this movie suffer from what many modern ( post 2000 ) slacker comedy be stricken with represent the anything go syndrome . there be few bound in this independent film direct by jake son of lawrence kasdan and feature cameo from chevy chase and lily tomlin and lawrence own stock actor and kevin kline . the story center on a young man from . yep and orange county and california and who spend his careless youth surfing and party while then read a book that change his life and and along with a dream to become a writer and really want to attend stanford university to meet the book author who work there . along the way this desire ( i. e. the plot ) be outshine by the wacky side character and include two beavis and buttheadish surfer pal while a drunk mother ( catherine ohara ) marry to a cripple old man while a selfish father ( john lithgow ) marry to a gorgeous young trophy while and a stoner brother play by jack black ( who not in the movie as much a be promote ) all vie to outdo each other on screen . when the main character play by bland colin hank and son of tom finally arrive at the college of his dream and within ten minute he accidentally give the dean of admission ( a portly harold ramis ) enough x to blind a horse and and to top it off and his zany drug out brother ( use every stoner cliché in the book include the usual wow . ) burn the admission building to the ground . nothing really matter at this point and and yet we have another ( draw out and totally useless ) half an hour to go . all the thing that should have be peripheral eccentricity and which end up leap to the foreground of every scene and be symptom of that disease i already mention represent anything go . which can be and a in this case and fatal . that be and without that one cure and substance . something this movie have very little of .