Stealing Time
"Stealing Harvard" is not terrible, I have definitely seen worse movies but it is 85 minutes of nothing-ness, 85 minutes which you will want back once it is over. What is the problem with the movie, well lame, repeated jokes and actors walking through the movie trying to deliver these jokes with out belief in their worth is the problem because in the entire movie just one gag made me laugh. Ironically I thought I was going to dislike "Stealing Harvard" because it starred Tom Green when in fact he ended up one of the better things about it even if I don't get his sense of humour.
John Plummer (Jason Lee - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel) and demanding girlfriend Elaine Warner (Leslie Mann - Big Daddy) have finally saved enough money to get married and buy a starter home which considering John works for Elaine's father at Homespital, a supplier of home medical equipment, has not been easy as Mr. Warner (Dennis Farina) dislikes him. But then a fresh problem crops up as many years ago John had promised his niece that if she got into college he would pay for it and now she needs $30,000 the exact money he and Elaine have saved. Desperate John turns to his friend Duff (Tom Green - Charlie's Angels) for help who leads him on a series of escapades to steal the money which inevitably go wrong and result with both Mr. Warner and Detective Charles (John C. McGinley) on their trail.
Let me explain how lame "Stealing Harvard" is, the whole story is about John and Duff stealing money and each time getting it very wrong. Oh, that's not lame enough, okay so in each robbery we get a joke which isn't funny but that same joke is then used a few more times and it doesn't miraculously become funny, Elaine crying during sex isn't funny the first time or the last time and scenes which see John dressed as a woman and then Mr. Warner having to do the same are unfunny as well. It is basically lame with the only bit of humour coming close to being funny is the whole idea of a home medical supplies business called Homespital.
Now in fairness there are a lot of jokes in "Stealing Harvard" and some may be your cup of tea and not mine so we also get some Tom Green humour, an actor who will always be known for "Freddy Got Fingered" the most bad taste movie you will ever see. Here it is a toned down Tom Green but even then his sense of no boundaries humour is an acquired taste especially when it comes to a scene featuring a dog and a part of his body. But beyond the occasional moment of Tom Green bad taste comedy there is nothing else which even raises your pulse it is just ultimately unfunny.
And that is really disappointing because the cast are not bad; give Jason Lee the right material and he is funny but here as John he seems to be walking through the movie in hope it ends. Leslie Mann and Dennis Farina are no better as they try to bring some life to their characters but with dull jokes struggle as do the likes of Chris Penn and John C. McGinley. In truth the only character which made me smile was John's trailer trash sister Patty and that is only because Megan Mullally looked funny.
What this all boils down to is that "Stealing Harvard" is one of those movies which may attract because of its cast but ends up an unsatisfying experience because of a weak idea and even weaker humour. It isn't terrible and I am sure some will find the repetitive humour amusing but it did nothing to even raise a smile from me.
