Weekend At Bernie's-1989

Weekend at Bernie's is super gnarly, snarky, caper that should be watched every Saturday to wash away the strains of the working week. Andrew McCarthy (Mannequin, St. Elmo's Fire, Less than Zero, Pretty in Pink) and  Jonathan Silverman (Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Give Me a Break) star as underachieving yuppies Larry Wilson and Richard Parker. That is until one fateful Sunday they discover a 2 million dollar mistake and they see their potential meteoric ride to the top. They can't wait until Monday to tell their boss, Bernie Lomax (Terry Kiser).

Bernie seems happy with the revelation and vows to reward the boys with a vacation at his place in New York/Jersey beaches. Well, Bernie has more dastardly plans. Apparently they have discovered some Bernie fraud. Not to be discovered and done in, Bernie reports to his mob cohorts and plans to have the boys killed. Of course some great 80's twists transpire and Bernie ends up on the chopping block for some acts of indiscretion against his mob boss' girl.

The witty wise cracking Wilson and straight laced Parker give this movie some well-deserved depth. The boys think Bernie died of natural causes, the mob think their hit on Bernie went bad, party goers thinks Bernie is just wasted and just plain chilling out. Parker’s love interest Gwen Saunders (Catherine Mary Stewart, Night of the Comet), thinks Parker is nuts as he tries to explain that Bernie is actually dead. It’s mayhem.

The straight panned Bernie is a dead man, but the boy's antics give him appearances of life. Kiser is the winner here playing this character with body language, dead pan facial expression, dead man hijinks, and that water skiing scene. No, this is not a ghost story, but the story of a stone cold dead man.

Weekend at Bernie's is an 80's throw back. Imagine a world of people smoking whenever and wherever they want, suit jackets and ties with shorts, big telephones, French cut bikinis, Champaign, caviar, and coke and you've just conjured an 80s movie.

How will it pan out? You’ll just have to find out by watching Weekend at Bernie's

Hot Pursuit-1987

John Cusack (Sixteen Candles, The Sure Thing, Better off Dead, Say Anything) stars as Dan Bartleet, a college student deeply in love with his girlfriend, Lori Cronenberg, played by Wendy Gazelle. All he has to do is pass his chemistry exam and he's off to sail the Caribbean with her and her family.

True the the 80's sexual tension and frustration plots, this young man isn't going anywhere. He doesn't get the grade he needs and kisses his girlfriend goodbye as she sets off without him. It is truly heartbreaking. Until...

The 80's twist of dangling a gnarly carrot right in front of your eyes, the professor has a heart and helps Dan pass the exam. Dan is stoked and with a passing grade he sets off a bit late to join the Caribbean fun, but Wendy totally doesn't know.

Through a series of adventures Dan catches up to, but narrowly misses finding his dream girl at beautiful spots along the way. Ganja, Rastafarian, crusty sailors, pirates, hijackers, and Mexican jailers, set the stage for this sunburned comedy.

Keep your eyes open for appearances by a young Ben Stiller, totally unrecognizable, but totally worth experiencing. Also stars Robert Loggia, Jerry Stiller, and Keith David, who do well carrying this movie and giving it a gnarly character depth.

Music is covered by Level 42 with Lessons in Love.
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