Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What: Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj
Where:  on cable
Why:  Kal Penn is normally funny

Oh wow - this movie was not very good.  It was a cookie cutter movie you've seen 100 times. But if you enjoy British accents, that might be a good excuse to check it out.

If you remember Van Wilder, the hilarious movie staring Ryan Reynolds and Tara Reid, you might remember Van's sidekick Taj.  Actually, you probably don't remember him, because he was barely in the movie at all.  When Van Wilder came out, Kal Penn (probably best known for his Harold and Kumar roles) was a no-name actor.  But when he became immensely popular, he decided to make this piece of junk film.

Taj is a graduate student/teacher at some English University.  His father also attended this university, so he's pumped to pick up where his pimp father left off.   First stop - super awesome fraternity.  In cookie cutter format, the frat boys are total jerks and kick Taj and his bull dog out.

His only option is 'the barn', a building full of misfits (the nerd, the guy who doesn't talk, the hot girl (I'm not sure why she's a misfit) and a crazy Scottish soccer fan.   Taj teaches the kids about self respect and standing up for yourself … blah, blah, blah.  Of course, they throw a massive party and all the stuffing English people attend, which makes the snobby fraternity crazy mad!

Did I mention there is also a university wide competition to win 'The Cup"?  Seriously, this movie is Revenge of the Nerds all over again.

In typical cookie cutter format, Taj steals a girl away from the snobby frat (Revenge of the Nerds again!), the frat boys play a prank on Taj to make the girl mad at him, blah, blah, blah. You've seen and heard all this before.