''Up the Creek'' is a 1984

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Robert Butler and starring

Tim Matheson Tim Matheson (born Timothy Lewis Matthieson; December 31, 1947) is an American actor and director. Some of his best-known acting roles include the title character of the 1960s animated ''Jonny Quest (TV series), Jonny Quest'' TV series, Eric "O ...

Dan Monahan Dan Monahan (born July 20, 1955) is an American actor, best known for his role as Edward "Pee Wee" Morris in the 1980s ''Porky's'' trilogy of teen films. He appeared in '' Only When I Laugh'' and ''Porky's'' in 1981. Early and personal life Mona ...

Stephen Furst Stephen Furst (born Stephen Nelson Feuerstein; May 8, 1954 – June 16, 2017) was an American actor, director and producer. After gaining attention with his featured role as Kent "Flounder" Dorfman in the comedy film '' National Lampoon's A ...

Jeff East Jeffrey Franklin East (born October 27, 1957) is an American retired actor. Beginning his professional acting career at the age of fourteen, East is known for his portrayal of Huckleberry Finn in the United Artists feature films '' Tom Sawyer'' ...

Sandy Helberg Sandy Helberg (born May 28, 1949) is an American actor. Early life Helberg was born in Frankfurt, Germany, the son of Tonia (née Altman) and Sam Helberg. His parents were both Holocaust survivors from German-occupied Poland, who met in a concen ...

, Blaine Novak, James B. Sikking,

Jennifer Runyon Jennifer Victoria Runyon (born April 1, 1960) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the slasher film ''To All a Goodnight'' (1980), and went on to have supporting roles in the comedies '' Up the Creek'' (1984) and ''Ghostbust ...

, and

John Hillerman John Benedict Hillerman (December 20, 1932 – November 9, 2017) was an American actor best known for his starring role as Jonathan Quayle Higgins III on the television series '' Magnum, P.I.'' that aired from 1980 to 1988. For his role as ...

Plot summary

Bob McGraw, Max, Gonzer, and Irwin, students at Lepetomane University (known derisively by some as "Lobotomy U"), are volunteered to compete in a collegiate raft race. They are "recruited" by Dean Burch who uses records of McGraw's checkered past as a means of blackmail to get them to compete. He offers them degrees in the major of their choice as additional incentive. "You have the distinct honor of being the four worst students in the entire country.", says Birch, "You're not AT the bottom of the list, you ARE the bottom of the list!" Their opponents include Ivy University, prep schoolers who, with the help of an Ivy alumnus named Dr. Roland Tozer, plan to cheat their way to the Winner's Circle. Their adversaries also include the Washington Military Institute, who are soon disqualified for their attempts to sabotage the other schools' rafts. Captain Braverman, the leader of the Military men, seeks revenge on McGraw for hindering their attempts to sabotage the other rafts. Also entered is a team of attractive female students, one of whom ends up in a romantic situation with McGraw.

Cast

... Bob McGraw *

... Max *

... Irwin *

... Gonzer *

... Heather Merriweather *

... Rex Crandall *

James Sikking James Barrie Sikking (March 5, 1934 – July 13, 2024) was an American actor, best known for his roles as Lt. Howard Hunter on the 1980s television series ''Hill Street Blues'' and David Howser on '' Doogie Howser, M.D.'' Early years James B ...

... Tozer (as James B. Sikking) * Blaine Novak ... Captain Braverman * Mark Andrews ... Rocky *

Jesse D. Goins Jesse D. Goins is an American film and television character actor. He is best known for his role in the 1980s television series ''The Greatest American Hero'' as Cyler Johnson. Goins' career in the film industry includes a role in the 1984 comed ...

... Brown *

Julia Montgomery Julia Montgomery (born July 2, 1960) is an American film and television actress. She first gained public attention for her role as Samantha Vernon on the soap opera ''One Life to Live'' (1976–1981, 1987). She subsequently appeared in the slashe ...

... Lisa (as Julie Montgomery) * Romy Windsor ... Corky *

... Dean Burch * Grant Wilson ... Reggie * Jeana Tomasino ... Molly * Will Bledsoe ... Roger van Dyke *

Robert Costanzo Robert Jason Costanzo (born October 20, 1942) is an American film, television and voice actor. A character actor with an acting career spanning over 40 years, he is often found playing surly New York City types on both sides of the law, and mixe ...

