User reviews

The plot is a loose excuse for a series of gags that only occasionally work, BUT this movie is so balls out crazy and trashy that you can't help but love the brashness at how far they go. Is it good? Debatable, but it's never boring because it's always going that one step further past good taste.

While the script and the acting are more than lacking, this movie still has many sophomoric moments that had me recalling my awkward youth and all of the heterosexual males out there will to. Excellent soundtrack with Concrete Blonde and the Buzzcocks as the backdrop. If you go into the experience not expecting a lot, and you keep in mind that the movie probably had a budget around 100k(around 50k probably for Timothy Carhart-the only recognizable face in the film), then you will have a good time. Best if viewed with a pack of guys and a few suds, because one of you will be nailed with the nickname Pondo Sinatra; cause this guy was.

This movie has more laughs than nearly any I have seen. A collection of scenerios, this movie moves fast and you can hardly catch your breathe between laughs. My favorite scene? Has to be the fart potion. Trust me, if you don't about die from this one your already dead.

This film starts and ends with almost same scene, a guy sitting in the back of a turnip truck, the start has him going one way, the end, has him going the other, with a sexy woman, standing on the top of a hill, a look of curiousness following him both ways, probably the only one who understands him. No one has tried harder with women than Pondo Sinatra. He's found it hell, and you could well find this hell, sitting through this ridiculous 78 minute, sexcapade, featuring one known actor, Carhart, Pondo's best friend, who I'm sure would want to put this film behind, or in other words, glad to see the back of it. Our poor old southern bred Pondo, our luckless loser, strikes out with women, due to his lack of his finesse, and totally wrong approaches towards the opposite sex, whether insulting, coarse, etc, lacking a total inexperience, he needs studley Studly, Carhart to help him, who he turns to his older wiser teacher, a black dude, and you'll love his take on pussy. We, the suffering viewer are subjected, to this unappealing mess of a sex comedy, too ridiculous to raise any kind of logic as well as laughs. Even the music score is awful, and unfortunately catchy. Pondo, not the best scientist/inventor, where a dozen of his fellow women scholars have paid the price, one becoming a gorilla, finally creates an potion aphrodisiac which makes women swarm over him. Causey gives a great, memorable performance, and Carhart isn't bad, but this film is bad, and then some, and in no way, memorable. Gags fall flat, like Pondo's experiments, and to the viewer, it's a punishing watch, an exercise in ridiculousness. One of the most forgettable films I've seen. Painful.

...although I can't imagine these high ratings are fake reviewers trying to make this early 1980's c-grade T & A flick appear better than it is in order to prompt people to buy it on dvd; there actually appear to be more than a few people who have a lasting affection for this thing.

I should say that I was a teen when this movie was initially released, I enjoy raunchy sex comedies of that period, am nostalgic for the 80's, enjoy nudity on film, etc. Had never heard of The Party Animal but it sounded like it was in my wheelhouse.

Yeesh. Just a bad, bad movie. I had lowered my expectations accordingly prior to viewing it, although apparently I hadn't lowered them enough or frankly just couldn't lower them enough to enjoy The Party Animal even along the lines of it in a "so bad it's good" way. Mostly because it was just terrible, terrible to the point where I couldn't even derive any pleasure from how awful it was.

Where to start? Well, in most (virtually all of the) 1980's sex comedies that utilize the hapless 'virgin trying to get laid' plot, said virgin has some endearing qualities that makes the viewer root for him to get lucky. Not with The Party Animal. The loser virgin in this movie is crass, unfunny, unattractive and all it takes are literally a few moments of watching him in the opening scenes to make the determination that this guy deserves to be the sexless loser that he is. You're actually rooting for him to not get laid but instead get punched in the face.

Crass, unfunny and unattractive sort of describes The Party Animal overall, particularly unfunny, which isn't so great for a sex comedy. Vulgar and crude, with 'jokes' that honestly are more reminiscent of the kind of humor 12-year-old boys of the period would come up with.

