It hit U.K. cinemas last summer and went on to become the third highest grossing film of the year in that territory, with a staggering $71 million take at the domestic box office (placing behind only “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part Two)” and “The King’s Speech” in 2011). It wasn’t a Hollywood blockbuster, but rather the big-screen spin-off of a smutty teen comedy, which had aired just 18 half-hour episodes on a niche British TV Channel, E4. “The Inbetweeners Movie” was a surprise success to say the least, and on September 7th it will be time to see whether U.S. audiences react as positively to the four lads who embark on a holiday filled with “sun, sea, sex, booze, sex, minge, fanny and tits…and booze…and sex.”
The red band trailer for the U.S. release has debuted online and warns audiences to “Watch out” because “The British are Coming.” We’re still not quite sure what the context is in which they’re coming, however. The trailer does its best to show just about every joke in the movie, and doesn’t go out of its way to cover up any of the crude language or nudity at any stage. In fact, it positively revels in these elements, and we’d suggest it's probably a good sign that the film won’t be cut or altered for its U.S. release. Whether it will connect with U.S. audiences, however, is another matter. In Britain the cult success of the TV show was a key reason behind the film’s surprising performance, and crude British hits don’t have the best history of surviving their transition across the pond. Earlier this year we saw “Project X” fail to connect with British teens anywhere near to the extent that it did in the U.S., and perhaps we’ll see the same happen the other way around this time.
But maybe the film will be helped by the launch of the U.S. version of the TV show. MTV’s remake (which is dropping the ‘The’ to become simply) “Inbetweeners” will debut on Monday, August 20th at 10:30. Brad Copeland (“Grounded For Life,” “Arrested Development”) has adapted the show for the U.S. and the pilot has been directed by Taika Waititi (“Flight of the Conchords”). The character names have all been retained, and the first picture (via TalkTVWorld) shows [from left to right] Simon (Bubba Lewis), Will (Joey Pollari), Neil (Mark L Young) and Jay (Zack Pearlman). Appearance-wise, the biggest changes seem to be that Simon looks a bit cooler, Will no longer has glasses, Neil now has long hair, and Jay’s gotten chubbier. Take a look at the new picture and watch the trailer for the movie below, and then play spot the difference. But whatever the changes, we can only imagine that sooner or later they’ll all be knee deep in clunge.
