Original artwork, not a still
Over? Did you say "over"? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!
— Animal House • 1978
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is a pep talk from the least qualified man in the room, and the joke is in the history: the Germans did not bomb Pearl Harbor, and nobody there cares enough to correct him. Otter's baffled "Germans?" and Boon's "Forget it, he's rolling" are half the fun. Fans still reach for it as a rallying cry for any lost cause that someone refuses to call finished.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Animal HouseShow the scene
Animal House (1978), set at Faber College in 1962. Dean Wormer has just thrown the whole of Delta House out of school over their dismal midterm grades, and the brothers are slumped around the house in defeat. Bluto, played by John Belushi, jumps up and refuses to accept it, delivering his "nothing is over" rally with the Pearl Harbor line, which gets the attacker wrong. Otter asks "Germans?" and Boon tells him to forget it, because Bluto is rolling. The speech turns the Deltas toward their revenge on the Homecoming parade.
Sources (2)
- Wikiquote: Animal HouseDelta House scene after the expulsion, Bluto's speechReference checked
- Wikipedia: Animal HousePlot section; Development sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
