Deep Thoughts about Revenge of the Nerds

Deep Thoughts About Stupid Sh*t

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NERDS!!!

On today’s episode of Deep Thoughts, Emily shares her analysis (and horrified shuddering) about the oddly influential 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds. Though the filmmakers thought they were writing the “gentle and funny underdog story” that Gene Siskel characterized the movie as, Nerds treats women as less-than-human trophies by using sexual assault as a punchline. While the film does accept Lamar Latrelle’s open homosexuality as NBD (but still pokes fun at stereotypical gay behavior), the majority of the humor relies on misogyny, racism, homophobia, and fatphobia while the film undercuts its own message by telling nerds they can beat the jocks at their own game–which continues to have devastating consequences 40 years later.

Content warning: Discussions of rape by deception, revenge porn and pedophilia.

Throw on your headphones and join us in the unenlightened early 80s…

Mentioned in this episode:

The Oral History of Revenge of the Nerds
Reconsidering Revenge: How Revenge Of The Nerds‘ Misogyny Is Evident In Current Nerd Culture
Siskel & Ebert - Revenge of the Nerds (1984)

Our theme music is "Professor Umlaut" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Learn more about Tracie and Emily (including our other projects), join the Guy Girls' family, secure exclusive access to bonus episodes, video versions, and early access to Deep Thoughts by visiting us on Patreon.

Chapters

1. Thoughts on Revenge of the Nerds (00:00:00)

2. Retaliation and Party Antics (00:13:32)

3. Carnival Contest for Greek Council Leadership (00:21:09)

4. Carnival Victory, Identity and Discrimination (00:30:04)

5. Exploring Discrimination and Privilege (00:39:26)

6. Dissecting Revenge of the Nerds (00:46:40)

7. Toxic Masculinity in Film Culture (00:58:35)

8. Examining Toxic Masculinity in Film (01:08:43)