Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000)
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Two best friends wake up with no memory of the previous night only to discover their car is missing and they are caught in an interstellar conspiracy.
The story
Best friends and roommates Jesse Montgomery III and Chester Greenburg awaken with hangovers and no memory of the previous night. After discovering their car is missing and their girlfriends' anniversary presents are gone, the two desperately begin retracing their steps. They are motivated by a promise of a "special treat" from their girlfriends. Along their journey, they encounter various eccentric characters, including a transgender stripper, a Chinese tailor, and a UFO cult. They eventually discover that they accidentally acquired an extraterrestrial device the night before, leading them into a surreal quest to find their vehicle and the mysterious object.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Best friends and roommates Jesse Montgomery III and Chester Greenburg awaken with hangovers and no memory of the previous night. They find their car missing and their girlfriends' anniversary presents gone. They begin retracing their steps, encountering a transgender stripper, a Chinese tailor, and a UFO cult led by Zoltan. They also meet two groups of aliens searching for the "Continuum Transfunctioner," an extraterrestrial device they accidentally acquired. The search leads them to Captain Stu's Space-O-Rama, where they encounter Zoltan's cultists and the aliens. They eventually discover that a toy Chester was solving is actually the real Transfunctioner. They learn that the universe will be destroyed if the device's lights stop flashing. They identify the Norwegian men as the protectors of the universe and deactivate the device. The five alien women merge into a 50-foot giantess who swallows a jock named Tommy and chases the boys. Chester uses a straw to push a button on the Transfunctioner, destroying the giantess. The protectors erase the memories of the adventure from the twins and the boys. The boys find their car parked behind a mail truck the next morning and discover the "special treat" was actually matching berets.
- First release year
- 2000
- Runtime (minutes)
- 83
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Danny Leiner
- Writers
- Philip Stark · writer; Glenn Whitehead · content addition
- Cast and characters
- Ashton Kutcher · Jesse Montgomery III; Seann William Scott · Chester Greenburg; Kristy Swanson · Wilma or Wanda; Jennifer Garner · Wilma or Wanda; Marla Sokoloff · Supporting cast; Mary Lynn Rajskub · Supporting cast
- Genres
- stoner comedy; buddy comedy; science fiction comedy
- Themes
- search for meaning; friendship; absurdity
- Tone and mood
- stoner comedy; surrealist; slapstick
- Premise and plot tags
- buddy comedy; sci-fi; stoner comedy; road trip
- Reception
- The film was panned by most critics but was a box office success. It became a minor pop-culture saying and was often described as a "guilty pleasure" or a "lame-brained travesty" depending on the source.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 30 · scale: 100 · review count: 17
- Production trivia
- The film's title is derived from a line in The Big Lebowski.; The Pittsburgh Pirates used the "Zoltan" hand signal as a way to congratulate teammates.; The script was influenced by post-Kantian philosophy.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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