Wayne's World

Remember how wildly popular this one was when it came out? "Wayne's World" didn't completely live up to all of the hype, but it's not a bad little comedy. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey are great as Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar, co-hosts of a basement-based cable access show. The duo seem to have it made when their show hits the commercial airwaves, but there might just be something sinister behind it all with executive Benjamin Kane (Rob Lowe) in charge.

"Wayne's World" is not generally uproarious, but it certainly has its moments (the backstage scene with Alice Cooper, portraying the leather-clad rocker and his bandmates as political sophisticates, is hilarious). Myers' act wears a bit thin as the film proceeds, and the "serious" stretch in which Wayne seemingly loses his girlfriend and best friend just doesn't fit. But even when it's not funny, "Wayne's World" is usually reasonably entertaining and charming. Carvey's bizarre Garth is one of the highlights, along with some memorable parodies and writing.

Based on the popular "Saturday Night Live" sketch, "Wayne's World" is definite period piece of the early 1990s. Its catchphrases ("... not!" and "Schwing!" among them) were repeated millions of times over by teenagers. It spawned a less-successful sequel, and although there was talk of a third installment, it's almost a certainty we've seen the last of Wayne and Garth. Nevertheless, party on!

As a middle-aged lover of world and art-house cinema, the lovably goofy Waynes World might seem an odd one for me to like and enjoy.

I've never owned it myself but as it's just been on Channel 4, I thought I'd see it once again, to see how it still fares. Though it's far from being my favourite movie of all time, it still hits the targets its designed to and manages to smell sweet when compared to the more recent torrent of comparative sewage that is hailed as gross-out 'comedy'.

Oddly, perhaps, it's impossible to dislike or find the two (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey) super-geeks annoying. The film is bright and breezy and rolls along like a continual Friday night out and the rock music references, including the famous Bohemian Rhapsody sung in their tiny car, always welcome.

The dream women in their lives are indeed good-looking girls and their portrayal are a fair balance between teenage male hormonal fantasy and real people with substance and character.

Considering Waynes World is supposed to be a Cult Movie, I'm surprised how few reviews there are here, on Amazon. Whether new audiences will ever warm to WW is a different matter altogether but for of us who's seen it come, go and now hang around, it still offers many pleasures.

Ask most men within a decade of my age in either direction to list the 100 best movie scenes of all time, and the scene from "Wayne's World" where they sing/lip sync Bohemian Rhapsody in the car will be on more lists than not. It might even make every list. Not designed for the "critically acclaimed" snob set, Wayne's World, the film adaptation of the extremely popular Saturday Night Live skit by the same name, targets its audience perfectly and never even enters the water, let alone jumps any sharks. The movie is true to itself from start to finish.

The bedrock of the film, as well as the skit, is the unbending friendship of Wayne and Garth. Most children have one best friend who stands out above all others, and there's no mistaking that Wayne (SNL alum Mike Myers) and Garth (SNL alum Dana Carvey) have that type of friendship. The best friends host a cable access show in Aurora, Illinois, also sharing the skit's title. Other SNL alums, such as Brian Doyle-Murray (Noah) and Chris Farley (a concert security guard), round out the cast.

The plot centers around an opportunistic television producer named Benjamin Kane (Rob Lowe), who, with funding from an arcade owner, turns Wayne's World into a slickly produced national show, causing it to lose touch with its audience, and causing friction between Wayne and Garth, who feel they have sold out their fans and their roots. A love interest is tossed to Wayne in the form of Cassandra (Tia Carerre), in triangular form due to the attention paid to her by Kane as well as Wayne.

The pop-culture cuisinart responsible for most of the SNL skits was working in overdrive in this film, and that's a good thing. Everything from product placements, to gratuitous sex, to lame plot devices were lampooned. Rob Lowe was excellent as the sleazeball junior television executive, while cameos abound from the rock world, including Alice Cooper and Meat Loaf. Though not publicized as much as the other quotables from the movie, my personal favorite scene was when Wayne and Garth were each laying on parked cars, and Garth starts whistling the closing theme from Star Trek.

SNL-based movies have been hit-or-miss since their inception, but this was unquestionably a hit.

Wayne's World (1992)

*** (out of 4)

Highly entertaining big-screen version of the Saturday Night Live skit has best buds Wayne Campbell (Mike Myers) and Garth Algar (Dana Carvey) partying and doing their public television show without much stress in their lives. This all changes once they meet up with a crooked producer (Rob Lowe) who decides to exploit their show. WAYNE'S WORLD isn't one of the greatest movies ever made but it's certainly charming and funny enough for what it is. I'd also say it's safe to say that this is one of the better SNL transitions to the movies and a lot of the credit has to go to its two stars. I think both Wayne and Garth would be downright annoying characters had the performances been off in any way but both Myers and Carvey really took these guys and made them, at times, stupid but also very charming and just the type of people you'd want to hang out with. There are all sorts of funny moments throughout the picture but the real highlights deal with the boys and their interactions with other people. Lara Lynn Boyle as Wayne's ex-girlfriend gets all sorts of funny moments as does Brian Doyle-Murray who ends up being a sponsor who gets on the wrong side of Wayne. There's also Ed O'Neill in a small role as well as Meat Loaf and Chris Farley. Also on hand is a terrific bit from Alice Cooper who nearly steals the film with the performance of "Feed My Frankenstein" and the hilarious backstage access where he talks about Milwaukee. Lowe also deserves a lot of credit with his comedy here as he's perfect as the snake in the grass. Even Tia Carrere does a nice job. Director Penelope Spheeris does a very good job at keeping the film moving at a very good pace and there's no question that she knows how to stage the various bits of classic rock music throughout. Fans of the SNL material are certainly going to eat this up as its as fresh today as it was when it was first released.

I've always found Mike Myers to be something of an acquired taste and struggle to warm to his work. Wayne's World is the one exception, and surely the highlight of his career. The film is fairly novel in its design and has a lot of very witty moments. Dana Carvey is arguably the star of the show, playing the uniquely amusing Garth to perfection. Tia Carrere and Rob Lowe round out a pretty strong cast with decent, if slightly cheesy, performances.

I would agree that the film has aged a lot since its release, but it serves as a cultural reference point and will remain a very nostalgic and enjoyable viewing experience for people of a certain age. The subversive takes on mainstream films become a bit tiresome and the love triangle story is a little corny but this is not a film that needs analysing in great detail. A fun movie, with its own unique vibe and styling.