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"American Pie" is a film that, for use of a better phrase, wants to have it's pie and eat it, too. It transitions from raunchy teen comedy to a rather moralistic last act, but even in trying to have these characters learn lessons, they still continue on the hunt for that piece of the pie. It's another teen film, only this one sets its sights on being "different" from the pack of teen films by pushing the R-rating to the limits. Buzz on the film has been promoting the film's "Something About Mary" humor, but strangely, I felt the film was oddly tame. The plot revolves around four high school seniors who make a pact that they must lose their virginity by the final hours before they graduate. I don't have a problem with a teen comedy trying to have a little fun, but that's the problem: a lot of "Pie" begins to feel a little long; there are moments of pure hilarity that had me laughing incredibly hard, such as an internet-based incident, but between scenes like that, the film feels like it's searching for a way to take the story, while I was left searching for a reason to care about these characters. The females seem smart, worldly, and still awkward about adolesence, but sweetly so. The men in this film, for the most part, are simply macho jerks. Towards the end, we are lead to believe that they've learned about love, but it seems rather false that they've actually learned a thing. If anything, the girls are the most appealing part of the film. Tara Reid, who is a lovely actress, has a warmth about her as well as an element of sexiness. Natasha Lyonne(of the much better coming-of-age film, "Slums Of Beverly Hills") adds an element of sass and class to the proceedings and newcomer Mina Suvari is a strong presence as Heather. The female characters are sweet, but unmemorable- they're not given a chance to really become fully realized characters. As I said previously, I find nothing wrong with a comedy like this having a little raunchy fun. "Austin Powers 2" had it a couple of weeks ago; "South Park" had it the weekend before this one. But there was something about both of those films that this one lacks: joy. Those comedies danced in their foul language. "South Park" even sung about it. "American Pie" may contain the foul language of those films, but it's curiously lacking in that fun spark of energy that those other two films contained. Maybe it's also due to the fact that "Pie" seems to fall back to the same brand of comedy time and time again: simply humiliating the characters, or, more specificially, the main character, Jim. Sometimes we laugh along, but for the most part, I cringed in embarassment. The foul language seems seperated from the body of the film- it's an outside layer, but on the inside, what you'll find as the filling in this "Pie" is the usual teen plot that we've seen this year, right down to the ending at the Prom. There are some funny moments in "Pie", especially that scene I mentioned earlier involving the internet, but these scenes simply seem like they are few and far between. I would have seriously liked to have seen the filmmakers push the energy level higher and cut this down to a sleek 90-95 minutes. At 110 minutes, it simply feels too long. The other "sexy" teen film this year, "Cruel Intentions" worked better than this film. It had a stronger edge, a wit, characters who were more memorable and even had moments of humor. This film tries to be shocking, but really, what's shocking anymore? It's interesting to see the limits consistently being raised during the past few years, from "Clerks" to "Something About Mary" to "Austin Powers 2" to "South Park". "South Park" made me laugh not only because there were elements of smart satire in the layers underneath, but because it genuinely took a fun, demented glee to being so "naughty". "American Pie" tries to shock laughs from the audience and it feels too predictable and I think the ad campaign is at serious fault for that. Most of the "shocking" moments in "Pie" have been ruined by the film's trailer. There are some serious laughs in "Pie", but they're a bit too few and far between to recommend a taste. Go rent "Slums Of Beverly Hills" instead to see a wonderful performance by "Pie" star Lyonne. ** 1/2 BACK TO THE SITE: Listing Of DVD Special Sales Back To A Guide To Current Film A List Of Current/Upcoming DVD For Sale Soundtracks For Current Films |
American Pie Rated:R Running Time:110 Minutes |