Tommy Boy (1995)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Peter Segal

Writers (WGA):

Bonnie Turner (written by) &
Terry Turner (written by)

Release Date:

31 March 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

If at first you don't succeed, lower your standards.

Plot:

An incompetent, immature, and dimwitted heir to an auto parts factory must save the business to keep it out of the hands of his new, con-artist relatives and big business.

Plot Keywords:

Pneumatic Tube | Critically Bashed | Funeral | Obscene Finger Gesture | Father Son Relationship

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Chris Farley	...	Tommy
David Spade	...	Richard
Brian Dennehy	...	Big Tom
Bo Derek	...	Beverly
Dan Aykroyd	...	Zalinsky
Julie Warner	...	Michelle
Sean McCann	...	Rittenhauer
Zach Grenier	...	Reilly
James Blendick	...	Gilmore
Clinton Turnbull	...	Young Tommy
Ryder Britton	...	Young Richard
Paul Greenberg	...	Skittish Student
Graeme Millington	...	Frat Boy
Michael Cram	...	Frat Boy
Dean Marshall	...	Frat Boy

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sex-related humor, some drug content and nudity.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:12 (uncut) | UK:PG (cut) | Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

BCE Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The bassist in the band that plays at the wedding plays a Fender Precision Bass with a tobacco sunburst finish

Goofs:

Continuity: Tommy reaches for the life preserver with his left hand. In the next shot, he is grabbing it with his right hand.

Quotes:

Tommy: Does this suit make me look fat?
Richard Hayden: No, your face does.

Movie Connections:

References "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (1962)

Soundtrack:

Crazy

Thank you, Chris Farley, wherever you are...

As it turns out, Chris Farley and David Spade only made three movies together ("Coneheads", "Tommy Boy" and "Black Sheep"), but this was truly the "Citizen Kane" of their pairings. Farley plays Thomas Callahan III, the dimwitted heir to an auto parts company. His father Big Tom (Brian Dennehy) hires mild-mannered Richard Hayden (David Spade) to look after him. Big Tom is getting married to a "ten" (Bo Derek), so everything has to be in order. After Big Tom suddenly dies, Tommy and Richard have to try to sell half a million auto parts to save the company from bankruptcy. From then on, the movie is pretty much an excuse for Chris Farley to do what he does best: make a mess of everything.

When this movie first came out in the theaters, I saw it with my grandfather. He figured out early on that the Bo Derek and Rob Lowe characters were hiding something. But you can completely ignore that and simply luxuriate in Chris Farley's antics. Nothing is safe around his stomach, and hell hath no fury like his happy-go-lucky attitude. The scene where he sets the cars on fire, and later the deer scene, make for a pure laugh riot. Chris Farley and David Spade were truly the John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd of their era. It's a pleasure to always be able to think about "Fat guy in a little coat" time and again.