MovieChat Forums > Final Exam (1981) Discussion > The scene that's not as innocent when se...

The scene that's not as innocent when seen today (SPOILERS)

posted 10 years ago by Akzidenz_Grotesk
2 replies | jump to latest

First off, I like this movie and have no complaints about the particular scene I'm going to mention below.

The innovative prank that was ultimately deemed rather innocent by the students was the frat prank of the masked guys in the van shooting up the campus with M-16's using blanks (with a few fake "victims" playing along with fake blood.) It must have seemed unimaginable in real life to the writers in 1981 and therefore good for a decent prank scene. However, knowledge of the real massacres at Montreal, Columbine H.S., Virginia Tech etc. may cast a dark pall on this scene for modern viewers; it does at least for me.

In a nice bit of foreshadowing earlier in the movie, the nerdy character "Radish" excitedly babbles on to the chemistry professor about the Charles Whitman killings(The Texas Tower killer) from the 1960's.

"Man was meant to grow, not stop!" -Robert Browning

[–] MisterDenton 9 years ago

I agree, that was my first thought watching this for the first time. No one would even think of pulling a prank like that and if they did they would get way worse than a slap on the wrist. It's hard to buy as a prank nowadays, but I guess when this movie came out it must have been at least somewhat plausible.

[–] legnadibrom (6215) 5 years ago

IMHO the movie should be banned from all streaming services