Accepted (2006)
Premise: After being rejected from all of the colleges he had applied to, Bartleby (Justin Long) and a group of friends create their own fictional university. Things quickly get out of control as hundreds of other rejected young people flock to the school.
What Works: The opening act of Accepted is very good, featuring some sharp dialogue and good pacing. Justin Long is good as the fast talking, Van Wilder-like lead character but it is Jonah Hill as Sherman, the brains of the plot, who gets all the best lines and his performance reveals an actor who has a great sense comic timing. As a side note, the three lead actors look like they are actually freshman college students, which is refreshing compared to so many other college films that feature actors well passed their age. The script for Accepted is smarter than most films of this type and it is a light critique of higher education in the same vein as PCU.
What Doesn’t: Even though the picture is only ninety minutes, the middle of the film gets a bit long. The conflicts are not very solid and little stands in Bartleby’s way until the end. Most of the lead characters are drawn from other films like Animal House or Old School but in Accepted they have little to do.
Bottom Line: Accepted is a solid comedy by way of other college films such as Old School, PCU, and Animal House. Accepted is not as funny or as memorable as those films, but it does share a wit and intelligence with PCU that saves it from being a total retread of other college films.
Episode: #107 (August 20, 2006)