Classic Movie Review: 'Eurotrip' The Comedy Everyone was Supposed to Forget

Waking up in the month of April 2020 amid a quarantine and the fear and uncertainty of the world, it was odd to open Twitter and see ‘Scotty Doesn’t Know’ was the top trend on one of the biggest social media platforms in the world. As a closet fan of Eurotrip, I recognized the phrase right away as that film’s running musical gag. I had assumed however, that the rest of the world had forgotten about this remarkably minor early 2000’s comedy. And yet, there it was.

Thus I decided to review Eurotrip for the first time in 16 years and to attempt to grasp what it is that helped this movie remain in our collective culture. I’m no closer to understanding it by the end of this review, but at least I had fun.

The phrase “From the producers of Road Trip and Old School” shouldn't have the comedy cache that it does. The job of producer is important but the film Eurotrip does not have director Todd Phillips, stars Tom Green, Will Ferrell or Vince Vaughn or writer Scot Armstrong.

The film’s pedigree is actually far worse. Director Jeff Schaffer was a first time director under that banner in 2004. Schaffer's previous credits, alongside partners Alec Berg and David Mandel, included the wretched script for Cat In The Hat. I guess you can't underestimate a good producer because despite that awful pedigree, Eurotrip isn’t half bad.

Scott Mechlowicz stars as Scotty, a high school kid on the eve of graduation that seemingly has it all, including a lovely girlfriend with whom he is madly in love. It's a shame that she doesn't feel the same way about him as she dumps him immediately after graduation. Dejected, Scotty meets up with his buddy Cooper for a graduation party leading to a terrific running gag about Scotty's girlfriend, a song and a hysterical cameo by none other than Matt Damon.

Scotty has an online friendship with a German guy named Mieke, pronounced Mike, or so Scotty thinks. In reality ‘Mike’ is a smokin' hot blonde, her name is actually pronounced Meeka (Jessica Boehrs). Unfortunately, Scotty doesn't realize Mieke is a girl until after he sends her a drunken email to tell "Mike" to stop hitting on him. Once Scotty realizes his error, he sets about making it right by going to Germany and finding Mieke. Cooper joins him for the opportunity at a crazy European sex party.

The guys join a couple of other high school friends who also happen to be going to Europe for the summer, twins Jamie (Travis Weston) and Jenny (Michele Trachtenberg). The twins had planned to plant themselves in Paris for the summer but once Scotty and Cooper arrive, they join the adventure that will take them from Paris to Rome to Denmark and even war-torn Belgrade before they reach Germany.

Along the way there are very funny encounters with British soccer hooligans, a French mime, a hash bar and an encounter with a lecherous Italian weirdo played by comedian Fred Armisen that became the center of the Eurotrip ad blitz in 2003. In relatively few scenes, Armisen becomes Eurotrip's version of Tom Green in a breakout comic performance. Funny then that Armisen’s creepy performance is one part of Eurotrip that hasn’t lingered in cultural memories.

As dimwitted and low stakes as Eurotrip undoubtedly is, the movie is consistently funny. There is little consistency to the plot, the characters have a specific goal but each change of location feels like a Saturday Night Live sketch. There is little consistent narrative, there is only just enough motivation to give the gags context. That Eurotrip is still funny is a testament to the likable and game cast.

Mechlowicz is the standout, though I did spend the first 20 or so minutes mistaking him for Colin Hanks when I first saw Eurotrip on the big screen in 2004. That aside Mechlowicz shows tremendous charisma and charm. He takes humiliation well and unlike some blandly handsome leading men of the early 2000’s, he doesn't mind being the butt of some terrifically awful jokes. Watch his reaction to the Matt Damon cameo and you can see Mechlowicz evoking a young John Cusack. That he didn’t go on to bigger things after Eurotrip surprised me.

Also good in Eurotrip is former Harriet the Spy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Michele Trachtenberg. Trachtenberg was often accused of being the weakest part of her seasons of Buffy, but here, she shows some real comedy chops and presence. Like her male castmates, Trachteberg has a few mortifying moments and she plays the comedy of humiliation with great aplomb and appeal.

Somehow, Eurotrip, a movie with very little ambition or art to it, has remained a part of our collective culture. Sure, it could be because Matt Damon remains a massive and relevant star and his cameo here is incredibly memorable, but still. Nothing about Eurotrip would appear to be something that would remain in our collective memory for 16 years. And yet, on a morning in April of 2020, it was the top trending topic on Twitter. Like it or not, Eurotrip has staying power well beyond its mild ambition.