NEAR MISS: MEATBALLS (1979)

Maybe this wasn’t a “near miss.” Maybe it’s a “Boy, is she dumb” miss, or a “How could she not have known?” miss.

Bill Murray. 1979. Was that enough of a tip-off? Perhaps. Perhaps I was in denial. Perhaps I should have dug harder around IMDB since Netflix offered no indication that user reviews like, “good family viewing,” were off the mark, unless they meant families with teenagers. Perhaps I should have questioned the “PG” rating since Meatballs was made in1979, and as I’ve noted before, PG now and PG then certainly seem to be different!

Anyway, this serves as notice that, lest you be enticed by Mr. Murray and his inarguable charms, or by the topic (shy boy comes out of shell at summer camp), or by the rave reviews on Netflix, this is far too rife with sexual innuendo to be appropriate for kids. We got into the first ten minutes or so, and after jokes about a “sex machine” counselor picking up ten nurses one night and only “three made it to work the next day” and about about the nice summer kids spending their parents’ money on “hookers from every country” and “raping and pillaging” their way through summer, we abruptly shut down.

Ok, so I’m not up on my Bill Murray like I should be (I do love the guy). Forgive me. But I’m here to serve.