If you had told the stars of “Super Troopers” that they would eventually create a cult-classic film that helped define a generation and advance the comedic genre of those who came before them...they’d probably force you to do a keg-stand and shotgun a beer because you sounded so ridiculous. Hell, if you told them that almost 20 years later they would be releasing a sequel to that film, they’d probably have the same reaction.
I had the privilege to sit down with the cast of "Super Troopers 2" for 15 minutes of debaucherous conversation, two actual interview questions and a whole bunch of stuff I can’t write on here without getting fired. So, without further adieu, may I present to you a brief history, analysis and review of one of the greatest stoner-comedy film series ever made -- and the men who created it all.
It all started in a quiet college town...
Colgate University; Hamilton, New York: where Jay Chandrasekhar ("Thorny" Ramathorn), Kevin Heffernan ("Rod" Farva), Steve Lemme ("Mac" Womack), Paul Soter (Jeff Foster), and Erik Stolhanske ("Rabbit Rookie" Roto) first met; where the Broken Lizard comedy troupe was formed; where some of the crazy, drug-fueled shenanigans that inspired "Super Troopers" inevitably took place; where greatness was born.
These guys have been making movies with their college buddies for the better part of three decades. They've had their fair share of hits and misses along the way but at the end of the day, they've always had each other.
Unhandled
Rise to fame -- well, kind of
The original "Super Troopers" wasn't exactly a hit at the box office -- and it took years to develop the massive following it has today. By the time randos off the street were cat calling the cast by their trooper names, they had already made two other films, "Club Dread" (2004) and "Beerfest" (2006).
"It was five years before we thought 'Super Troopers' was even a popular movie because it was a very slow, kind of grassroots thing where it took awhile for a kid to find a DVD and show it to his buddy, and his buddy would show it to his buddy," says Paul Soter. "So it really was a long time until we got recognized."
When the potential unveiled itself to them, they knew they had to make another. Plus, according to Kevin Heffernan: "We were sick and tired of people coming up to us and asking 'So when are you gonna make a "Super Troopers 2?!"'"
F is for FUNding! (Or lack thereof)
Raising enough money to film "Super Troopers 2" wasn't exactly a walk in the park. The Broken Lizard boys had to scrape together every nickel, dime and penny they could find to pay for it, and there were quite a few times when they were sure they had completely run out of money. We're not talking "fire a couple of extras" here, we're talking "find a million bucks before the end of the week."
That being said, the success of their IndieGoGo campaign was a sure sign that the audience was here to support them along the way. And when I say success, I mean they raised $2 million in 26 hours. That's when Fox Searchlight agreed to release the sequel.
Unhandled
So, does "Super Troopers 2" live up to the hype?
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
Sequels are hard -- audience expectations are through the roof, critics are prepped and set to tear filmmakers apart (guiltyyyy) and the cast wants to make their fans proud. All in all, I'd say "Super Troopers 2" hit the nail on the head...and then slipped past the nail and slammed into the thumb a little bit, but such is the nature of the beast.
We find our heroes not long after we left them, stripped of the local cop jobs they secured due to an "incident with Fred Savage and a ride along gone wrong." (I'm not spoiling that one for ya, you'll just have to see the movie to get it.) Mac and Rabbit are working construction gigs for Farva, Thorny is a lumberjack and Paul is presumably mooching off his still gainfully employed cop-girlfriend.
But it doesn't take them long to get back into the swing of things, because it just so happens that the governor of Vermont is repossessing a chunk of land across the border (that was never supposed to be Canadian land in the first place) and she's picked none other than our beloved Captain O'Hagan (Brian Cox) to lead the charge. Naturally, he gets the troopers back together again and they embark to serve as the temporary police force in a now-American town.
At first, they're received with utter hostility and actually, that doesn't really change throughout the course of the movie. The feud between the Canadians and Americans is red-hot and sparsed with enough immigration and "stupid American" jokes to make you wonder how politically pointed the Broken Lizard guys are trying to be.
Mirroring the first film, the troopers accidentally stumble across a massive stash of drugs and other illegal goodies. The only logical decision? For each of them to try a different drug in order to figure out what it is. (Fun fact: Thorny's drug, that he later becomes addicted to, is an estrogen booster and inspired by a real inside joke. Chandrasekhar's parents are doctors, and used to tease him about "growing boobs" because he drank too much soy milk.) After their respective trips are over, it's time to get back to "work."
This is where "Super Troopers 2" soars and simultaneously stalls. It relies heavily on the narrative structure of the first movie, and that bothered me more than anything else. I don't want to see the same adventures with a slight twist -- I want fresh ideas and new experiences. However! There is not one misused joke, and the cast executed this perfectly. They didn't run any of their callbacks into the ground, but they did successfully repurpose some of the certified gold they pumped out back in 2001 without spoiling it forever. (See: "liter o' cola," "meow" and just Farva in general).
After pranking each other, pranking the Canadians, finding the source of the illegal drugs (shocker: it was our neighbors to the north) and getting into an epic shootout, the troopers are more or less where they started: jobless and without direction. And well, that's that!
To be completely honest, "Super Troopers 2" didn't live up to my personal expectations. That said, there is no chance that the cast will find themselves in the same predicament as their on-screen counterparts; this film is going to smash the box office to bits.
What's next?
We'll have to wait 'til the weekend is over to be sure, but if I'm right and "Super Troopers 2" is as big a hit as I think it's gonna be, Broken Lizard will have enough money to keep making the stupid, amazing, idiotically hilarious movies we've come to know and love (and smoke weed to) so much.
Sidebar: the guys were nice enough to sign my cast after breaking my hand before their interview! And they only gave me a little bit of sh*t for it.
"Super Troopers 2" hits theaters on 4/20!