I will say that The Party Animal doesn't shy from nudity, with plenty of boobs (non-siliconed, old fashioned boobies, at that!) on display. So, there's that, I suppose. Most of the women (I hesitate to call them actresses) displaying said boobs are between about 5 and 8 on a 10 scale circa 1983.

As other reviewers have mentioned, The Party Animal does have a soundtrack containing some pretty decent bands (far more decent than the film deserves) but trust me when I say that the movie itself is so inept that the music of these bands was never going to be enough to elevate it even ever so slightly beyond what it was. In addition, The Party Animal does have a short running time, but even clocking in at barely 75 minutes including opening and ending credits the movie feels much, much, much longer. I'm a bit surprised this was originally distributed by Orion Pictures and the dvd was distributed by MGM since it all smacks of something that was made cheaply for a direct-to-video release and subsequently should have been deservedly forgotten. 3 stars only because of my enthusiasm for the 1980s and T & A flicks: my enthusiasm vs. The amount of stars I'm giving says it all.

In the vast realm of teen-sex comedies, The Party Animal is an anomaly. Opening with a thunderous bolt of lightning, the film's soundtrack pounds out The Buzzcocks' song, "Why Can't I Touch It," while the camera pans across one of the most hauntingly beautiful faces ever sculpted on a teenage girl. The ominously beautiful girl stands high above a winding road in which a pick-up truck loaded with turnips is seen cruising with the soon-to-be (Party Animal) lounging on top of the edible roots. So begins one of the greatest drive-in comedies ever made.

The story follows the exploits of twenty-two year old freshman college student, Pondo Sinatra, an obnoxious imposing blunderer whose only desire in life is to get laid and his studly buddy, Studly who tries to help him achieve that goal. I know, I know, this sounds like the premise for every teen comedy made, but believe me, this is where the similarities end and a twisted Faustian tale begins.

One day while Pondo and Studly are scheming on the campus grounds, Pondo announces that he would sell his soul for a piece of tail. The hauntingly beautiful girl from the first scene appears and seems to acknowledge Pondo's request - though his wish is not granted until much later in the film. The girl, Mephistopheles incarnate, appears throughout the film, taunting and haunting Pondo.

Before Pondo's wish is granted, he is dragged through some of cinema's most hilariously torturous vignettes. In one scene, Pondo tries to impress the ladies at a punk rock party by taking so many drugs (pot, pills, cocaine and LSD) in one sitting, that even Keith Richards would cringe. In another, Pondo decked out in 1970's New York City pimp gear, crashes an African-American party that is not exactly white-friendly and ends up with a hair pick stuck in his forehead.

This is a seriously twisted dark comedy and may not be for all tastes but over-all the cinematography is excellent and the acting is fair. Jerry Jones III, who has performed in all of Rudy Ray Moore's Dolomite films, provides an exceptional performance as Elbow, the school's janitor, who doles out sage-like advice to Studly and Pondo. The Party Animal features an amazing soundtrack whose artists include The Buzzcocks, The Fleshtones, R.E.M., New Marines, Chelsea, Dream 6, Gazmo, and The Untouchables who appear as themselves in the film. Also, there are many semi-clad beauties to keep your eyes busy even if your mind wanders.

As a film, The Party Animal does not play by any standard "teen sex comedy" rules set up by the Hollywood cookie cutter machine, and it certainly doesn't cop out by giving the us the same old crappy "nerd saves the day - nerd gets the girl" happy ending. I won't give up the finale, but let's just say that Pondo gets what he deserves.

The Party Animal only played a short time in theatres in 1983 (not 1984) and now can only be seen if your video store carries the long out-of-print Pan-Canadian or Lightning video releases. A trivial note: This is one of only a few movies that Cineplex Odeon Pictures produced and released.

