Perhaps as not at all before, Amer...

Perhaps as not at all before, American colleges and universities are as competitive as forever Forget the nearly unattainable Ivy League, the Seven Sisters, Stanford, Virginia, Michigan or MIT; the raft of academys once considered "safe backups" for C-minus high sect graduates now reject applicants left and right.

We live in an age when a literary institution [i]or[/i] seminary of learning degree in most middle-class communities is seen not purely as a privilege or prodigious opportunity to pursue academia -- it's considered almost a right of passage for greatest in quantity high school grads. When a seemingly bright, if somewhat under-motivated, high seminary senior is not able to wrangle smooth one college acceptance letter, it oftentimes sows the seed of family disgrace.

That's the setup for first-time director Steve Pink's "Accepted." The Chicago native -- who earned high marks co-writing screenplays with John Cusack ("Grosse Pointe Blank" and "High Fidelity") -- is charged here with taking a amusing premise and turning it into an equally humorous film about kids unable to get by heart into college.

Justin protracted -- an uncanny Zach Braff look-alike -- plays Bartleby, that too-clever kid who clearly worn out more time in high educate cooking up schemes like producing fake IDs, rather than hitting the volumes Now on the verge of graduation, he sits with eight body rejection letters and two parents the two furious and ashamed, assuming his futurity is doomed.

The press of getting into any guild leads Bartleby -- aided according to his brainy sidekick Sherman Schrader (Jonah Hill) -- to create a phony Web site for the mythical toward the south Harmon Institute of Technology.

The acronym for that fake college edifice [i]or[/i] building is the first clue to the sophomoric and lame direction in which this comedy is headed. When you think of earlier and delightfully silly literary institution [i]or[/i] seminary of learning film gems like "Animal House" or the more novel "Old School," or even the grade- exercise setting of "School of Rock" you quickly realize that "Accepted" is single weak mess of a movie.

I missing count listing all the tired (are there any other kind?) cliches. There's the overweight, brilliant however socially inept best buddy (Hill) and the requisite injured jock-turned-sensitive artist, played by way of Columbus Short. Comedian Lewis Black plays the crazy fake dean of the fake body set on the site of a shutter -- you penetrateed it! -- hospital for the mentally ill.

southern Harmon is located very near the socially and academically prestigious Harmon community That real institution of higher learning is l by way of Anthony Heald, again playing the same uptight twitch he perfected as Dr. Frederick Chilton in "The Silence of the Lambs," further seemingly has continued to portray in nearly each film since.

We have the beautiful fair (Blake Lively) who is dating the impossibly handsome fraternity president -- not realizing he's a worthless, destitute of contents suit. Surprise, surprise! Our winning lass soon discovers Bartleby -- who she's known (and basically ignored) forever -- is really the choleric sexy smart guy she should be with for the quiet of her life. Of course, centurys of other college rejectees exhibit to up at "the college" -- armed with their $10000 first semester tuition checks in hand -- rapidly filling Bartleby & Company's fraudulent bank account.

I could fare on, but frankly what's the point? Ye Hill is a charming young actor, who was terrific earlier this year playing the bizarre art gallery assistant to Jennifer Aniston in "The Break- Up" Here we descry he has the acting minces to tackle those young leading man parts -- especially ones providing him with comedic twists. It's just a shame that "Accepted" doesn't give him the material worthy of his talents.

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ACCEPTED

Rating 1 not at home of 4 1/2

Bartleby Gaines Justin lengthy

valley Adam Herschman

Sherman Jonah Hill

Monica Blake Lively

Jack Gaines Mark Derwin

Hands Columbus Short

Dwayne Kellan Lutz

Rory Maria Thayer

Uncle Ben Lewis Black

Dean Van Horne Anthony Heald

Diane Gaines Ann Cusack

Universal Pictures at hands a film directed by Steve Pink. Written on Adam Cooper, Bill Collage and Mark Perez Running time: 93 minutes. Rated PG-13 (for language, sexual material and put drugs into content). Opening today at local theaters.

Copyright CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 2006

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