School's Out (film)
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| School's Out | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Kit Hood |
| Produced by | Linda Schulyer |
| Written by | Yan Moore |
| Starring | Pat Mastroianni Stacie Mistysyn Neil Hope Stefan Brogren Kirsten Bourne Anais Granofsky L. Dean Ifill Irene Courakos Michael Carry Amanda Stepto Jacy Hunter Sara Holmes, Christian Campbell Andy Chambers Siluck Saysanasy |
| Distributed by | Playing With Time, Inc. |
| Release date(s) | 1992 |
| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
School's Out is a 1992 TV movie featuring the characters of the immensely popular Degrassi High series. The show's longtime team of writers filmed this feature length movie during the summer of 1991 to be shown on CBC during the new year. Initially, the movie was intended to wrap up the entire Degrassi saga, but in 2001, Degrassi: The Next Generation gave the Degrassi series a revival.
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[edit] Plot synopsis
The crux of the feature focused on Joey Jeremiah (Pat Mastroianni) and his longtime girlfriend, Caitlin Ryan (Stacie Mistysyn). Joey had been held back a year and was turning 19, while Caitlin due to her perfect grades had managed to graduate a year early (she should have been entering senior year). Joey proposes to Caitlin at a wild graduation party, she refuses, and he storms out, only to run into Tessa Campanelli (Kirsten Bourne), who asks for a ride home. When they get to her house, she pulls him in for a kiss. The next day she purposely goes to the drugstore where Joey works and asks him on a date.
Joey, though initially hesitant, goes out with Tessa, has a great time, and as he tells Wheels (Neil Hope) the next day, he got to "third base." Joey sees little of Caitlin, who is working as a waitress to make money for university, so instead he spends most of the summer with Tessa, who unlike Caitlin, "goes all the way."
Other plotlines include Wheels and his 250 dollar junker he spends the summer trying to get to work, and Snake's (Stefan Brogren) hope that his lifeguarding job will get him "laid."
In the film's final act, Tessa has dumped Joey without telling him that she's pregnant and having an abortion, Joey and Caitlin finally have sex, Snake finally rescues a drowning woman (though not at the pool where he was working), Wheels drives drunk, ends up blinding Lucy Fernandez (Anais Granofsky) and killing a child in the ensuing accident and goes to jail, and Caitlin finds out roughly ten minutes after getting engaged to Joey that he cheated on her, then breaks off the engagement and storms out.
Upon finding out about the affair, Caitlin utters the immortal "You were fucking Tessa Campanelli?" line. Though that line did not get aired in America, that was believed to have been only the second ever use of the word "fuck" on Canadian prime time television. Snake's use of the word moments earlier is believed to have been the first.
The gang all meet up again months later at Alexa (Irene Courakos) and Simon's (Michael Carry) wedding sans Wheels, Erica (Angela Deiseach) and Lucy. Still incarcerated, Wheels is set to plead guilty for his crime, while Erica is teaching abroad in the Dominican Republic and meets a new boyfriend in the process. Meanwhile, Lucy has since regained her vision in one of her eyes but was still not well enough to attend, Snake finds a new girlfriend in university, and Joey & Caitlin share a dance: as friends.
[edit] Reaction to the movie
The feature marked a darker turn for a show that while always unflinching, had never been excessively graphic or profane.
Many fans didn't like that most of the coverage is given to Joey, Wheels and Snake and not other characters. Most of Degrassi's bit players are also seen in the background, dancing, drinking or smoking pot. It is small details like this that made the jump from the last Degrassi High episode and this feature appear a bit jagged to those fans.
In the series, drug use and sex was more often implied than shown, and although there is no complete nudity, the sex scenes are beyond what would have ever aired on the show in its heyday. That, combined with the profanity, led some parents to believe that Degrassi went too far.
However, the film proved a success and drew in around 2.325 million Canadian viewers on its initial showing, doubling the average audience that Degrassi High received.
With eight songs from Toronto based rock group Harem Scarem featured in the movie, Toronto's rock station Q107 received immediate requests for their songs to be played on-air. Songs by future Styx lead singer, Lawrence Gowan, are also featured in the film.
[edit] Trivia
The title of the movie (like some episodes from Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High, and most of the episodes from Degrassi: The Next Generation) comes from a song, in this case an Alice Cooper song.
[edit] External links
- School's Out page from Official Degrassi Website
- School's Out site from Degrassi.ca
- School's Out at the Internet Movie Database
- School's Out (film) at TV.com