Desperate to lose his virginity, a youth from rural Canada goes to extraordinary lengths to get laid in this wacky college comedy with a difference. While the film is let down by annoying stereotypes and too many flatulence gags, it is boosted by a pseudo-documentary narrative style. The film opens with multiple interviews as various individuals comment on how they knew the protagonist when he was still a fumbling fool and before he became famous, which adds a nice sense of mystery to the proceedings as we wait to see what exactly brought about this fame. It is an up and down ride; lead actor Matthew Causey is downright annoying at times with his over-the-top awkwardness around women, but he is very funny at other points (look out for an extended segment in which he is made up to look like a punk rocker). His ventures in an adult shop also lead to some truly uncanny moments as the toys there baffle him and as the shop owner has a penchant for speaking like Marlon Brando. Some of the dialogue is highly memorable too; "get used to it!" exclaims one young woman after Causey pounces on her, crying "but I'm a virgin". And there is the line "hound dog's gonna eat that pussy!" - which really needs to be heard in context to be appreciated. 'The Party Animal' is certainly a bit of a mixed bag, but the highlights are ultimately what stick around in the mind.

I first saw this movie, as a double-date, at a Drive-In theater(man, do I miss them!). I was only 19-years old, and nervous- because it was my very first double-date. Nevertheless, this movie got all four of us laughing hysterically, and we all had a great time. Honestly, they can't make movies like this anymore- because of the CONTENT(drugs, nudity, etc.) Yes, the Buzzcocks' music is REALLY what made this movie the BOMB.

Dr. Matthew Causey is now a Drama/Theater Professor, in Ireland. He is definitely NOT PROUD of this movie. However, if I ever meet him- I will personally tell him that Pondo Sinatra has been my IDOL for over 25 years! This movie is archived as one of my all-time CLASSIC COMEDY FILMS.

when i found out this film was at last available on DVD, i spent a fortune getting it shipped in from the States. it is a true comic masterpiece, and something of a tragedy that it is not well know. all the more tragic is that the guys who made it, for the most part, did very little afterwards.

Pondo Sinatra is the epitome of the word "dude". he is all men as he is no man, if you follow, and one cannot but help revel in his journey from no-good, frustrated and aroused nobody towards being a quasi-Napoleon type leader or figure of adulation.

it's tempting to highlight certain scenes, but i would rather encourage you to go out and discover this gem of a movie for yourself.

as with other comments, i would say a big plus for this film is the soundtrack. i discovered just how good The Buzzcocks were thanks to this film, and the rest of the music is equally good.

a unique, original and downright funny film in a very worn out and repetitive genre. waste no more time on pale, watered down trash like the American Pie films and discover the film that they all wished they could make.

Of all the horny as all get out comedies that I remember watching back in the 1980's, Revenge Of The Nerds, Screwballs, and of course the Porky's trilogy, The Party Animal has always remained a constant source of reverie in my mind.

Having just watched the Region 1 release, after not viewing the movie in more than twenty years, It never comes as a shock to me that once the first few frames pass by how the memories just come flooding back of just why I liked this movie.

First and foremost was the soundtrack, The Fleshtones & especially The Buzzcocks, another movie released somewhere around the same time Splitz also had a killer soundtrack, plus it also contained that killer element of copious amount of female flesh wildly on show.

To that end, and as I was your atypical teenager just discovering the joys of these teen sex comedies, the T & A aspect of The Party Animal was for me the major selling point and I must confess, those elements still hold up to this day.

Considering what kind of movie this is, you wouldn't expect the acting to be up to much, but once again the vast majority of the actors acquit themselves admirably, Matthew Causey shines in the role of Pondo Sinatra, who as we all know would sell his soul for a piece ass! It's really is amazing that Causey refuses to acknowledge this movie, his career hasn't really taken flight, and I for one would love to be associated with a movie that has attained major cult status, but I'm sure Causey has his reasons.

The only real star to emerge from the movie was Tim Carhart, although he has one of those faces, I can only remember him from Thelma & Louise, I often wonder if he would ever shy away from talking about this cool little comedy.

Although the movie does have a fractured narrative, which in truth actually helps propel the movie forward, the movie itself is still a great little slice of eighties sleaze and tease and with such pleasures they don't come as guilty as this classic sex crazed comedy.

