Rating: 
Summary: "Airplane" fans are in for a treat at Summer camp
Review: "Wet Hot American Summer" is a comedy that has a natural sense of wit and deadpan humor that has not been seen in a parody film since the Zucker brother's 1980 classic "Airplane."
Set in 1981, the film gives a hilarious account of the final day of a summer camp. Starting at dawn, the viewer is taken through the daylong regiment of Camp Firewood's building preparations for the time-honored tradition of a camp talent show. Under the guidance of camp director Beth (Janeane Garofalo, "200 Cigarettes"), both the counselors and campers plan to make their final day memorable as a summer of sexual frustration and emotionally traumatic stress come to a close.
The plot is surprisingly strong for a parody, which usually relies on a series of loosely tied together one-liners and humor intended for cheap, quick laughs that require little thought. With the exception of a few uproarious scenes of throwaway humor, including a game of capture the flag where a Kenyan marathon runner comes out of nowhere to take the flag and propel his team to victory and a motorcycle chase scene that is halted due to the presence of a bale of hey in the middle of the street, "Wet Hot American Summer" does an outstanding job of sustaining character.
Considering the limitations a parody can pose and the many clichés that often persist, David Wain does an outstanding job in his directorial debut in which he co-wrote with Michael Showalter. Wain maintains a believable plot throughout the movie while satirizing 70's and 80's teen films and other random subjects ranging from issues as minute as French kissing and Dungeons and Dragons to tackling war film stereotypes like the psychosis of Vietnam veterans.
The film's cast is deeply experienced in various forms of comedy including television, improvisation, stand-up and sitcoms. While the most recognizable star is Garofalo, it also receives commendable performances by David Hyde Pierce (Niles on "Frasier"), as a shy but helpful astrophysics professor, Molly Shannon ("Saturday Night Live"), as an arts and crafts counselor who shares her marriage problems with pre-pubescent campers and Amy Poehler ("Saturday Night Live, Upright Citizens Brigade"), as a moody music director who uses high-pitched rants to express the art of a musical play. The brilliant MTV sketch comedy series "The State" features five cast members of the since cancelled series, including Michael Ian Black ("Ed"). The film credits also feature countless alumni from comedy theatres such as The Second City and The Groundlings.
However the true standout performance belongs to Christopher Meloni ("Law and Order: Special Victims Unit," "Oz"), for dominating his scenes as Gene, a borderline insane Vietnam veteran who serves as the camp's head chef. Meloni stars in perhaps one of the funniest moments in parody history when he finally comes to terms with his sexual identity with the help of a non-perishable food item and a large kitchen appliance. The character of Gene single handily parodies an assortment of Vietnam era movies including "Apocalypse now," "The Deer Hunter" and "Full Metal Jacket."
While most of the commercial public will not understand this movie's humor (it certainly didn't when the film was released theatrically in July of 2001) this is a must for anyone who is interested the Zucker brother's style of humor that goes beyond the surface of a joke and satirically penetrates the clichés of a film genre. For people who liked "Not Another Teen Movie" and "Scary Movie" but left wanting more substance and witty intelligence, then "Wet Hot American Summer" will fill the void that those and countless other parodies could not.
Rating: 
Summary: Nearly ruptured my appendix, I laughed so hard...
Review: I have heard many people say that Wet Hot American Summer is not funny, and I have to agree. It's not funny.It is freakin' hilarious. You have the trip to town, which goes off on such a ridiculous tangent that you're in stitches when it goes back to camp. You have Janeane Garofalo and David Hyde Pierce, who have great comic chemistry together. And, of course, let's not forget Christopher Meloni, whose Vietnam vet camp cook is such a looneytune that he gives Bill Murray's groundskeeper from "Caddyshack" a good run for his money. His scenes might as well have you in the emergency room with a ruptured appendix, you'll be laughing so hard. This movie is a cut above other genre parodies in the theatres or on the shelves. If you have to rent this movie more than twice, you should honestly put up the extra cash and buy it. It's worth every penny, and you'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant!
Review: I swear, I had never heard of this movie until one of my friends made me watch it. Now I think it is the funniest movie I have ever seen. The writers are absolutely brilliant. Every single second of this movie is written perfectly. Now while some parts are naturally not as funny as others, I can watch this movie over and over again and still enjoy 99% of it as much as the first time. There are some great lines that you'll pick up and use over and over again. I am just surprised how few people have actually heard of it though. Invite your friends over and watch it. I can't wait for these writers to make another movie, but they'll be hard pressed to top this one. Again, the funniest damn movie I have ever seen! Watch it!
Rating:
Summary: Either / Or
Review: As you can tell by the other reviews of this movie, there is no middle ground. You will either love it or hate it. If you DO NOT like the Airplane movies, MTV's the State or slapstick-type humor, you will NOT like this film. However, this is no middle of the road generic b-movie as some would have you believe. The reviewers have such strong opinions about the film that 99% of the ratings given are 5 stars or 1 star. Find out for yourself if you think its funny and form your own opinion cause remember, Kangaroo Jack was the #1 movie in America for a while.....and that ain't funny.
Rating:
Summary: If you like 80's movies, you will love this!
Review: Take my word for it...anyone who loves 80's movies will LOVE this movie. Also, Marguerite Moreau is hot as he**!!!
Rating:
Summary: If you like 80's movies, you will love this!
Review: Take my word for it...anyone who loves 80's movies will LOVE this movie.
Rating:
Summary: FUNNIEST MOVIE EVER
Review: This movie could be the most hilarious dvd out there. Every part of this movie is in some way funny. If you're looking for a good laugh and a great time watch this movie. It's geat for everyone, although one with a certain sense of humor might find it funnier than another. This movie is on the top 5 list of my favorite movies.
Rating: 
Summary: A good corny movie
Review: I just watched 'Wet Hot American Summer' and liked it. It wasn't the best movie I've ever seen, but it was funny. I had a good laugh. If you don't like corny humor though, you probably will not enjoy this movie. Filled with silly jokes and weird scenes that don't make sense, but that pay homage to 70s-80s summer camp movies, 'Wet Hot American Summer' is a pretty good movie. It features a lot of great actors.
Rating: 
Summary: Please...just say no!!!!!!!!
Review: I was really looking forward to a funny movie with a lot of belly laughs. Unfortunatly, the only thing my belly felt was the need for Alka-Seltzer. It's too bad because the talent level in this movie I thought was very good and I still believe that. It only leads me to believe the old expression "garbage in garbarge out".
Rating:
Summary: MEATBALLS...without any comedy....
Review: This was really a horribly unfunny movie. I caught it latenight on cable and hoped to see something to remind me of the fun summer movies of the 70s/80s like MEATBALLS. I mean, MEATBALLS wasn't exactly a classic, but it at least had some laughs. This movie was just dead air. It shot for weird a couple of times, but the gags just fell flat. What were they thinking? Imagine MEATBALLS without Bill Murray and you'd have this movie.
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