Beerfest Makes College Look Like The Special Olympics

August 26, 2006
by Josh Green

Broken Lizard returns from a two-year hiatus after Club Dread. However this time around their focus isn't about a island junkie serial killer, it's a super-secret beer drinking competition in Munich. Of course all of Broken Lizard are here, as well as many cameos from some other actors that have appeared in other Broken Lizard titles. Where Beerfest succeeds is in its ability to not take itself too seriously and in return provides a genuinely fun time.

In its storyline center, Beerfest is about two brothers who must travel to Germany to deliver their grandfather's ashes to his final resting place. Upon arrival, the brothers discover a beer drinking competition where they are completely unwelcome. After returning home they decide to form their own team to compete in next year's tournament. The team consists of the two brothers, a Jewish scientist, an ex-beer tester, and, of course, a male whore.

The characters in Beerfest are Broken Lizard's best since Super Troopers. The interactions within the group are hilarious as well as some of the conflicts that some of the team members have with each other. Nothing in the movie takes itself too seriously, which for me was the highlight of the film.

Even though I enjoyed last year's Wedding Crashers and 40 Year Old Virgin, there were a couple of situations in the movie that were to cliché. And both of those films ran an excruciating 2 hours at least. While Beerfest comes in third with a running time of about 110 min, there aren't any "down times" in the movie where characters must suffer some terrible sacrifice and whine about it for 30 minutes. Not to say that the team in Beerfest doesn't have some cliché sacrifices, because it does. However the guys are able to overcome certain obstacles in humorous ways and are able to keep the movie rolling at a steady pace.

There have been many complaints that Beerfest is too gross or too offensive. When reading or hearing about these concerns, I just laugh. Most of the American people can agree that when it comes to movies, they have seen it all. As a result, we are currently going through a sort of "gross out" era of comedy. Now I wasn't terribly grossed out in Beerfest because I thought it was funny. However for those people who complain about the move being too offensive, take a look back and realize that these types of films are influenced by what was previously successful. Therefore it is the American public's responsibility to not support these films if you don't agree with it. I could not find one reason NOT to like Beerfest, because I understood what I was in for when I saw Beerfest. I feel that Beerfest is one of the better comedies to come out this year, regardless of what anyone says.

Last Word:
So in conclusion, I applaud Broken Lizard for Beerfest. It's a very unique thing that they are doing having movie stars that can rotate in and out of their movies in a snap. I'm drawn to Broken Lizard because they always put everyone from their team in a unique part of every film they make. It's an original idea that has without a doubt already built a cult following for these guys. And maybe their films might not make as much as other blockbusters, but they will be the kind that will be remembered. If you are looking for a few laughs, or if you are just totally wasted, then Beerfest is definitely worth your time.

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