I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell (film)

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell is a 2009 American independent comedy film loosely based on the work and persona of writer Tucker Max, who co-wrote the screenplay. In an interview with Shave Magazine Max explained that the film is not "a direct recount or retelling. It says it is based on true events because it is. Basically, every scene in the movie happened in real life in one way or another but it happened in a different time or time frame. But pretty much every single thing happened."[1] The film was directed by Bob Gosse and stars Matt Czuchry as Max. It was produced by Darko Entertainment and distributed by Freestyle Releasing. Max had said previously that sequels were possible if the initial film found financial success.[2]

I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBob Gosse
Produced byTucker Max
Richard Kelly
Nils Parker
Sean McKittrick
Aaron Ray
Karen Firestone
Max Wong
Ted Hamm
Written byTucker Max
Nils Parker
Based onI Hope they Serve Beer in Hell
by Tucker Max
StarringMatt Czuchry
Jesse Bradford
Geoff Stults
Keri Lynn Pratt
Marika Dominczyk
Music byJames L. Venable
CinematographySuki Medencevic
Distributed byFreestyle Releasing
Release date
September 25, 2009 (2009-09-25)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.43 million

The film was released in theaters on September 25, 2009. The DVD was released on January 26, 2010. While the book was a best-seller, the film adaptation of Max's exploits was a box office bomb that earned overwhelmingly negative reviews.

Plot summary

The film's plot is loosely adapted from "The Austin Road Trip Story" in Max's book I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell. A tireless and charismatic novelty seeker, Tucker (Matt Czuchry) tricks his buddy Dan (Geoff Stults) into lying to his fiancée Kristy (Keri Lynn Pratt), so they can go to a legendary strip club three and a half hours away to celebrate Dan’s last days of bachelorhood in proper style. Tucker drags their misanthropic friend Drew (Jesse Bradford) along for the ride, and before they know it Tucker’s pursuit of a hilarious carnal interest lands Dan in serious trouble with both the law and his future wife.

The ensuing blowout leaves Tucker uninvited from the wedding and ankle-deep in a mess of his own creation. If he wants back into the wedding and the lives of his best friends, he’ll have to find a way to balance the demands of friendship with his own narcissism and selfishness.

Principal cast

Denise Quiñones was originally cast as Lara, but dropped out two days before filming started. Dominczyk, who had been the original first choice for the role but had passed due to a scheduling conflict, was now available and stepped in immediately

The film includes cameo appearances from UFC fighters Forrest Griffin and Mac Danzig; rapper Paul Wall; Fark.com founder Drew Curtis, author Timothy Ferriss, and the real-life Tucker Max (playing Dan's older brother Jeff). Producer/writer Nils Parker also has a small cameo, playing an announcer in the strip club.

Reception

The film received generally negative reviews. As of July 2020, 20% of the 35 reviews compiled on Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 3.19/10. The review consensus from Rotten Tomatoes was: "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell fails in its attempts at raunchy humor, and Tucker Max comes across so unlikable and outrageous that the film's inevitable story arc feels forced."[3] Numerous critics considered the movie to be one of the worst of the year.[4][5][6]

Box office

Opening weekend gross was $366,900 on 120 screens. Its total domestic gross was $1.4 million.[7] Max blamed the movie's box office failure on the marketing of the movie.[8]

In 2016, Max described the movie as "a big failure, probably my biggest and most personal ever", and blamed himself:

[I]t failed mainly because of my bad decisions, and all of those decisions were ultimately driven by my deep identity and emotional issues.

— Tucker Max[9]

Controversy

In 2009, during the pre-release promotional period for the movie, several publications accused Max of rape and of promoting rape culture by allegedly glamorizing the practice of engaging in sex acts with women who are intoxicated. In addition, protests were staged at screenings of the movie by demonstrators who argued that intoxication precludes a woman from consenting to sex, and thus Max's stories and movie include descriptions of acts that "meet the legal definition of rape in North Carolina."[10][11][12] In 2012, writing in his book Trust Me, I'm Lying, Max's marketer Ryan Holiday revealed that the controversy was a publicity stunt fabricated and spread by Holiday to create interest in the film.[13]

References
  1. Jake Tomlinson. "Interview: Tucker Max". ShaveMagazine.com. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  2. I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell To Be A Series
  3. "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  4. The ten worst movie moments in 2009. Archived 2011-09-07 at the Wayback Machine
  5. The worst movies of 2009? A little help, please Archived 2012-10-20 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "12 Awful Movies Of The Last Decade". Chicago Tribune.
  7. "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell". Box Office Mojo.
  9. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304232105/http://www.tuckermax.me/how-i-learned-to-own-my-failures-asshole-to-ceo-2/
  10. Student Protesters Stage Rally Opposing Tucker Max Film Screening
  11. Tucker Max plugs I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell at NCSU as protesters fume outside
  12. The Rapiest Quotes From “I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell”
  13. Getlen, Larry (July 15, 2012). "PR exec tells all about manipulating the media — and spreading lies online". New York Post. Retrieved April 14, 2016.
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