Review of American Pie

Introduction

A teen sex comedy, what a novel idea? I was initially sceptical when I first heard of American Pie. My teen sex comedy requirements were amply catered for by the likes of Porkys and Caddyshack. The early eighties saw a whole raft of these movies featuring hormone fuelled teens, desperate to get their ends away, and when American Pie was so acclaimed a few years ago, I expected nothing new. It totally passed me by at the cinema and its DVD release was greeted with complete disinterest. But then one of those deals came along, with a buy one get one free offer. Finding nothing else of interest, and feeling in the mood for a chuckle or two, I relented and reluctantly forked over the dosh. What a pleasant surprise. I found that American Pie is to Porkys as Pizza is to Broccoli, a completely different experience.

It`s getting close to the High School Prom, and the end of school for four friends. Desperate to lose their virginity before the end of the year, and collectively disheartened when even the school nerd has a meaningful moment with a girl, they make a pact to egg each other on in their respective quests. Jim is the awkward one, always stumbling around girls and finding himself in sticky situations, literally. Oz is the high school jock, who finds a more sensitive side to his nature, when he meets Heather in the High School choir. Kevin already has a girlfriend, Vicky who is looking for that ever-elusive perfect moment for them to get together and finally Finch is the unconventional and neurotic one, who has the perfect plan to get a girl.

Video

Directed by Chris and Paul Weitz, American Pie is presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic format. The picture is acceptable, but there is a degree of grain running through the film, that on rare occasions becomes quite evident. There is also a surprising amount of dirt on the print considering the film was only made in 1999.

Audio

The sound is presented in an English DD 5.1 soundtrack. The music is by David Lawrence, but you`ll hardly notice it hidden amongst the great soundtrack. There are several excellent tunes in this picture and it`s a great advert for the soundtrack album. This isn`t a movie that makes great use of the surround speakers, but what little does happen is quite well handled. The dialogue is always clear and the music sounds great, which is all you can really ask of this film.

Features

Aside from the rather funny menu screen, there are a fair amount of extras squeezed onto this single layer disc. Slipped inside the Amaray case is an insert with the chapter breaks and two pages of production notes, but on the disc proper the production notes go into more detail. There are the usual cast and crew filmographies. There is the trailer and some DVD Rom content. A couple of sections, Quotes and Music Highlights switch to those scenes to play the quotes or give a burst of a particular tune. There are some 2 and half minutes of outtakes and a 10-minute featurette "Spotlight on Location" which is a little making of documentary. The best thing on the disc has to be the Feature commentary though, with Paul and Chris Weitz, Adam Herz the writer and Jason Biggs, Eddie Kaye Thomas and Seann W. Scott from the cast. This is a great ensemble commentary and they obviously have a laugh as they recount the making of the film.

Conclusion

The cast by and large is very good, with several excellent performances in this film. Jason Biggs as Jim is just brilliant and sacrifices his dignity for his art and leaves the audience in fits of laughter. Helping him is Eugene Levy as his father, awkwardly advising his son on the facts of life and the opposite sex. Eddie Kaye Thomas brings a great character to life in Finch, one who is a breath of fresh air compared to the usual angst ridden teenagers. Speaking of angst-ridden teenagers, there are a few in this film. Chris Klein and Mena Suvari as Oz and Heather are quite sickly sweet as the movie`s golden couple and there is little humour in their storyline. Thomas Ian Nicholas and Tara Reid as Kevin and Vicky seemed to be heading that way, but a couple of delightful scenes where Kevin discovers the school sex bible, bring out the humour in their situation. Natasha Lyonne as the world-weary agony aunt figure, Jessica is good, but two brilliant roles are played by Seann W. Scott as Stifler and Alyson Hannigan as "one time at band camp" Michelle. Stifler is an inspired character, who has some great moments especially as Finch`s tormentor, but Michelle has the best line in the picture and it`s well worth waiting for. I look at this cast and I see a brat pack for the 21st Century. It`ll be interesting to see how the cast members` careers develop.

Contrary to my initial misgivings, American Pie is a whole different experience from the more puerile offerings of the early eighties. Those films were on the whole, quite sexist and ultimately unfunny. Since then however, political correctness has come and rewritten the rules for the better. The social atmosphere has changed dramatically, so that talking about sex is acceptable, even expected. Subjects that would have had a teenager giggling and reaching for the Kleenex 15 years ago are normal topics of conversation. The heart of American Pie isn`t the crass anatomical humour but the relationships between the people. So while we can laugh and cringe at Finch`s scatological neurosis or Stifler`s encounter with protein enriched beer, the soul of the film is considerably more touching. Despite their childish antics, we can sympathise with the characters. Also, unlike the early eighties, the girls are no longer mere sex objects, but are developed fully as characters in their own right. They are shown as just as confused and desperate and awkward as the boys and the film concentrates on both viewpoints toward sex. This is a great film that`s guaranteed to have you laughing out loud.