The Wrong Guys (1988) New World/Comedy RT: 86 minutes Rated PG (language, violence including gunplay, some sexual humor) Director: Danny Bilson Screenplay: Paul De Meo and Danny Bilson Music: Joseph Conlan Cinematography: Frank Byers Release date: May 13, 1988 (US) Cast: Louie Anderson, Richard Lewis, Richard Belzer, Franklin Ajaye, Tim Thomerson, Brion James, Biff Manard, John Goodman, Ernie Hudson, Timothy Van Patten, Bunny Summers, Carol Ita White, Garth Winsom, Dion Zamora, Joshua Horowitz, Josh Saviano, Garland Spencer, Jonathan Brandis, Danny Thomason, Parker Jacobs. Box Office: $1.1M (US)
Rating: ***
File the Cub Scout comedy The Wrong Guys under U for Unfairly Overlooked. It wasn’t widely released. Critics didn’t go wild for it. Audiences ignored it. Given my affinity for stupid comedies, I would have seen it if it opened in Philadelphia which it didn’t. I saw it when it came out on video. As you can probably guess, I liked it. It made me laugh for the right reasons. You can’t ask for more than that from a dopey little comedy about a Cub Scout reunion.
The Wrong Guys stars Louie Anderson (Coming to America) as Louie, an overgrown child who used to be the leader of Cub Scout Den 7 in the early 60s. They were the happiest days of his life. Longing to relive better times, he decides to bring the pack together again for a reunion. They’ve all gone their separate ways, but they drop everything and heed the call of their old leader. They haven’t changed all that much in 27 years. Dentist Richard (Lewis, Robin Hood: Men in Tights) is still neurotic. Belz (Belzer, Law & Order: SVU), a fashion accessory designer, still plays the ladies man. Smooth-talking Frank (Ajaye, Car Wash), a radio talk show host, still dispenses advice. Tim (Thomerson, Trancers), now a surf teacher, is still the hot dog of the bunch.
The five pals gather at Louie’s mother’s house where he surprises them by announcing they will be camping out at Mount Whitehead, the site of their greatest failure. Back in the day, they got lost and had to call their mothers to save them. As a result, they failed to earn the Arrow of Light badge, the highest honor that can be bestowed on a Cub Scout. The others aren’t as enthused as Louie, but they go along with his idea. How could any of them possibly know that dangerous escaped convict Duke Earle (Goodman, Revenge of the Nerds) and his gang are hiding out in a cabin near their campsite? What’s more, they’re convinced Louie and his pals are FBI agents.
In addition, the troops’ old nemeses the Grunsky brothers, Glen (James, Blade Runner) and Mark (Manard, Trancers), spot them at a local store and decide to follow them to play a prank on them. They still hold a grudge against the guys for kicking them out of the den when they were kids. In Den 7’s favor, the Grunskys aren’t too bright.
Directed by Danny Bilson (Zone Troopers), The Wrong Guys is funny precisely because it’s so stupid. It’s amusing to watch grown men trying to survive a night in the great outdoors with only hazy memories of their old Cub Scout training. Richard constantly worries about everything, especially One-Armed Pete, a fabled axe murderer who supposedly lives in the woods. Belz and Tim sneak off to visit a woman’s health spa, formerly the site of the Girl Scout camp. They barely escape with their lives after encountering the Grunskys’ wives. When Louie and Richard find then missing from the campsite, they think that One-Armed Pete got them. Meanwhile, Franklin sleeps through everything, including a machine gun attack on their campsite by Duke, thanks to a sleeping pill he copped from Richard.
Bilson assembled a decent cast for The Wrong Guys and did something that I’ve never seen before. The five main characters’ names are the same as the actors portraying them. Their personalities even match the type of characters they are known for. Lewis does his neurotic bit. Anderson is the enthusiastic man-child. Belzer is a wise ass. Ajaye is the cool guy. Thomerson is laid-back. The quintet of stand-up comedians has good chemistry. James and Manard are a riot as the pea-brained overgrown bullies constantly outsmarted by a squirrel who keeps stealing their food. Goodman, in one of his early roles, makes a great bad guy. His character’s temperament in The Wrong Guys reminds me of the character he’d play in The Big Lebowski a decade later.
The Wrong Guys is one of those movies ideal for times when you want to watch something light, silly and mindless. I’ve seen it a few times and still laugh. I especially like Louie’s dog, a mutt who takes a special liking to Richard (if you know what I mean). There’s some good slapstick and comic interplay. Be sure to watch until the end of the closing credits for a funny bonus scene. Although it will never qualify as a comedy classic, The Wrong Guys is entertaining if you’re in the right state of mind.
