Swingers

I knew that Swingers was a bit of a cult classic, a "bro's movie" that put Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau on the map. I expected wacky hijinks to ensue in Vegas, perhaps on some sort of bachelor party or something, and for the line "Vegas baby, Vegas!" to be used more than once. I figured that almost 20 years later without the proper context I would find the movie kinda funny but not hilarious. And I expected this trip to Vegas to be a little glamorized too, making the swinging lifestyle that the movie's named after out to be some sort of risky but rewarding venture for the group of friends who seemed ready to try it out. It was only really on this last point that I was wrong; I figured "swingers" meant people in committed relationships who sleep around with others, but no, these "swingers" are just a few single guys out on the town and looking for love. At the heart of the story is Favreau's character attempting to get over a rough break-up, and the more easy-going Vaughn tries to help him out of his funk by getting him laid in Vegas. And for the most part the movie makes Vaughn's uncaring, non-committal character out to be a fool and makes Vegas seem about as seedy and underwhelming as I expect it to be. Still though, this was pretty fun to watch; while "bro movie" and Vince Vaughn might turn some off considering his later Frat Pack movies, Swingers surprised me by showing some heart and never really losing sight of the fact that it's about Favreau recovering from a break-up, rather than an excuse for wild sex jokes. It's not something I'm going out of my way to watch again, but Swingers was pretty good.