The Sweet 16 is halfway set, now we have to pick the remaining eight teams. You will vote for matchups in The Dude and Han Solo regions. You have until midnight on Saturday to vote for your choices in those regions. Popular vote will determine which movie advances, and in the case of a tie in voting, the tiebreak score will determine who moves forward. I will do a brief rundown of each matchup that includes my vote in that matchup under a spoiler warning, followed by a list of the matchups for easier copying. Let’s proceed.
#1 seed Animal House
#9 seed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
This matchup sees a pair of movies that focus on slackers who don’t care about school. First up is Animal House, with a roster full of comedic craziness, bouncing from scene to scene with a frenetic energy befitting the members of Delta House. Then, we have Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, which is carried by Matthew Broaderick’s performance as the titular character who is literally too cool for school. Both movies have great moments (both disrupt parades in memorable fashion), and there are plenty of laughs to be found in either.
#4 seed Trading Places
#12 seed Toy Story
While it may not seem like these movies have much in common, they actually tell similar stories. Both are tales of two different types of men who begin as enemies, then through their shared experience of being far outside their comfort zones, they become best friends and take down their common antagonist with the help of unlikely friends that they have made along the way. Of course, Trading Places does so in a far less family friendly way than Toy Story, but there are similarities.
#3 seed Caddyshack
#6 seed Anchorman
This 3-6 matchup is a tough one between two movies that prominently feature Saturday Night Live alumni. On the one hand, you have Caddyshack, a movie that throws four comedic actors with very different styles on a golf course and just lets the magic happen. Then you have Anchorman, which is certainly led by Will Ferrell in the titular role, but gives him a strong supporting cast to work with for a lot of great comedy moments. These are both movies that I will watch pretty much whenever they are on, and it’s a shame they both can’t advance to the next round.
#2 seed The Big Lebowski
#10 seed O Brother, Where Art Thou?
It’s an all-Coen Brothers matchup in this round as The Big Lebowski goes up against O Brother, Where Art Thou? O Brother was able to pull off a first round upset thanks to the charm of George Clooney as the paterfamilias and a strong cast of characters. The Big Lebowski is more of a two man show with Jeff Bridges and John Goodman dominating the comedic action throughout the movie. This is going to be a tough one as there are certain stylistic similarities through both of these movies, as one would expect given that the same pair of brothers directed them.
MATCHUPS
#1 seed Animal House
#9 seed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
#4 seed Trading Places
#12 seed Toy Story
#3 seed Caddyshack
#6 seed Anchorman
#2 seed The Big Lebowski
#10 seed O Brother, Where Art Thou?
#1 seed Animal House
#9 seed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
This matchup sees a pair of movies that focus on slackers who don’t care about school. First up is Animal House, with a roster full of comedic craziness, bouncing from scene to scene with a frenetic energy befitting the members of Delta House. Then, we have Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, which is carried by Matthew Broaderick’s performance as the titular character who is literally too cool for school. Both movies have great moments (both disrupt parades in memorable fashion), and there are plenty of laughs to be found in either.
In the end, I think the bench is too deep for Ferris to handle on his own, so I’m voting Animal House.
#4 seed Trading Places
#12 seed Toy Story
While it may not seem like these movies have much in common, they actually tell similar stories. Both are tales of two different types of men who begin as enemies, then through their shared experience of being far outside their comfort zones, they become best friends and take down their common antagonist with the help of unlikely friends that they have made along the way. Of course, Trading Places does so in a far less family friendly way than Toy Story, but there are similarities.
This matchup is going to be a tough one, but I’m going with the underdog, Toy Story.
#3 seed Caddyshack
#6 seed Anchorman
This 3-6 matchup is a tough one between two movies that prominently feature Saturday Night Live alumni. On the one hand, you have Caddyshack, a movie that throws four comedic actors with very different styles on a golf course and just lets the magic happen. Then you have Anchorman, which is certainly led by Will Ferrell in the titular role, but gives him a strong supporting cast to work with for a lot of great comedy moments. These are both movies that I will watch pretty much whenever they are on, and it’s a shame they both can’t advance to the next round.
Ultimately, I am going to have to go with Caddyshack.
#2 seed The Big Lebowski
#10 seed O Brother, Where Art Thou?
It’s an all-Coen Brothers matchup in this round as The Big Lebowski goes up against O Brother, Where Art Thou? O Brother was able to pull off a first round upset thanks to the charm of George Clooney as the paterfamilias and a strong cast of characters. The Big Lebowski is more of a two man show with Jeff Bridges and John Goodman dominating the comedic action throughout the movie. This is going to be a tough one as there are certain stylistic similarities through both of these movies, as one would expect given that the same pair of brothers directed them.
For me, I have to vote for The Big Lebowski.
MATCHUPS
#1 seed Animal House
#9 seed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
#4 seed Trading Places
#12 seed Toy Story
#3 seed Caddyshack
#6 seed Anchorman
#2 seed The Big Lebowski
#10 seed O Brother, Where Art Thou?
