Customer Reviews

Hot Dog [VHS]

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Hot Dog The Movie is one of the best films of all time! I watched this movie all through high school and can remember watching all of the classic ski sequences at 5:00 AM while waiting for my friends to pick me up to go skiing. As is true with many others, this movie has become a ritual to get me ready for the ski season. Who else thought Bannana Pants was hot? Who thinks Sunny's thighs were too big? Who thought Squirel Murphy should have had better luck? And one last question: WHERE CAN I FIND THE SOUNDTRACK?

I love this movie. It's fantastic. This movie has everything one could desire in a trashy ski comedy. Nudity, comic violence, cheesy villians, and, of course, CHINESE DOWNHILL!!!

However, I will NEVER buy this DVD until it is available as a widescreen feature. Especially a movie with such cinematic ski scenes; the producers (in their infinite wisdom) have chosen to release it as a pan-and-scan edition. WHY? Why do these things happen to good DVD's? I've seen it before. Companies release bargain (read: cheap) DVD's to sell quickly, but do not bother to re-master the movies properly. Warner Brothers did a lot of this sort of thing in the early days of DVD, they just churned out movies that were popular 5 - 10 years ago hoping for some rejuvenation. I just cannot buy a feature that has a 1.33:1 ratio unless it was originally in that format (such as a TV programme).

By the way, make sure to check out the South Park episode, Asspen, which skewers Hot Dog...the Movie and many other sports movies from the 80's.

Keep fighting against fullscreen releases of movies!!!
If they really want a fullscreen version, they can release BOTH.

Does Hot Dog: The Movie have stellar acting, fascinating characters, and brilliant writing? No. If you want an oscar worthy film that makes you think or makes you cry, don't even bother reading the rest of my review.

But if you want silly, politically incorrect, 80's fun, this is a terrific flick. A real classic from my generation. Aspen Extreme may be a much smarter film, but who really wants that in a ski film? Hot Dog set the 80's standard for a good ski film: good ski action, plenty of beer drinking, some attractive buxom women, and some silly humor. Hot Dog is still the best in this regard: Ski School has more breasts but is so terribly NOT funny, despite stealing the Hot Dog storyline almost to the letter, and Ski Patrol goes one step further by being terribly NOT funny and having NO breasts whatsoever! (Dear God, why?).

The synopsis, like most 80's comedies, seems to follow the Animal House blueprint. The fun, loveable, party guys are being put down by the ...sexually repressed jerks with perfect hair, and they must fight for their right to party. In this case, our heroes are a group of mostly american skiiers known as "The Rat Pack", led by Dan, played by David Naughton of "American Werewolf In London" and "Midnight Madness" notoriety (remember that flick?). The Rat Pack also includes all american boy Harkin Banks, goofy sidekick Squirrel and Okendo ... Yamamoto. Our uptight villians are led by Austrian skiier Rudy "Stay out of ze middle" Garmischt (an uptight Austrian? Surely you jest!). Good looking, all american boy, and rookie skiing sensation, Harkin Banks seems to be outskiing everybody, including Rudy Kazooti, but the judges, probably influenced by big dollars from European sponsers and TV stations, seem to be overlooking this. So our heroes challenge the Austrians to a no holds barred, no rules, Chinese downhill, with the first one to the bottom taking home the trophy.

Some good, funny characters in this film, with Squirrel and Okendo taking home the prize, and a few buxom beauties showing us their assets, such as Sunny (Tracy N. Smith, who had a small part in "Bachelor Party"), and Sylvia, played by Playboy Playmate, eventual softcore B-movie queen, and longtime girlfriend of Gene Simmons, Shannon Tweed.

Skiing, breasts, beer, and some good humor win the day is this typical 80's comedy. Being a skiier from Salt Lake City, I've gone through a few copies of this movie over the years. It gets played about ten times every winter!

This is a decent story about skiing, partying, and hi-jinks and low-brow humor. Watch for two stars--Dan, played by David Naughton--remember the Dr. Pepper commercials and the TV show "Makin' It'? and Sunny played by Tracy N. Smith who co-starred in Bachelor Party as a friend of the bride. There are so many memorable characters in this movie! 'Snake Leg' Banks, Michelle 'Banana Pants', Squirrel Murphy, Kendo, Rudi, etc. Lots of fun. Shannon Tweed is in this, too. She was a Playboy Playmate of the Year. Look for the Chinese Downhill, Squirrel's reaction in the hi-speed chair lift, and the part when Dan lets everyone know he got 'hurt' by hitting a tree. Good skiing shots, too. Need a DVD of this!

