Once in a while you get a good retro film from Hollywood. Take Me Home Tonight is a good movie to watch, nothing taxing on the brain and something you can watch on a late Sunday afternoon or Saturday night. However I must say that the trailer was more exciting than the actual movie. Now despite the fact that the movie title is derived from the 1986 Eddie Money hit single, the song does not feature anywhere in the movie and only the first released trailer has the song. That was the trailer that I watched on Youtube and got me interested in watching this movie. Imagine my chagrin when I saw that the song does not feature in the movie at all.
Anyway let’s get to the film – underachieving MIT graduate Matt (Topher Grace) is working in a movie store but lies to his former schoolmate & his secret crush Tori Fredreking (Teresa Palmer) when she comes into the store and asks where he works at – he says Goldman Sachs. He acts all aloof & casual, even pretending that he didn’t recognize her when she approaches him. Tori then invites him to a Labor Day weekend party held by Kyle Masterson (Chris Pratt) who also happens to be Matt’s twin sister Wendy’s (Anna Faris) boyfriend. Matt agrees and then ecstatically runs to get his sister Wendy & his best friend Barry (Dan Folger) to join him. Barry meanwhile just got fired from his car salesman job.
At dinner Matt gets a dressing down from his LAPD policeman father (Michael Beihn) about wasting him instead of getting a good career. The 3 then go to the party but not before stealing a red convertible Mercedes-Benz from Barry’s former employer’s showroom in an act of retribution for Barry getting fired. One of the hilarious scene is Barry snorting coke and then getting involved in a dance off with another guy. Kyle then proposes to Wendy in front of the crowd gathered for the dance off. Matt is displeased with Wendy’s acceptance of the proposal and pulls her aside, where they argue that Kyle isn’t going to be a good husband to her and that he will not support her in her endeavors. She stands up for Kyle, but seemingly begins processing Matt’s opinion as Matt walks out in frustration.
Tori & Matt chat at the party and soon she invites him to go to a business party filled with bankers in Beverly Hills. Barry & Matt go in the Merc to the place. At the party, Tori reveals to Matt that she hates her job. Matt and Tori leave the party, enter the backyard of a neighbor’s home, and jump on a trampoline where they play truth or dare. When they get too far, Matt ends up sleeping with her. Then, Matt tells Tori the truth about his job, causing Tori to become upset and leave. Matt tries to convince her that he is sorry for lying but she leaves with her friends. A strange bathroom scene happens; Barry gets to make out with a hot babe (Angie Everhart) while being watched by her psycho friend. Back at Kyle’s party, Wendy is scared to open a letter of admissions, after applying for graduate school in England at the University of Cambridge. Kyle opens the letter for her, and tells her that she has been rejected – he is obviously relieved and Wendy takes offense at this. She realizes that Matt was right about Kyle and breaks up with him.
Meanwhile, Barry & Matt while driving by gets run off the road and is caught by a police car in which Matt’s father is. His partner and him rag the two boys for a while, scaring them but then letting them go in good natured fun. Matt’s father tells Matt to take a chance in life. Matt approaches Tori to apologize and says that he will make up for lying to her. He then takes up the challenge to ride the ball – a huge metal ball which is pushed downhill on a winding road. Despite Barry & Wendy trying to dissuade him, Matt gets in. as Kyle releases the ball it begins to roll down the hill hitting vehicles parked along the street as it zig-zags uncontrollably down the street. Eventually, the ball goes off the road and begins a tumble down an embankment… Matt throws-up in the spinning ball before finally crashing through a residential fence and landing in a swimming pool. Matt nearly drowns at the bottom of the pool — as he is seemingly locked in the steel ball — but manages to get the hatch open in time to swim to the surface. In the end he is cheered by the crowd and Tori takes a step towards forgiving him by giving him her number. As the rest of the people leave, Matt takes Barry & Wendy to a well deserved breakfast – the night has passed and it is morning!
It’s an ok movie, all events takes place through a day. There were some parts of it which served no purpose at all for the movie and I think they could have done a lot better with the film. It wasn’t what I expected at all. Still it’s non-brain taxing harmless fun. Michelle Trachtenberg, (how I love her) is in it as a goth girl who goes for Barry, for a few minutes. I’d give this movie a 6 outta 10!