This movie gets a Viagra free 10/10

I love this film and love the soundtrack. It is definitely one of the better sex comedies of the 80s(my personal favorite). One of the things that make this film so special is the performance of Matthew Causey as Pondo Sinatra. Causey takes what could have been just another throw away character and makes Sinatra very memorable, it is too bad we have not seen more from Causey. The soundtrack is loaded with one hit after another. My friends and I have lots of quotes from this one we enjoy to throw at each other. The conversation between Pondo and Elbow is priceless. I also would like to thank Mr. Filthy McNasty for his help on this film!

Great movie. Lots of stupidity. Definitely a drinking movie. Excellent lines. For a cast of no-names, they were excellent. Between Elbow drinking bourbon in the boiler room, Pondo trying to become a man by making it with a tan and Studly boinking everything that moves.....it was a laugh a minute!

Although it might be my sense of humor, this is the funniest movie I have ever seen. Movies of today do not make me laugh as much or "cry" as much. I can't go into it because I will spoil it for you. It is a classic 1980's B-rated comedy and the plot is not very in-depth. You just have to rent it and see. Or better yet, buy it. I assure you, if you laugh more at the Three Stooges than Dennis Miller, this movie is a hit!! Matthew Causey does wonders in his part as Pondo. The movie is made up mainly of short scenes that could be seen in any order, but is quite easily followed; granted though it is through tear filled eyes. To everyone reading this, I hope this movie brings you as much laughter as it did me. Every time I'm depressed, I pop my copy in the VCR and sit back with a few beers. This makes one hell-of-a good Saturday afternoon.

Don't let the fact that despite Tim Carhart being the only actor with a known name in this movie fool you... it's hilarious! Low-budget, good plot and story, good acting, great comedy, and hot college chicks running around in bikinis, lingerie, or nothing at all!! WOOOHOOOOOO!!! Did I mention it's funny? Dude, I had to hunt this movie down, but now I have it ripped for my private collection! (The movie industry can thank me in the future.)Can't remember the lead actors name, but I don't think that matters. (Hope he doesn't read IMDb.) Carhart plays 'Studly', his friend who tries to get him 'laid'. Full of classic attempts (failures) to woo women. Elbow is Studly's teacher and the school janitor, and tries to help Pondo. He's a riot, but can't break the jinx. Watching the women at play and exercise makes want to jazzercize too... well, almost. Pretty good 80's soundtrack, too, with The Buzzcocks and Dream 6 (now Concrete Blonde, one of my favorite rock bands.) If you can find this movie on VHS, rent it and have a good laugh, great for watching with your girlfriend, too!

During the glory days of the 1980's and the Beta machine there was but one raunchy comedy that stood above the others, that comedy would be the Party Animal staring Matthew Causey. This is the party film that made all of my friends want to go to college. The movie is fast paced, shot in documentry style recalling the life of Pondo Sinatra and his ill-fated quest for college women. Pondo, as played by Causey, is slimy, but yet lovable. Good support comes from his friends Studly and Elbow, the Janitor. Another thing to add is that the soundtrack to this movie is simply awesome!! The music of the Buzzcocks fits all of Pondo's misfortunes. I have also heard that Matthew Causey is a Professor at a university somewhere and does not take well to any mention of this film. Too bad, it would be great to see someone like Anchor Bay snap up the rights to this classic and put it out on DVD, complete with a commentary from Causey..AKA Pondo Sinatra and other goodies.

This movie IS trash, but it is not meaningless. It's actually deeper than you'd expect. Pondo Sinatra is a 24-year-old redneck virgin who leaves his isolated farm to attend college. He wants nothing more than to lose his virginity, but HAS NO GAME at all. He tries EVERYTHING, but to no avail....And then finally- he says the magic words that will forever change his life!! Throughout The Party Animal, Pondo RIDICULOUSLY analyzes why he gets none. These analyses get pretty deep, and are often hilarious. Many men out there(not necessarily me) could definitely relate to Pondo. A funny college flick!

I saw this film several times in the late 80's. One of the best soundtracks at the time, with The Buzzcocks & a live performance by the Untouchables. Very funny, worth seeing with the boys & a few beers.

