Una banda de tramposos

This is not the type of film I sit down to watch but I saw one of the good looking Lawrence guys while flipping through channels & decided since it just started-why not?!!! Good movie! FUNNY! Entertaining! "Ferris Buller" meets "Porky's" simmered on top of "Parker Lewis Can't Lose." (7)

I first heard about this movie way back in May of 2001 when it was scheduled to get a theatrical release under the title of CHEATERS. The release date was changed and then changed again. A year passed by and for a while, I thought this movie would never see the light of day. Then earlier this month I finally saw the movie [after being retitled CHEATS] when it premiered on Cinemax. I loved every moment of the movie. It combines a perfect balance of comedy and drama that is hard to find in movies these days. The plot concerns four high school students, Handsome [Trevor Fehrman], Sammy [Elden Henson], Victor [Matthew Lawrence], and Applebee [Martin Starr] who cheat their way through school until one day they slip up and as their last year comes to a close, so does their friendship. To give away anymore about the plot would be wrong, but the movie is more about its characters than its plot. All four of the main characters are fully developed and each one of them has characteristics that make them the most likeable group of characters I've seen in a movie in quite some time. I hope New Line Cinema releases this movie to video and DVD since a movie like this is bound to become a cult favorite. ****

I work at a mall, in a store across from a movie theatre. I remember,about a year or so ago, maybe longer, that the trailer for this movie was displayed on the tv that the theatre set up. I remember it specifically because I remember thinking,"they should change the title, there's already a movie called cheaters." After that, I heard nothing more of the film. Until, that is, about three weeks ago, when I was walking out of another movie theatre after seeing "Ghost Ship." I saw the "Cheaters" poster in the lobby. This time I remember thinking,"its about time, it's finally coming out." Flash forward to today, about three weeks later. I just got done watching a movie on Cinemax called "Cheats." I had a feeling it was the same damn movie, and after visitng imdb.com, I realized I was right. The movie probably got plucked out of theatres so fast,I wouldn't be surprised if the poster for it is still hanging up at my local theatre's lobby. The question is....why? I thought the movie was hysterical, I really don't understand it. New Line Cinema has a habit of turning down good movies, such as Overnight Delivery, Campfire Tales, Happy Campers, and now Cheats,as well. I really think this movie would have done good at the box office,it was much better than some of the crap New Line puts in theatres.Oh well, hopefully everybody will check it out and give this film a much better fate on home video(whenever it gets there, it's currently not available.)

The intro says its based on a true happening, if you want to believe that its your privilege. A fun movie to watch portraying the antics of high school students trying to finish their senior year, but addicted to cheating as the MO to get through. Some serious moments were okay but personality clashes as between characters Victor(Matthew Lawrence) and Applebee(Martin Starr)do not seem to fit the overall mood. The plot overall was good although somewhat predictable, with numerous subplots along the way to keep the interest up. Well worth the time to watch.

Just caught this film on Cinemax during a free preview weekend, and I liked it so much I came to IMDb to get a link to the DVD. I was pretty stunned to learn that not only is there no DVD, but according to the info here, the film never even got a theatrical release.

This is difficult to understand, because "Cheats" is one of the funniest high school movies I've ever seen, and is definitely one of the most realistic, in terms of its depiction of high school kids. Even stuff like "American Pie", which by comparison to the average high school movie seems laudably legit in its presentation of high schoolers, seems phony and staged compared to this film.

Perhaps Martin Starr (who, like the other actors, turns in a great performance here) carries a curse that would also explain the first-season cancellation of another very entertaining and realistic high school dramedy, TV series "Freaks and Geeks".

I suppose I'm not the _most_ impartial judge, since like the main characters in this film, I also attended a private high school and despite being very bright, couldn't stand studying or doing homework. I may have even (ulp) practiced my "wicked small" writing skills on one or two occasions. But despite my bias, I have to think just about anyone would enjoy this film (except perhaps hardcore disciplinarians who would object to the fact that the cheaters get away with much of their crime).

So catch "Cheats", if you get the chance. It's the funniest take on cheating (I especially enjoyed the cheaters' jargon, like "mis-sequenced", and "the sick cheat") since MST3K's send-up of Centron's 1952 "mental hygiene" short "Cheating" (from whence the quote in my Summary derives).