Writer: Anderson Cowan (Screenplay)
Starring: Nicole Dambro, Peter Mayer-Klepchick, Cameron Duckett, Jesse Pudles, Brian Ioakimedes, Max Reed III
Plot: A grad student kidnaps two homophobic high-school bullies to use as her subjects in an experiment performed at the bottom of an empty swimming pool.
Tagline – Homophobia is so totally gay!
Runtime: 1 Hour 49 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Verdict: Funny Throughout
Story: Groupers starts when Meg (Dambro) kidnaps Brad (Mayer-Klepchick) and Dylan (Duckett) tying them up in an abandon neighbourhood, where she fills in why she has kidnapped them. Meg wants to perform an experiment which would prove the theory that the two homophobic bullies that made her brother Orin’s (Pudles) life a nightmare.
Meg wants to use the bullies who believe that homosexuality is a choice not natural, which see her plans on proving that the two could choose to have sex, if it meant freedom, to try and teach them a lesson.
Thoughts on Groupers
Characters – Meg is the mastermind behind the plan, she wants to use the experiment for her studies and to get revenge on the bullies from her brother’s school experience, she does remain in control of the situation for the most part, until we learn she isn’t alone in her plan. Brad is the typical high school jock, he thinks he is gods gift to women and will pick on anybody different, including pushing homosexuals to limits they shouldn’t, he isn’t willing to accept them in his world and does struggle to deal with the situation. Dylan is the other bully, he is the type of bully that just follows the leader and when put in the situation the pair find themselves in, seems to start showing his true nature, one that Brad doesn’t like. Orin is the brother that was the victim of the hate crime, what happened to him pushes Meg into her actions. We do also have a couple of groups of colourful characters that put a spanner in the works of the plan.
Performances – We have an excellent cast here, with Nicole Dambro taking center stage on the more serious side of the film, while Cameron Duckett getting the most laughs from the main cast. Peter Mayer-Klepchick does a great job too and for the final act we do have everyone hitting the high points in the performance.
Story – The story here follows a woman that wants to experiment on a couple of school bullies that treated her brother homophobically and wants to prove that you can’t choose whether to be homosexual or not. This does start by coming off like a twisted revenge styled movie, with the story coming off like that, it is the second half of the film where we get to put over the message that was wanted to put forward, even if it is done with the comical tone at times. The story does have the prospective rewind idea, which does give each scene a new light, which is good to see. This is a story that does go in a different direction that you would expect and will surprise you at times.
Comedy – The comedy does come in strong in the second half of the film, where everything adds up and gives us laugh in every line.
Settings – The film is set entirely in one location, the pool in the abandoned neighbourhood, it does give the events a real-time feel too.
Scene of the Movie – Durant settles everything.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Certain moments do get repeated too much.
Final Thoughts – This is a funny comedy that still manages to get the important message across too. It has great performance from the whole cast too.
Overall: Comedy that will make you laugh a lot.