If you grew up in the 80s and loved partying, then you should look back fondly at that wonderful genre, the "teen movie". The Brat Pack (Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Andrew McCarthy, Molly Ringwald, Robert Downey Jr., Judd Hirsch, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Anthony Michael Hall, Matthew Broderick, Charlie Sheen, the list is endless) just kicked ass all over the place. Movies such as St. Elmo's Fire and Flashdance set the standards, before the definitive teen movie, The Breakfast Club,came along, a classic of teenage angst and rebellion that harked back to Rebel Without a Cause.

Once the teen movie kicked into motion, it was bliss for my generation. It didn't matter if the movies were rubbish or not. They were pure, cheesy nostalgia. They had idealised human emotions at their heart - beautiful women, fast cars, getting laid, playing practical jokes on oppressive teachers or authority figures and always succeeding. Anything that broke down the walls of Fascism.

Party Animal was so perfect for that era. It also differed slightly from the others because it was so extreme that it reached surreal and absurd proportions. The dildo that represented a cruise missile was an erotic cartoonish fantasy. Pondo reached new levels of madness minute by minute and nothing was too radical for him. I personally thought that Party Animal was visually imaginative with some fairly wacky brains at work - it could almost have been the South Park creators. But 80s hedonism and teenage Utopianism, albeit on a fairly male basis (the teen movies were mostly male fantasies), were summed up in Party Animal. Heightened reality, the inexplicable, and the urge for non-stop partying with no parents around were a way of life both in the movies of this time and for those of us who partied for real.

Movies such as this are regarded in an ironic, laughable way these days but that is because a lot of idealism has left youth culture now. There was innocence and naivety in the 80s and that created an unrealistic, yet joyous feeling of ultimate teenage fulfilment. The world was still there to be explored and challenged whereas now there is nihilism and lethargy is seeping in. There is nothing to look forward to. There is an attitude of "Been there, Done that" - there is no sense of moving forward. Only looking back. With a rather regretful nostalgia. The spirit of movies such as Party Animal needs to come back with a vengeance. It would stop all the sniggering and snide, postmodern in-jokes that are so redundant to progressive culture.

Most of 80's sex comedies are dumb, with many parts boring but this one is a true gem, i enjoyed it all the way, just the first minute of the movie with the beat of Why can't i touch it" i knew i had a special comedy for me , this movie is entertaining, very funny and i mean no dull moments. It is unquestionably one of the very best sex comedies of all time and i mean it.

I love this Faustian tale of a horny college guy who sells his soul for a piece of Ass What's not to love fantastic music and wanna of the greatest drug montages ever filmed Pondo is a legend.

This movie deserves its rating if you are a fan of this kind of comedy. I just finished watching The Binge and it brought back memories including watching this with my friends over and over (pre internet and cable was 13 channels lol!). It's a fun and hilarious movie with a decent soundtrack (the buzzcocks are only it). I recommend it highly and if you agree give it a good review. This movie deserves more recognition.

Cult classic film. This is not a "chick flick". It's really goofy and is pretty much a waste of a couple of hours; however, in this day and age where we are spending more and more time in stressful situations (work, school, etc.), this a a perfect film to watch to relieve ourselves of some of that stress. You'll either love it... or hate it. I happen to be one of the viewers who loved/loves it!

Super gross out comedy with sidesplitting hilarious sequences that made this movie so memorable. I first saw it in the cinema in 1984, and managed to obtain an ex rental VHS copy in the early 90'S. I am pleased to say it has now been released on Region 1 DVD and I did not hesitate in investing £10 to buy a copy. Backed by a superb punk/ska soundtrack the film follows the adventures of Pondo Sinatra on his quest to get laid. There are so many funny moments moments in this film that I cried with laughter when I first saw it. I have since watched it again more than 30 times, and it never fails to make me smile. The content and humour is of an adult nature, but for those in their pubescent years there is plenty to get those yellow acne heads a popping'. This film is a gem - once seen, never forgotten, always bringing on a chuckle when you think of it.