(Hello, and thanks for reading this entry in DavidK93’s “D2K-93: The Widowmaker” write-off. The theme of this write-off is films that have one degree of separation from a member of the Brat Pack.)

Anybody who’s watched any amount of cable access television realizes that Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar are smarter than virtually everybody who really works in cable access. Every Friday night, they broadcast from Wayne’s basement in Aurora, Illinois. They pay homage to the things they love (namely, women and music), and poke fun at the things they don’t (an elaborate invention that cuts hair with vacuum power). Wayne and Garth don’t say anything that’s very deep or profound, but they’re better at sharing their sense of fun with their audience than most people on local TV. They’re just typical young adults, except that they’re a little more on the ball than they’re willing to admit.

Wayne dreams that one day, he’ll be able to make a living as the host of “Wayne’s World.” In the movie “Wayne’s World,” Wayne (Mike Myers) and Garth (Dana Carvey) are about to get that opportunity. Communications executive Benjamin Oliver (Rob Lowe) catches the show one night on cable access, and he thinks he has a sponsor and a paying gig for Wayne and Garth. He meets with the sponsor, arcade owner Noah Vanderhoff (Brian Doyle-Murray), and convinces him that “Wayne’s World” is the perfect show for his commercials. Benjamin then signs Wayne and Garth to contracts that allow him to take control of the show.

The movie also takes us on a tour of Wayne’s life when he’s not on the air. He gets together with Garth and their other buddies, and they hang out at an Aurora heavy metal club called the Gas Works. Then they stop for coffee and crullers at Stan Mikita’s Donuts, and Wayne has Garth stop by the music store so he can get a look at the Fender guitar Wayne wants for his own. They meet women they like. For the shy Garth, it’s the donut shop waitress he knows only as his Dreamwoman (Donna Dixon). For the humor-filled Wayne, it’s Cassandra Wong (Tia Carrere), the bassist and lead singer of Crucial Taunt, a favorite band at the Gas Works. He meets the Chinese-born singer after a set, and they decide to start seeing each other. To impress her, he takes a crash course in Cantonese. Benjamin also meets Cassandra, and decides to produce a video for Crucial Taunt. However, Benjamin has other designs for both Wayne and Cassandra, though Wayne isn’t anxious to play by Benjamin’s rules.

“Wayne’s World” is a movie that, like the “Saturday Night Live” skit that inspired it, is played mainly for fun and laughs. In addition to Myers and Carvey, we meet a number of unusual people who are a part of Wayne’s life, like his ex-girlfriend Stacy (Lara Flynn Boyle), who treats Wayne as if they’re still together. She buys him a present and waves at him as he and Garth play street hockey. There’s also Officer Koharski (Frederick Coffin), who gets a chuckle out of Wayne’s police jokes and enjoys talking about detailed searches he performs on suspects. The donut shop manager, Glen (Ed O’Neill), enjoys talking about homicide a little too much. Myers, with the help of fellow “SNL” writers Bonnie and Terry Turner (who went on to create the successful TV series “Third Rock From The Sun” and “That 70s Show”), succeed in taking a short skit to the big screen without losing the humor or essence of the skit. Numerous references to TV, film, and music help to accentuate the jokes. They even make sure the humor continues through the closing credits.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a few other performers. Doyle-Murray, who was on “SNL” in the years before Myers and Carvey, is funny as the cynical, but clueless, Noah. He loves that kids pump quarters into the games at Noah’s Arcade for hours on end, but has no clue at how lost he looks to Wayne and Benjamin. Colleen Camp has the best lines, though, as his equally clueless wife, Mimi. Wen she tells Benjamin how she came up with the arcade name, it’s one of the films best moments: “I just opened my mouth, and out it came.” Alice Cooper, who performs a song with his band, also gets in on the movie’s humor. When Wayne and Garth hang out with Cooper after a Milwaukee concert, he goes into a brief history of Milwaukee. Chris Farley, who was on “SNL” with Myers and Carvey, has a brief, but memorable moment as a security officer at the concert. He doesn’t merely explain what he’s doing – he gestures, moves, and emotes some information Wayne later admits is important. Finally, one of the waitresses at Mikita’s is Robin Ruzan, who eventually married Myers in real life.

“Wayne’s World” has been the most commercially successful film directed by Penelope Spheeris, who’s best known in heavy metal music circles for her three “Decline Of Western Civilization” movies. While Crucial Taunt may be touted as a heavy metal act in this film, they’re really just a pop band with a bit of a heavy metal look. They are no more heavy metal than the singer Benjamin hired to perform the “Wayne’s World” theme. Cassandra herself looks more glamorous than any real heavy metal singer. This is no knock on either Spheeris or Carrere, though. In fact, Carrere sings nicely, does well playing the straight man to everybody, and has a good chemistry with Myers. I suppose, at some point, someone decided to reach out to as many young people as possible, and a real heavy metal band would not have been the way to do that.

Now, it’s time for the Secret Subplot, which is required as a part of this write-off by the host. Rob Lowe does a nice job as Benjamin, the yuppie who makes life hard for Wayne. He doesn’t do it, though, just to show what kind of a cold, corporative executive he can be. He really wants to be Wayne. When his girlfriend, Elyse (Ione Skye), introduces Benjamin to “Wayne’s World,” he remembers what it’s like to be young and carefree – and he wants those days back. Wayne’s at a place in his life where Benjamin wishes he could be. He does everything within his power to get it. He lines up a sponsor, buys “Wayne’s World,” then knows which buttons to push in order to send Wayne back to Aurora. When he finds out Wayne likes Cassandra, Benjamin shows off his ability to speak Cantonese. Benjamin puts all of his money and all of his resources into the quest into being on the davenport next to Garth, and in the Mirth Mobile (a well-maintained AMC Pacer) next to Cassandra. Benjamin forgets the most important thing in his quest, though. He can buy “Wayne’s World,” but he can never own the world of Wayne Campbell (End of Secret Subplot).

“Wayne’s World” is a fun look at two guys being themselves, living in a world where they can dream and live out dreams. Every adult has been there. Wayne and Garth are at an age where anything seems possible, and where fun is the main order of the day. As Garth is fond of saying, “Party on, Wayne!”

Wayne replies, “Party on, Garth!” as he breaks into a riff on his guitar. “Wayne’s World” brings the party from the basement to the big screen. It’s a party that is always fun, and well worth attending. It’s everything cable access dreams it were, but usually falls short of Wayne and Garth’s standards.

This has been my entry in the D2K-93 write off, hosted by DavidK93, in honor of his second anniversary at Epinions. Besides the host and myself, here are the other Epinionators who have agreed to be a part of David’s version of “The Anniversary Party”: anderclayton, dedemw, kurt_messick, LukePicard, MrsNormanMaine, Officer, pogomom, sampo24, and st3on1ey1baby.

Thanks, David, Happy Anniversary, and visit DavidK93’s profile page at http://www.epinions.com/user-davidk93.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older