Meatballs - Porcelloni in vacanza

Yes, it being the summer is the only thing that remotely ties this film to the first two movies. That being said I did enjoy this movie more than part two, however, you can see by my score of four that I still did not like this movie overall. It had potential and I think its low score here of 2.8 has a lot to do with the fact it tries to pass itself off as a sequel to a set of movies it has nothing remotely in common with. However, that being said overall it was still a poor comedy with the typical teen sex comedy plot...guy wants to lose virginity. The twist, a ghost of a porn star must try and help him. Of course, my question is why does he need help? He is pals with a cute girl who would obviously be more than willing to have sex with him, I mean she is watching a porno with him. Still, if it were that easy there would be no movie. However, that may have been a good thing in this case. Still, it has a couple of good comedy moments and far less groan inducing humor than part two (though it has its fair share as well). So there you have it, we go from family oriented comedy to a teen sex romp in three films.

I don't understand why Meatballs III ranks in the bottom 100. It isn't a Kubrick film nor is it Star Wars, but it never intended to be. Meatballs III is, very simply, a summer "camp" B-movie infused with a dose of teenage humor. I enjoy it and even own it on videotape because the film's premise is hilarious and it plays out well. (I didn't pay much for the used tape, though.) In fact, I think it is more entertaining than half of what makes it into the movie theaters from Hollywood.

The movie is entertaining because the premise is so outrageous you can't believe anyone made a film out of it. Also, I enjoy the antics of the outrageous, ogre-ish "Mean Gene" who owns the marina.

If you just want to relax with a few beers and don't mind drek if its done decently and doesn't pretend to be anything other than drek, then you might enjoy this movie.

I voted a 7 for it because it is pretty decent as far as B-movies go. I did not rank it on the same scale that I would use for a more serious movie or a big budget Hollywood film.

I used to think Meatballs III was the best in the series. But after a while, I realized I was wrong. None of the films are actually all that funny, save Bill Murray's humor as head camp counselor in the first film with much of the funniest lines being that which he calls over the loud speakers.

Part II involved some kind of Martian thing hiding among the campers. It was hardly funny at all, and possibly the only saving grace was Paul Rubens.

Part IV stars Corey Feldman, and well, you know what a horrible movie that turns out to be right there.

Part III was never like a camp counselor movie. Dempsey plays a hopeless teenager working at a summer hot spot. As a nerdy kid, he's desperate for a girlfriend, which requires the guide of a ghost woman played by Sally Kellerman. Poor Dempsey, he falls in love with the beautiful wife of a giant biker with a knack for tossing guys out of the window. In fact, it starts up a contest among the locals--how long would it take for brave young contender making his way to the wife's bedroom before that monster biker tosses him out of the window.

This is more like a movie that could be, if at all, appreciated by fans of Patrick Dempsey's 80s work. Although, I'd consider myself a fan of his earlier work and still don't enjoy this movie. It's not really all that funny outside of a few minor antics and the quirky attitude of Sally Kellerman.

Rudy Gerner (Patrick Dempsey) gets a summer job in upstate New York at a river "resort" on the St. Lawrence River wherein a strange woman (Sally Kellerman) helps him with his pursuits of the fairer sex.

"Meatballs III: Summer Job" was shot in the summer of 1984, but not released until early 1987 due to the difficulty of apprehending a distributer after the box office failure of "Meatballs Part II" (1984). Of the three sequels this is the only one with connections to the original 1979 film in that Rudy, the mentee of Tripper (Bill Murray), is 2-3 years older and focused on girls. Tripper doesn't appear in this one, but Rudy reads a letter from him.

The flick is a mixture of the original "Meatballs" with the goofiness and biker gang of the beach party films of the '60s, plus the raunchiness of "Porky's" (1981). It's that last part that ruins the movie for me, although it's thankfully not AS crude. In short, this is "Meatballs" minus the innocence. Another negative is the eye-rolling competition involving bedding the marina owner's woman upstairs (Shannon Tweed).

Nevertheless, Dempsey makes for a quality protagonist and the subplot of the porn star (Kellerman) having to come back from the other side to do a genuine good deed is amusing, reminiscent of the quirkiness of a Woody Allen flick. Moreover, the coming-of-age element is compelling.

There are several nubile females with winsome Isabelle Mejias playing the girl interested in Rudy, Wendy. For a superior movie featuring Isabelle, check out the similar "State Park" (1988).

The film runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot in Hudson, Quebec, with some stuff done west of there in Ontario.

GRADE: C.

Sally Kellerman manages to totally debase herself, but nobody really shines in this movie that demonstrates they should have stopped at #1.