Disney decided to theatrically release another one of their
hit shows in 2001. Recess: School’s Out
starred Rickey D’Shon Collins, James Woods, Andrew Lawrence, Jason Davis, Paul
Willson, Melissa Joan Hart, and Jim Nabors. With a budget of $10 million, it
ended up making $34 million.
The school year is over and TJ (Lawrence) is looking forward
to spending his summer with his friends (Collins, Davis/Robert Goulet, Ashley
Johnson, Courtland Mead, and Pamela Segall). However, they’re all going to
different summer camps. Bored and lonely, he notices something strange going on
at the school. No one believes him, causing him to make his sister pick up the
gang from their camps. They find out the diabolical plan of a former principal (James
Woods) and have to thwart his plans.
This is quite an enjoyable film. TJ is very relatable at the
beginning of the film, where he wants to spend time with his friends, but no
one’s around. As for the plot, it’s really weird, where a crazed former
educator wants to raise test scores by getting rid of summer vacation. But not
only is it told well, it does a great job of evoking nostalgia in its viewers.
The villain, Philliam Benedict is perfectly crazed with a
crazy desire, which is only made better by the simple fact that he’s voiced by
James Woods. Woods may be typecast as short tempered, yet sharp and affable but
he always pulls off his characters well. Many times becoming the best part of
his films.
I’d have to say the oddest part of the film though would be
in its song choices: 1960s psychedelic acid rock. Seriously, songs from the
film include, “Purple Haze,” “Let the Sunshine In,” “Nobody But Me,” and “Incense
and Peppermints.” I’m not complaining, they’re good songs, but there’s only one
scene that takes place in 1968, and it’s a flashback. The rest of the film is
set in the late 90s/early 2000s. However, I did say the film did well in evoking
nostalgia. They might have been chosen for the adults watching it back in 2001.
Problem is, they really just seem out of place.
#30
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