... Campus Guard Charlie * Ken Gibbel ... Campus Guard Leslie * Hap Lawrence ... Gas Station Attendant *

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American actor who specializes in voice acting. He began his career in the 1960s, and held around 850 film, television, and video game credits as of 2020, making him one of the most prolific v ...

as the voice of Chuck the Dog

Production notes

The film was made by Sam Arkoff, who had resigned from American International several years previously and moved into production. He had made films such as ''Q the Winged Serpent''. The movie was known during production as ''Rafts''. It was budgeted at $7.5 million which Sam Arkoff said was "the most I ever spent on a picture." The movie was made by Orion, which had taken over Filmways, the company that went bankrupt after it bought American International. "Even though the company is different, it still has vestiges of American International," said Arkoff. "The exchanges are manned by people I hired. Most of the sales managers worked for me." Tim Matheson was paid $200,000 to play the lead. This film was filmed in Bend, Oregon. Writer

Jim Kouf Jim Kouf (born July 24, 1951) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. He received the 1988 Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay for his work on ''Stakeout'' (1987). Filmography Film Television *''White Water Rebels'' ( ...

later said Robert Butler "was not a great comedy director, he missed a lot of jokes."

Soundtrack

# " Up the Creek" –

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band formed in Rockford, Illinois in 1970 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s pop rock, guitar pop, '70s har ...

# "The Heat" –

Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...

# "

30 Days in the Hole 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

" –

Kick Axe Kick Axe is a Canadian heavy metal band from Regina, Saskatchewan. Influenced by rambunctious arena rock from the 1970s and early 1980s, the group is perhaps best known for their 1984 album '' Vices'', praised by publications such as ''AllMusic'' ...

# "Great Expectations (You Never Know What to Expect)" – Ian Hunter # "Chasin' the Sky" –

The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

# "Get Ready Boy" –

Shooting Star A meteor, known colloquially as a shooting star, is a glowing streak of a small body (usually meteoroid) going through Earth's atmosphere, after being heated to incandescence by collisions with air molecules in the upper atmosphere, creating a ...

# "One Track Heart (Passion in the Dark)" –

Danny Spanos Danny Spanos (also known as George Spannos) was an American rock drummer, best known for his 1983 EP ''Passion in the Dark'' which produced the Mainstream Rock Tracks hit single "Hot Cherie" (originally written by members of the Canadian band ...

# "Take It" – Shooting Star # "Two Hearts on the Loose Tonight" – Randy Bishop # "Get Ready Boy (Instrumental)" – Shooting Star One song that was in the film but not on the soundtrack is "First Girl President" by Namrac.

Reception

The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote that the film was "not as consistently amusing" as ''

Police Academy A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or to o ...

'' but was "rambunctious and raunchy enough to divert undemanding audiences." ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' called it "a moist smut movie" in which the best performance was given by the dog. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' called it "a ridiculous ordeal, all right, but certainly not in the way the filmmakers intended."

Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who co-hosted a movie review television series alongside colleague Roger Ebert. Siskel started writing for the '' ...

of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' however said the film was "a good time", where Matheson, Furst and Helberg "play their roles with the same whimsical naturalness that made

Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian, known for his deadpan delivery in roles ranging from studio comedies to independent dramas. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Bill Murra ...

a star. They don't push themselves upon us, and that allows us to identify with them in a relaxed way. The result is a very tight script with breathing room. That's most unusual for a teen comedy, and that's why ''Up the Creek'' is one of the best."

References

External links

''Up the Creek'' review
at the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''
Review of film
by

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

* * * {{Authority control 1984 films 1980s sex comedy films American sex comedy films American independent films 1980s English-language films Films shot in Bend, Oregon Orion Pictures films Rafting films Films directed by Robert Butler Films with screenplays by Jim Kouf Teen sex comedy films Teensploitation Films set on boats 1984 comedy films 1984 independent films 1980s American films English-language independent films English-language sex comedy films