It pains me to say it but this film is dated

Rating: 6/10 (28 May 2006)

I recently watched Caddyshack for the first time in years. I loved it years ago and still quote it today. Before viewing, I told my brother I was gonna rent it. After all, I hadn't seen it since college. He said "dude, this movie hasn't aged well." I retorted with a quick "you're crazy." This is Caddyshack, one of THE all time great comedies. A modern day comedic masterpiece according to everyone, including myself. In a past review about Used Cars, I even marveled about how it's jokes had aged well, whereas UC had lost it's edge.
About an hour into it, I realized "oh my God, my brother is right." The film isn't just dated because of the polyester, unkempt hair and short shorts. The jokes simply aren't as funny. Lines that I regularly quote didn't hold up. I can't tell you the disappointment I experienced in learning this. First of all, I'm a huge fan of Rodney Dangerfield. And some of his lines are quotable, even from this movie. But many of his antics simply haven't held up. Other Dangerfiled films like Back to School have aged much better. Then again, I haven't watched it in a few years, maybe it's lost it's humor. It did have William Zabka, the poster child of 80s blond haired goons. So who knows.
I never cared about the plot of this movie. Neither did Harold Ramis. It's basically about the vastly different members at a country club. It's character driven, not plot based, and gag ridden. And some of the jokes are fun to quote with friends. But hearing them during the movie will not make you laugh. Even on DVD, the film just hasn't aged well. It really feels low budget.
I don't want to get in depth about this movie. Nearly everyone on earth has seen it. The writing is good, Harold Ramis knew what he was doing. And watching it, I could see the similarities with this and Animal House. Ramis didn't direct AH but the music in each was similar. And each movie really had no plot. But whereas Animal House still gets the party going, Caddyshack seems hopelessly antiquated. Seriously, picking your boogers and eating em? The Baby Ruth in a swimming pool? That was funny when everyone was saying "sike."
Having said that, there's no denying Caddyshacks place in film history. It showed the screen talent of Dangerfield to a new generation. It catapulted the careers of Chevy Chase and Bill Murray (who supposedly disliked each other). Plus some of the one liners, though a bit mean-spirited, are still being quoted by the kids. But watching the film, it's just not as captivating. I don't know if there's really a way of preventing that. You make a movie with material that's funny at the time. Styles and humor are gonna change, so it's hard to know what will be funny in 10, 20, 30 years.
I'll always have a special place in my heart for Caddyshack. I spent many nights watching it with friends, so it has nostalgic value. And I'll forever love Dangerfield, Murray and Chase (until he became unfunny). Yet after seeing how dated it is, I'll never watch it again. I'm simply gonna remember Caddyshack for what it was years ago. Not how it looks today.