La Boum américaine

Dreary. Dull. Devoid of any real merit. That is just for starters. Yotzim Kavua, a film I saw under the pretense of Going Steady, was an experience to sit through. First, let me explain how I came to watch it. I bought a 50 movie pack from Mill Creek Entertainment as I like bad movies that can be fun to watch. Some are entertaining as so-bad-its-good types, some are much better than one might imagine, and then there is the third group - those which are painful to sit through and induce a catatonic stare 15 or so minutes into them. Going Steady wasn't that bad, but it really has nothing going for it as far as I am concerned. I didn't know anything about it prior to seeing it. It is a sequel in itself and had at least three or four more sequels after it. Really? This was a sequel and had more sequels? It was produced and made in Israel and is spoken in Yiddish(I think). Sophomoric tales of kids trying to get tail are that popular in Israel? Who'd have thunk it. Anyway, the acting is not horrible just not inspiring. The jokes are along the vein of what you would find in Porky's or American Pie and other crap like that. I can't say I fell in like with anything in the film, but for what it was trying to be I guess(I know by its future successes) it must have achieved them. I am not going to write about the director and actors as I am not familiar with any of them. One thing I did find interesting is that it does offer a window into life in another culture and country. That is always something I find interesting, but beyond that seeing one distasteful scenario after another, a fat boy wedged out a window, and the typical high school pranks that mark adolescence supposedly are not the stuff my dreams are made of.

Here's a film that you'll only likely encounter if you're trying to work your way through the least appealing films on those Mill Creek box sets. It's a coming-off-age film set in Tel Aviv during the fifties, involving three teenagers (only it turns out they're in their early twenties – how long do people go to school in Isreal?) trying to get a bit while partying and etc.

It's been a few days since I watched this one so naturally I've forgotten all their names, but you've got your main character, Bon Jovi I think his name was, his fat sidekick Van Halen, and fanny rat Dave Lee Roth. After having all their clothes nicked by some Fonz types, Bon Jovi turns up at his home in the buff in front of all his conservative parent's friends, paving the way for a lot of male nakedness in the film.

You see, Bon Jovi is the lovable (you'll hate him) cute one of the trio, and he's trying to get into the pants of a certain lady who looks like Anne Hathaway, only attractive. He does this by stalking her until she gives in, much to the chagrin of Van Halen's girlfriend. Dave Lee Roth on the other hand is just trying to get into the pants of everybody, which leads to much interpersonal drama I'm guessing as I can't feel anything since I did three tours in 'Nam.

So if you want to reminisce about growing up in fifties Tel Aviv like a Glaswegian who grew up in the eighties in Scotland, you can't go wrong by this film. It's got big fat hairy man arses, a scattering of female nudity, a wee bit of how's your father, and much by way of drama and crappy comedy. Who am I talking to? No one's gonna watch this one!

The growing pains felt by adolescents are timeless and, as this hidden gem I found that was set in 1950's Tel Aviv shows, apparently universal. Thankfully this was tossed in a 50-film megapack, 'Drive-In Movie Classics'--otherwise, from the producers, director, and no-name cast involved, I would likely never have come across it. It's basically a mix of 'American Graffiti' and 'Porky's', but the script is the right mix of angst and humour, and the actors make a little go a long way with their charisma and chemistry. The 50's songs and complete lack of any sort of pretension are overwhelmingly refreshing and appreciated! I had no idea that this was in fact a sequel (another name for it is 'Lemon Popsicle 2') and part of a series. I would certainly love to track the other films down...

"Going Steady", as it's called here in North America, is actually the second entry in the Israeli "Lemon Popsicle" film series. I have seen several other entries in the series before this one, and I think I can safely say it's one of the lesser entries. The movie is not without merit. There is a great soundtrack of '50s hit songs (how was this low budget movie able to afford all of them?), the period detail is acceptable for the most part, and while the cast is too old to be playing teenagers, they do bring in some instant likability. Which is good, because some of the characters engage in some really cruel and selfish behavior, which taints the movie significantly. A bigger problem with the movie, however, is that the movie has little plot, and seems content to frequently spin its wheels for a long time. That might have been forgive had the movie been funny, but it isn't - the comic situations are lame and predictable. How this disappointing movie didn't finish the series right there is beyond me - maybe something got lost in the translation to English in the dubbing room.

"Going Steady" is the second film in the Lemon Popsicle, and is really just more of the same. This time it is less emotive than the first Popsicle movie - who could forget that ending - but is also too good natured to dislike, unlike all of the sex comedies of the next decade, which were just flat out sleazy and nasty.

Like the original film it benefits from the presence of Yiftach Katzur in the lead role of Benji who is charismatic. The same can't be said for his knucklehead friends, ie. The guy his girl went off with in the first movie (Momo) and the fat guy, Yudale. These guys make no impression in this movie either. The movie also benefits from female talent with the two actresses playing the boys' love interests this time round, though none as showstopping as Avat Atzmon was in the first movie.

This film is, doubtlessly, pretty forgettable, as all the Lemon Popsicle flicks probably are. Not sure I can be bothered watching them all. At least it was entertaining. Too bad all these movies never got a better release than VHS, apparently. Even the DVD releases are VHS quality. No doubt this is because, like the first film, "Going Steady" is wall-to-wall with iconic '50s music that the producers used illegally.