John Plummer is engaged to Elaine, who makes baskets for special occasions. John works for Elaine's father at Homespital, a medical supply company. John and Elaine finally have saved $30,000, enough money to buy a house.
But there is a problem. Years ago, John made a promise to his niece Noreen, whose mother Patty is considered "trailer trash" (the term is used in the movie), and whose father is unknown. Noreen was eliminated early in a spelling bee, and John told her she wasn't dumb. In fact, he said he would pay for Noreen's college education. And the promise is preserved on videotape.
Surprise! Noreen has been accepted to Harvard. And she is getting financial aid and she has saved money from her job handling cattle carcasses. So she only needs ... guess how much? John can't tell Elaine they can't buy a house. And her father doesn't respect him as it is. So John turns to his friend Duff, a landscaper who still lives with his mother. John has some ideas, but they generally involve breaking the law. For example, Duff's Uncle Jack runs a liquor store and has lots of money collected from selling lottery tickets, guarded by a clerk who supposedly offers no threat from anyone wanting to steal it.
And David Loach was a former classmate and a loser, but he seems to have money to lend, and a bunch of goons to make sure he is repaid. Where does he get his money? Well, you'll find out ONE way ...
And Duff's client who won't lock his safe (what was his landscaper doing INSIDE the house?) and who misses his late wife. This is good for some of the raunchiest but also funniest gags in the whole movie.
I think a lot of people will consider Tom Green and John McGinley to be the standout performers in this movie. I don't like either of them, but they both do quite a good job. So does Dennis Farina.
Elaine is not a pleasant character for the most part, but when she gets excited, she's really quirky. Plus she's pretty. John is normal, and I wouldn't have even recognized Jason Lee without the mustache he had in a flashback. He's just mostly there, and not that much like Earl Hickey. Earl is a loser who had to turn to crime when he didn't have a job, and ... wait a minute. But, wait, see, John Plummer has a job, and he doesn't NEED to commit crimes.
The important thing is that Green and Lee are often hilarious together, a couple of bumbling idiots.
"Will and Grace" fans need not watch for Megan Mullally, because Patty is nothing like Karen. They might still like her and the movie for other reasons. Actually, I can think of one big reason ...
There is one tender scene related to the fact that Patty and John lost their parents when John was 18. The movie opens with scenes from that time in John's life, and the funeral scene makes more sense after the scene with the two of them later.
Martin Starr is really funny as the liquor store clerk who was more savvy than our heroes may have expected.
It could have been better, but I was mostly happy. Where this is funny, it's really funny. And you must be able to handle crude humor.
One more thing: I usually stay around until the credits end because I often like to see what songs were used. In this movie, you absolutely must watch until the very end for the outtakes. Some of them are hilarious.
