'Homework' (1982) Blu-Ray Review: A Slightly Disappointing Teen Comedy

Unearthed Classics has struck again, and this time they've dug much deeper than expected and “unearthed” the rare 1982 teen sex comedy Homework. Watching movies like these will always take me back to my youth and teenage years. I was a teenager in the mid to late 80s, so I saw a lot of these movies first hand. I will always enjoy them, whether they were good or bad. For every good movie, there were half a dozen bad ones. Homework falls somewhere in between. There's a lot to like, but the film suffers from a story that loses its focus from the start.

Tommy (Michael Morgan) is a young aspiring “rock star” who is also a virgin. While he tries to lose his virginity to local high school girls, the mother of a classmate (Joan Collins) decides to make him a man. The story unfolds through the young high school student's libertine, funny and sometimes touching life. By the end of his senior year, Tommy is ready to take on the world.

The main problem with Homework is that the story is scattered and quickly loses its focus. There are far too many stories happening at once, including one with a French teacher and another with an abusive parent. They are quickly abandoned and you're left wondering what the point was.

The cast includes Michael Morgan, Lanny Horn, and Shell Kepler, along with veterans like Carrie Snodgress, Lee Purcell, Wings Hauser, and Joan Collins. (The film is perhaps best known for Joan Collins' lawsuit against the film's producers for using a body double during a nude scene she never agreed to.) Their characters are interesting and sympathetic. The film could have excelled with a more stripped-down script, but they did the best they could with what they were given. The humor falls flat, but there are moments that, if executed well, could have propelled the film.

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Unearthed did a good job on the disc. The image is clear and sharp while retaining some grain and grit. The lighting is lacking, with some scenes being far too dark, but this transfer makes them a little easier to distinguish. The bonus features are light, but the nearly thirty-minute interview with legendary producer Max Rosenberg is quite informative. There is a promotional gallery as well as several trailers for upcoming releases.

Homework It may not be one of the most memorable teen sex comedies of the '80s, but the cast and a few choice ideas make it worth watching.

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