''Fifty Pills'' (also known as ''50 Pills'') is the debut comedy film of director Theo Avgerinos, which premiered at the 2006

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. Tribeca was f ...

Plot

After being blamed for a party which he didn't throw or have any knowledge of, that resulted in many damages, young Darren (

Lou Taylor Pucci Lou Taylor Pucci (born July 27, 1985) is an American actor who first appeared on film in Rebecca Miller's ''Personal Velocity: Three Portraits'' in 2002. Pucci had his breakthrough leading role in ''Thumbsucker (film), Thumbsucker'' (2005), for wh ...

) loses his scholarship. Being from a lower-middle-class family he will not have enough money to pay for college next semester without his scholarship. His roommate, Coleman ( John Hensley), who actually threw the party, sympathizes with Darren and gives him a stash of fifty ecstasy pills. If he sells the pills he would have enough money to stay in school. Darren sells to many weirdos, including a

dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for infli ...

who wants the pills so her "pets" can be numb when she has sex with them. When he visits his girlfriend, her roommate sets Darren up with a connection. The brother of this roommate, a seemingly mentally-challenged and over-zealous white-collar employee named Ralphie (

Eddie Kaye Thomas Eddie Kaye Thomas (born October 31, 1980) is an American actor who rose to prominence as Paul Finch in the ''American Pie'' film series. His other notable appearances include Andy Rosenberg in the ''Harold & Kumar'' series, Jeff Woodcock in ...

), is obsessed with ''

Diff'rent Strokes ''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackso ...

''. He makes Darren watch four hours of the show, but Darren leaves. Upon leaving he is harassed by a drug dealer known as The Seoul Man (

Ron Yuan Ronald Winston Yuan is an American actor, martial artist, director, and stunt choreographer. He is best known for his roles on '' Sons of Anarchy'', '' Prison Break'', '' Golden Boy'', and '' CSI: NY''. He has acted in numerous films, including a ...

), who almost kills him. Once again his luck turns sour when his girlfriend finds out that he is selling drugs and breaks off with him. Coleman owes money to a drug dealer, so a group of three armed thugs are sent to extract the money from him at his dorm. Not having the money, he says he will call Darren and they can take whatever pills he has left as collateral. Darren comes back to the dorm, and gives the pills to the thugs, who leave. The next day, Darren feels defeated, but discovers that Coleman paid his tuition in full and is leaving the college. Reinvigorated, Darren begins dating Gracie and the movie ends with the two sitting on a bench with Darren taking a picture on his phone, saying that Gracie is about to make his parents very happy.

Cast

as Darren *

Kristen Bell Kristen Anne Bell (born July 18, 1980) is an American actress. Beginning her acting career by starring in stage productions while attending the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, she made her Broadway stage debut as Becky That ...

as Gracie * John Hensley as Coleman *

Nora Zehetner Nora Angela Zehetner (born February 5, 1981) is an American film and television actress. Early life Zehetner was born in El Paso, Texas, the daughter of Nancy Lynne (née Nelson) and John Carol Zehetner. She attended elementary school in Richar ...

as Michelle * Diora Baird as Tiffany * Michael Masini as Halo *

Michael Peña Michael Anthony Peña (; ; born January 13, 1976) is an American actor. He has starred in many films, including ''Crash'' (2004), '' World Trade Center'' (2006), '' Shooter'' (2007), '' Observe and Report'' (2009), '' Tower Heist'' (2011), '' Batt ...

as Eduardo *

Jane Lynch Jane Marie Lynch (born July 14, 1960) is an American actress, comedian and author. She is known for starring as Sue Sylvester in the musical comedy series '' Glee'' (2009–2015), which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award. Lynch also gained recog ...

as Doreen *

Monica Keena Monica Keena (born May 28, 1979) is an American actress. She made her film debut in '' While You Were Sleeping'' (1995), and a lead role as Lilliana "Lilli" Hoffman in '' Snow White: A Tale of Terror'' (1997). She later starred as Lori Campb ...

as Petunia *

as Ralphie *

John Kapelos John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

as Harold *

Donnell Rawlings Donnell M. Rawlings (born December 6, 1968) is an American comedian, actor, and radio host. He is best known as a cast member on the Comedy Central sketch comedy TV series ''Chappelle's Show'' and the HBO drama ''The Wire''. Early life Donnell ...

as C-Low *

Rachel Boston Rachel Elizabeth Boston (born May 9, 1982) is an American actress and producer. Boston has had leading roles in a number of independent films, and was a regular cast member in several television series. She starred in the NBC drama series, ''Amer ...

as Lindsay *

John Marshall Jones John Marshall Jones is an American actor, best known for portraying Floyd Henderson on The WB sitcom ''Smart Guy''. He is currently the spokesperson for Pizza Hut. Career Since 2021, Jones has had a recurring role as U.S. Air Force General Nel ...

as Housing manager * Chris J. Johnson as Paul *

as The Seoul Man

Release and reception

''Fifty Pills''

premiered A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition. A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its first ...

at the 2006

on April 26, 2006.

References

External links

* * * * {{rotten-tomatoes, fifty_pills, Fifty Pills 2006 films 2000s crime comedy-drama films American crime comedy-drama films American independent films 2006 directorial debut films 2006 comedy films 2006 drama films 2006 independent films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films