American Pie

Paul Weitz | USA | 1999 | 95 mins

This is a real cracker. Such a sweet film about innocent youth in a friendly American sunshine neighbourhood, about nice well-dressed polite boys and girls... getting totally corrupted by puberty. Yeah! Four pals aim to get laid for the first time, and they've got a deadline. What an ace premise. There's plenty of comic potential in there somewhere, and American Pie delivers by the bucketload. No taboos here either - oral sex, cumming in drinks, bridging the age gap, masturbating with a nice warm pie... all are included with an appealing nonchalance.

Because the film doesn't take itself too seriously, we are treated to an array of stereotype characters: from the sophisticated young gentleman to the outrageous lout, from the anxious to the outward. Everything is exaggerated, which adds to the film's rich quirky flavour. But it's not annoying in this way. It's allowed to be juvenile because it's a film about juveniles. In general, the boys make idiots of themselves while the girls sit back and enjoy the spectacle. The whole cast is excellently chosen for these purposes, and have a tendency to remind you of certain friends you had at school. Watch out for sparkling talent in Mena Suvari - a Cameron Diaz for the next millennium, take my word for it.

American Pie is a feel-good picture, and you'll get a real buzz if you watch it with your friends. Be reluctant to see it with your parents around, though, and it's not a great date-movie either. If you're unlucky enough to be in a relationship this Valentine's Day, you might start drawing comparisons between yourselves and the pairings that occur as the story develops. There is an intelligent emotional undercurrent which keeps the monkey business under control. It's a subtle balancing act, really. Oh yeah, you're gonna love it.

Review by Rob Hayward
Taken from EUFS programme spring 2000