Snow, Sex and Sun

Out Cold is a little-known comedy gem from 2001 that has somehow managed to find its way on my list of movies that I watch on a semi-regular basis.

The film is set in the fictional ski town of Bull Mountain, Alaska, a place which manages to maintain its unpretentious, laid-back small town atmosphere despite being located in an area famous for its great skiing and snowboarding. The plot focuses on a group of young twenty-something local residents who enjoy snowboarding, getting drunk, getting high, and playing practical jokes on each other. Leading this group of likable misfits is a man named Rick Rambis (played by Jason London), who is unable to form a relationship with attractive snowboarding instructor Jenny (played by A.J. Cook) because he is still pining over a girl he met during a drunken binge in Cancun, Mexico.

When wealthy businessman John Majors (played by veteran actor Lee Majors) steps in with the intent of buying Bull Mountain and turning it into an Aspen-like "espresso and tofu" resort that caters to rich yuppies, the residents of Bull Mountain begin to fear that they will all be fired and forced to leave town. Adding to the turmoil is the arrival of Majors' two daughters: Inga, (played by former Playboy Playmate of the Year Victoria Silvstedt) a gorgeous blonde bombshell, and Anna (played by Caroline Dhavernas), Rick's old flame from his Cancun vacation.

What follows is a slobs versus snobs comedy in the tradition of "Caddyshack" and "Animal House" as the locals try to stop their town from being taken over by Majors and his cronies. The film also directly parodies Casablanca in several parts, with Rick finding himself in a situation similar to Humphrey Bogart's most famous character from his most famous film.

The acting or script will never win any awards, but the film does provide enough humor to make it worth a rental. It also features some truly impressive snowboarding footage performed by some of the top snowboarders in the world. I also feel the need to mention David Koechner, who provides a hilarious performance as Stumpy, a hard-drinking, tall-tale telling local who is probably insane.

One complaint I have about the movie is that it feels like several scenes were edited or removed entirely so that it would be given a PG-13 rating rather than an R rating. Hopefully someday an unrated DVD will be released.

I give this film a 7 out of 10. It's not a classic comedy, but it's entertaining enough to be worth a rental.

Out Cold is one of my favorite movies. It's not intelligent, the acting isn't anything special and the plot is sub-par. But it's hilarious, and as a snowboarder wildly entertaining. I watch it in the summer when I miss the season, in the fall when I'm waiting for the season, in the winter when I'm NOT snowboarding, and in the spring when the season is ending. There is so much truth to the movie in some aspects that it just feels right. The movie is so funny in so many little ways, and if you open your mind and are willing to accept it for what it is, I think you'll love it as well. It has a great soundtrack featuring a LOT of Jack Johnson, some Weezer, Sum 41, other stuff, all of which is good. Jason London is great as Rick Rambis, Zach Galifinakis is hilarious as Luke and whoever plays Pigpen does a great job of acting dumber then you would think anyone could actually be. You'll either love it or hate it, but if you snowboard or like to have a good time, I think it will be the former.

OK, I'm a sucker for this type of film. I know it's something we have all seen a million times, but, darn it - we NEED this type of movie.

Yeah, yeah, yeah…the story line's predictable: idyllic local winter ski haven (Bull Mountain) is under threat by a big-business tycoon's (Lee Majors) plans for turning it into a high rollers' resort town. And, yeah, yeah, yeah…the subplot is equally original: boy loses girl, boy wants girl back, girl has fiancé, boy must go through trials and tribulations to win girl back, etcetera, etcetera, ad nauseum. Add a few crass scenarios, a big-breasted beauty (Victoria Silvstedt), beer and you've got yourself another boring teen-sex comedy. Right? Not so fast, partner.

Out Cold joins the ranks of other great teen comedies (Animal House, Better Off Dead, Caddyshack, and the hundreds of others) in its magical ability to stop time – if just for a moment. Like its predecessors, Out Cold captures that youthful time when friends surround us, we are having the time of our lives and the party never seems like it is going to end. Those are our `rites of passage' years - generally, between the ages of 16-25 - nine very short years.

Out Cold takes place in the fictional tiny-town of Bull Mountain, Colorado - elevation 10,000 feet – a winter wonderland of snow, skiing and snowboarding. A place where there's always fluffy powder to plow through and a hilarious friend is at every corner you turn. There's always the local pub to chill in after a hard day of playing – the characters in these movies all have jobs but no one seems to work. Loneliness is not an option. That's what makes this movie (these movies) great.

Out Cold isn't just about gross-out gags with guys running around trying to get laid, it's about the escapism that these films offer. Even if you've never experienced the perfect winter or summer vacation – even if you've never gone to that ivy-league school where no student has homework – even if you've only dreamt about spending time at exotic locales with fun in the sun/snow – this is the reason why we NEED this type of movie. If only for ninety minutes, these movies offer a fantasy or nice remembrances of times gone by (or, to come.)

For all of you naysayers out there who pooh-pooh this film on the account of its wonderfully juvenile content, I say, `Go see Harry Potter, you bombastic moralist and leave me alone!'

My hopes were not high for 'Out Cold', they really weren't. I thought this would be just another stupid American comedy like 'Dorm Daze' which i also watched a few days ago and was far from impressed with. It wasn't so thank god for that!

For an American comedy the humour is at times sharp even though at times it is blunt but still works very well. Who the heck wouldn't laugh at the drug test scene!? The acting is also spot on. I think Jason London's character is a bit stupid though because that girl Jenny that likes him is much better looking than that french bird Anna he dated for three weeks. No Contest! I was like "Dude, stop being such a douche and go for sweet Jenny who likes ya instead of Anna who is a cheating ho!".

The locations in this film are beautiful and the snowboarding scenes are breathtaking at times. All in all a nice comedy which ultimately tells the story of corporate America f***ing things up. Well worth watching. 9/10

Out Cold isn't going to win any Academy Awards but that's ok. What it does, it does well. Juvenile comedy, the love triangle featuring AJ Cook in one of the first roles I've seen her in, all come together for a good way to spend an hour and a half. The cast seemed to genuinely enjoy themselves both on camera and off. Grab the popcorn, kick back and enjoy.