I really feel kinda guilty for enjoying this movie - the acting was terrible, the ski scenes were good but they sped up the film and tilted the camera in spots to make it look more dangerous, Shannon Tweed was pretty but looked totally plastic... and yet I still find myself quoting the "stay out of ze middle" and "Chinese Downhill" lines every so often. As "Summer Fun" films go, this is one of the better ones. Not something I pull out very often but still amusing - though I've never been quite sure why.

This is a classic for any hardcore skier or random Gen Xer. I remember my friend RENTED A VCR so we could watch it. Many, many classic lines in here, and gratuitous nudity galore.

I am embarassed to say (and don't tell anyone!), it was AWESOME! No, it was not a masterpiece in the sense that critics would rate it that (but come on, be honest, how many "masterpieces" actually were we really able to honestly enjoy? The Oscar winners always are the "artsy-fartsy" movies anyhow). This show was typical 80's fun, over-the-top, raunchy, you name it. Movies like this defined that decade and that is why so many people still enjoy the 80's music/movies today. You can't pay anyone to recreate this kind of feeling or duplicate it. The main premise is a young skier dreams of winning big and goes head-to-head with an established, big-ego star skier. The show had some cheap production values it is true (seeing in in the theater when it debuted in widescreen--remember seeing the boom in the shot numerous times, or when the camera followed the skiers downhill and you could at times see the microphone or the top of the gondola the cameraman was riding in? Sadly, it isn't noticeable in the pan-and-scan DVD version). The actors weren't great talents, that is proven by their lack of credits after this movie aired. But they were great in these roles. Tracy N. Smith was adorable as the tough-yet-sexy hitchhiker. Too bad she didn't do more roles, as I think with the right encouragement and role, she could've went on to prove and develop her talent. It was just fun. Get this on DVD, sit down with your favorite snack, and be prepared to laugh you a** off for an hour and a half. For those old enough to remember the 80's, go back to that time and relive the feeling of that decade, and those too young, get a small slice of the fun in a time when being cheesy was actually pretty cool.

This movie is a great intro to people who are going skiing for the first time,and I have used it that way. It conveys the FUN factor of the sport with the seriousness of competition. All kinds of people enjoy skiing at different levels of skill and this is a small part of the story. This is just a good old story of good and evil (or corruption) in conflict until the final showdown. Good fun along the way with some humor and human interest mixed in to boot :skiboot that is!

What a Gas! If you're looking for an enjoyable movie, this is it! A classic amoung comedy lovers. A must for ski enthusiasts. And if you're a Shannon Tweed fan, you'll love the bath tub scene!!!

Not on zis side, not on zat side, but right in ze middle!!!! This film was snubbed by the Academy in virtually every award category. Most grievously, it should have won Best Picture... for the following reason at least... it is the only film in history in which a man named Squirrel gets a BJ from a beautiful woman in a gondola ski lift! Add into that the great ski action and nudity, and you have an all time classic for the ages. It is THE gold standard in film! It features stunning action shots of masterful skiing... along with sexually perverted and staggeringly juvenile humor. Most importantly, it features generous portions of upper-body adult adult female nudity including gratuitous sex scenes that do very little to advance the plot! It's great! Anyone want the drink called the 'leg spreader? The actors convincingly portray professional ski champions. Our ski hero is the classic, talented unknown coming from the rural, country music listening rednecky parts of Idaho. Rudolph Garmitsch is a prick, and an formidable and egotistical Euro-villian you just love to hate! David Naughton plays a convincing hard-partying, good-at-heart older ski pro who acts as encourager to our younger American talent. Do I even need to mention the beautifully shot wet t-shirt contest at the redneck bar or the beautifully shot and intense skiing action that is the Chinese Downhill? Alcohol consumption occurs at parties, in bars and on the slopes, and fun shenanigans ensue! This is a true American classic that should have swept the awards ceremonies that year, but the snotty, stuck-up Academy wasn't ready for a film of this gravity. Shame on them. Shame on them! At least us true film autuers can appreciate the genius of it. Support this film by showing it to as many people as possible. Sooner or later, a much bigger chunk of world will catch on to what it has been missing! No more unjustified war for oil or imperialistic political control. Just booze, boobs, humor and skiing. Dare to dream for the best of all possible worlds! If you haven't seen this, get ready to live! Buy a copy immediately!

P.S. to MGM - Get us the widescreen version fast! Don't insult us with only releasing the full screen version. Stop with the full screen BS on any movie. We don't want to see our films chopped up, and non-widescreen TVs are going away fast. Most serious film watchers (including me) disgustedly turned away from the pan-and-scan crap at least 15 years ago. You brainless schmucks! Get with it!