I got this DVD a year ago, and in that post, I again acknowledged that I’m a bad sucker for films badge National Lampoon’s. They really are a mixed bag; some, like Adam and Eve or Dirty Movie have heart and/or are transgressively funny in a way most R-rated comedies are not. Some, though, are just “meh” like Holiday Reunion. As this film stars Paris Hilton, well, I expect I knew what I was in for.
Paris Hilton plays the head of an exclusive sorority at a south Florida university. They’re finalists in competition for FHM‘s hottest sorority. Another group of girls, a collection of misfit stereoarchetypes are left homeless when their dorm is closed due to a incredible (literally: unbelievable) plumbing mishap, so they decide to pledge to sororities. The group includes an older woman whose husband cheated on her, so she got a boob job and wants to go to college to bang as many bros as she can; an Indian woman; a girl from the country; a tough girl; a fat girl; etc. They visit a number of sororities with attempted-humor schticks, and they finish with Paris Hilton’s sorority, and just as they’re about to get laughed out, one of the girls who knew one of the outcasts in 9th grade reminds Paris Hilton that FHM wants to see some diversity in the group. So they take them on, and they have to go through hazing, parties, college scenes, etc.; the sorority wins the competition, kicks the outcasts out (and they plan their revenge), and her “sisters” see that Paris Hilton made it all about her, hoping to launch a modeling career. When the outcasts replace her demo reel with a series of photos from her awkward youth, she has a change of heart and all is well.
And, you know, this comes right at the peak of the Paris Hilton thing. It Girl, sex tape, The Simple Life, her musical career…. And, in this film, one gets the sense that she does not take herself seriously. Probably not in the reality show, either–she might have been playing a character named Paris Hilton. Not something you got out of the tabloid coverage at the time. So my initial (and long-held) impressions might have been incorrect. My “That’s hot” impression, though, remains spot on because I’m not sure I’ve ever seen it to disprove my assertion in my own mind.
To be honest, it took me two tries to get through the film. One night, months ago, I got to the setup plumbing mishap and stopped the DVD right there, thinking that I had something, anything better to do than watch it. Second time’s the charm, I guess, as I powered through.
The film did have Noureen DeWulf in it, though.
She plays the Indian girl. Noureen was actually born in the United States to Indian parents. She has had quite a career on television and has appeared in a number of films, but mostly in the 21st century, so I’ve not seen her before.
Looking at her list of credits, I might never see her again except when I watch another National Lampoon’s movie and stumble across this post in researching my movie report.
