Lazy preppie Palmer Woodrow hires street-smart Eddie Keaton to go to school for him while he lives it up in Europe. Eddie falls in love with preppie gal Tracey, upsetting Biff, the Hoover Academy bully. When his bookie from the old neighborhood, Dice, comes to collect on Eddie's gambling debts and Palmer returns early from Europe, the scheme slowly starts to unravel. Soon, Eddie can't even tell whose side he's really on.
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Reviews
It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.
While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.
I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.
An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.
If you were one of the lucky ones to grab the Varese Sarabande limited edition soundtrack CD (1000 copies made) because you are a fan of Basil Poledouris and not the film, the following will mean nothing to you. If you bought the soundtrack because it reminds you of some laugh out loud moments of this under rated film, read on.For those of you still reading, you already know this is one of the best comedies to come out of the 80's. You can picture studio execs in the early 80's trying to come up with more "Animal House" type yucks only to deliver crass, sexist garbage like "Porky's" or "Up the Creek".After reading the liner notes to the CD, I was not at all surprised to see the negative comments about the film. It is what it is, and if you are like me, you have been wondering for years why Palmer and Eddie did not return in "Tourista" after all. The CD was a nice upgrade from my scratchy vinyl, and the DVD a nice update from my dated VHS; however, I want more.In the meantime, here's Nicky handling the books.
You have to take this movie for what it is and when it was released. The characters are likable and the dialogue doesn't try too hard to be funny; it just is.Granted, some of the appeal may be nostalgic at this point; it's hard to imagine how this looks to a first-time viewer today. OK, some parts are bound to be ridiculous; there is a break-dancing scene and accompanying music that are hopelessly dated... then again break-dancing does appear to be making a comeback.I'm not a huge Andrew Dice Clay fan, but this movie is where the "Diceman" character originated.The actor who plays Palmer Woodrow wrote the movie The Burbs, as it turns out.
If any of you remember John Bender from The Breakfast Club, then Eddie Keaton of Making the Grade will seem familiar. They are similar, except that John Bender has more depth. Making the Grade is a silly, sometimes funny, parody of the "Preppy" Lifestyle. It makes fun of everything from wearing no socks, to the bright, peppy colors. It's an all around funny movie. This is Judd's first movie, and I recommend it to all of you who enjoy his work. For those of you who don't, I suggest you watch it anyway, and make an opinion for yourself...! *+*Anna*+*
SEE Judd Nelson break-dance! SEE Andrew "Dice" Clay before he got more famous and less funny! SEE what ALL '80s teen comedies were like, more or less!"Making the Grade". Let's see... basically, a loser student (Olsen) pays off another loser (Nelson) to pretend to be him so he can pass his classes and graduate (for some inheritance or something, I don't know - this is not one of those movies that celebrate the joys of higher learning).And, of course, all the hips trends of 1984 are there for you to drink in till you're positively drunk from all the flash, trash and splash of the Gimmie Decade. Not just the aforementioned break-dancing display, but also some of the tackiest clothes you've seen since your last garage sale, an almost ALL synthesizer sound track and a Brat Packer! If you love the '80s, you gotta catch "Making the Grade". Not for the story, mind you...just for "the experience".Five stars. "Making the Grade" - barely passing, needs work on its social skills, recommend less time around the Diceman.