This film is about two maladjusted teens who were hipsters long before the term was ever coined. The pair are spending their summer before their senior year doing nothing of any great importance...mostly they're just being jerks and hanging out. Much of their energy is spent making the Schwab family miserable...and it's easy to see why.
The main problem with this flick is that there were a lot of similar films which simply worked much better because they had better scripts. BETTER OFF DEAD (1985) and FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH (1982) both immediately come to mind....but if you lived during this era, I am pretty sure you'll be able to think of a few other films with similar attitudes. Because it's not written well, so many of the antics of O.C. and Stiggs simply fall flat that it's hard to stick with this one...and only a few good moments here and there rescue it from being a total disaster. The bottom line is that Robert Altman has a great reputation....even with a stinker here.
The main problem with this flick is that there were a lot of similar films which simply worked much better because they had better scripts. BETTER OFF DEAD (1985) and FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH (1982) both immediately come to mind....but if you lived during this era, I am pretty sure you'll be able to think of a few other films with similar attitudes. Because it's not written well, so many of the antics of O.C. and Stiggs simply fall flat that it's hard to stick with this one...and only a few good moments here and there rescue it from being a total disaster. The bottom line is that Robert Altman has a great reputation....even with a stinker here.