Porky's Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Porky's Blu-ray Movie Review

The beaver shoot that started it all.

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf February 9, 2013

Part of the mystery of Hollywood is the general inability of anyone to predict a hit movie. Sure, there’s a handful of blockbuster formulas that are often used to great success, but the general rush of box office triumph usually emerges from surprising titles. In 1982, the sleeper hit of the year was “Porky’s,” a little raunchy comedy that home studio 20th Century Fox didn’t even want to release, yet the picture ended up as the fifth highest grosser of the year, just above such classics as “Star Trek II” and “Poltergeist.” It was lambasted by critics and beloved by audiences, but why? Could it be that writer/director Bob Clark tapped into a vein of nostalgia much like George Lucas did with “American Graffiti,” returning viewers to the eroding innocence of youth? Was it the evocative Floridian atmosphere of backwoods clowning? Maybe the compulsively silly performances were just that irresistible? Or was it the boobs? I’m guessing the latter, as “Porky’s” isn’t a very accomplished storytelling effort, wandering blindly around pranks and melodrama as it fights to find a higher purpose beyond being just another horndog teen feature.

In the 1950s, the students of Angel Beach High School are out of control with raging hormones. Itching to lose his virginity, Pee Wee (Dan Monahan) and his pals, including hothead Mickey (Roger Wilson) and muscle Meat (Tony Ganios), fall prey to numerous pranks and acts of recklessness on the hunt to bed women, or pretty much anything with a heartbeat. Their target one spring evening is Porky’s, a redneck bar owned by the corpulent and connected Porky (Chuck Mitchell), hoping to enjoy some alcohol and bed a few prostitutes. However, when the teens are humiliated by the locals, they declare war, hoping to exact revenge for their embarrassment. Meanwhile, at school, tempers flare when Jewish student Brian (Scott Colomby) joins the basketball team, disgusting bigot Tim (Cyril O’Reilly), and gym teacher Balbricker (Nancy Parsons) is on the prowl, hoping to clamp down those who engage in acts of moral turpitude, including howling teacher Honeywell (Kim Cattrall) and Pee Wee’s gang, who enjoy spying on their female classmates when they take showers.

What’s immediately striking about “Porky’s” is how loosely defined it is. Clark looks to develop an atmosphere of slack jocularity instead of nurturing conflict, taking up a full third of the movie before a visit to the iconic bar is underway. Instead of structure, there’s a puckish tone of pranks and jokes shared by the Angel Beach High crowd, with the opening act of the feature establishing Pee Wee’s ravenous hunger for sex (which borders on criminal behavior) and the easygoing camaraderie of his pals, though Clark has a funny way of not sticking names to faces right away, simply enjoying the view of young men engaging in humiliating tomfoolery, recalling a different time when sexual harassment wasn’t a “thing,” and guys could trick one another with a murder scenario prank and not be beaten into submission once the ruse was detected. Clark spends an inordinate amount of time wandering around “Porky’s,” electing an episodic approach that dilutes the vigor of the piece, keeping the antics strangely distant and unfunny.

Once what passes for a plot comes into play, “Porky’s” improves radically, finding something to do as tempers flare and acts of revenge escalate. After all, watching the Angel Beach squad take on Porky and his band of backwater enforcers and corrupt cops (including Alex Karras) is far more appealing than the movie-halting melodramatics that seep into the film, with Clark trying to legitimize his goofy effort by tackling anti-Semitism and parental abuse, adding starkness to material that’s largely about teens using elaborate means to peep in gym showers (called a “beaver shoot”) and a woman who yips like Lassie during sex. There’s also a question of Balbricker, a Gestapo figure of the high school, who attempts to keep the students and faculty in line when their dirty minds get the best of them. Your mileage may vary with this character, though, to her credit, Parsons is involved in all of the picture’s major comedy set pieces. Not bad for the “Motel Hell” actress.

Is “Porky’s” hilarious? That’s a subjective question and difficult to answer. I respect the film’s attempt to create a wild ambiance of mischief and vulgarity, yet the movie never struck me a significant in its sense of humor. Clark keeps the effort too slack to really squeeze the funny bone, while the feature’s stabs at innocence (there’s an entire scene built around the boys smashing eggs on one another) don’t click with the R-rated antics, failing to find a balance that lifts the material off the ground. However, when the laughs flatline, there’s nudity to pick up the slack. Clark was no fool.

Porky's Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "Porky's" remains consistently soft, keeping in line with the original cinematography. While never an eye-popping visual experience to begin with, the effort's HD debut brings out an agreeable handle on colors, finding neon lighting sources particularly striking, with bold reds and yellows (Porky's bar is especially welcoming, as are the fast food hang-outs). Hues seem stable and full, while skintones retain their naturally pinkish appearance. Grain remains intact and purposeful, adding a filmic quality. Shadow detail is acceptable, only solidifying when challenged by dark evening shots. Fine detail isn't precise with this low-budget effort, but there's a crisper sense of facial response and frame details, improving the picture's reliance on visual stimulation. There's some minor noise evident during some evening adventures. The print shows a little wear and tear, but looks stable and largely clean.

Porky's Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 1.0 DTS-HD MA also submits a comfortable representation of the film's original presentation, keeping to simplified track with even highs and lows. Dialogue exchanges reveal the limits of the original recording, yet sustain their appeal, with nothing lost to group interactions. Soundtrack selections lack definition, but set the mood accordingly. The track is more of a blunt instrument; however, the thick quality of the mix fits the viewing experience without protest, with no distortion detected.

Porky's Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with writer/director Bob Clark opens up with a declaration that the feature represents his "life story," suggesting quite an adolescent ride for the filmmaker. Clark shares his methods of research when compiling information on the pranks used in the movie, and his quest for authenticity with period details. The track also covers the feature's troubled production origins and ongoing game of test screening Double Dutch when 20th Century Fox was reluctant to release the picture. Clark is good about sharing his inspirations and his intentions with "Porky's," also relishing the commitment of the cast and the overall comedic timing of the effort. Dead spots are plenty but not punishing.

• "'Porky's' Though the Peephole: Bob Clark Looks Back" (15:09, SD) sits down with the director, who basically repeats commentary highlights, only here the information is neatly ordered and spaced out with movie clips. Again, Clark emphasizes his history with the pranks and his love of the ensemble, pointing out cast highlights, including Cattrall, who demanded to be in the film.

• "A Comedy Classic" (11:18, SD) chats up comedians Dante Rusciolelli and Greg Fitzsimmons, who share their feelings on the film's nudity and overall sense of humor, ticking off their favorite scenes and detailing their profound appreciation for female pubic hair. It's a limited range of opinion, but the adoration seems genuine.

• T.V. Promo 1 (:33, SD) and T.V. Promo 2 (:13, SD) are offered.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:37, SD) is included.

Porky's Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

What's interesting about "Porky's" is seeing how Clark would go on to refine his soft-focus nostalgia habits for 1983's "A Christmas Story," returning to the magic of memories in a family comedy that was genuinely sweet and sour. The rest of "Porky's" falls into a frustrating mediocrity, resulting in a picture that's insignificant as a heartfelt ode to the troubles of youth and unremarkable as a penis-pulling, bar-blasting, giant condom-gifting, virginity-slaying comedy. I suppose one had to be there in 1982 to understand what the fuss was about. In 2013, it's hard to imagine why this little production, out of all the little productions, caused such a box office earthquake.