champ of frat-boy movies. Many erstwhile pretenders to the throne have come and gone (Porky's, Screwballs, Revenge of the Nerds to name but a few)... Read more
Published on 13 Jun 2006 by W. J. Robertson
brilliant!!!!... an absolute cracker of a film.
This is one of those films you can watch over and over and over and over and over again, again, again, again and again!!! I never tire of it. John Belushi at his best. Read more
Published on 14 Jan 2006 by "chilkoot14"
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