Suburban Anthropology

Rating: 6/10 (5 January 2001)

(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon.)
This is a cute, even sweet, coming of ager with an attractive cast. But be warned, if sex offends you, you will be offended. It is also more than a little on the juvenile side, especially the first half or so. I can't even discuss the subject matter on Amazon.com, which is just as well. And you DON'T EVEN want to know why it is called "American Pie." Suffice it to say that if you're past your early twenties much of this will seem lame and adolescent. If you're younger, you may just crack up over all the crude, but sometimes sharply observed humor.
Thus the question: why did I watch it? Easy: Mena Suvari. The beauty of American Beauty is here a drama dweeb--or is that a drama geek? Actually she sings in a jazz class, which I suppose is close to the same thing. At any rate, she is not a cheer leader nor the queen of the hop, just a pretty girl with values. She is excellent. Also good in a supporting role is Alyson Hannigan (from TV's Buffy) as a nerd girl who surprises with what she learned at band camp. Eddie Kaye Thomas as the boy (Paul Finch) who learns that women only get better with age is just perfect. However, I think Jason Biggs was a little lamer than was absolutely necessary. Sean William Scott was true to his part as your classic neanderthal jock.
Funniest line, from Biggs, after finding Michelle gone in the morning: "I was used--Cool!"
Another reason for watching this film is that one does get some, no doubt twisted, idea of what passes for adolescent sexual preoccupation these days and can compare such notions to an earlier era. Call it suburban anthropology.
As I was watching Mena Suvari I got to thinking about the appeal of her very captivating face. Like fashion models and other stars with child-like faces, we adore her. Why? Call it neoteny. This led to a further thought. In the future, as we continue to look more and more like our children, some day we and our children will look the same. (Perhaps this could be a good idea for a science fiction story.) Some say the appeal of imagined aliens is that they have child-like features (think of the big round heads and the big eyes). But really they are unconscious caricatures of ourselves and the values that we most esteem, brains and photogenic eyes.
Anyway, American Pie is kind of sweet if you are not offended by vivid depictions of adolescent sexuality or crude bathroom humor. And there is more sophistication to the relationships than might be supposed at first blush. It ends at the prom, as all good American coming of age flicks should. The boys grow up and begin to learn the difference between love and sex, and the girls find they no longer have to teach the boys how to kiss. This is an American Graffiti for the new millennium.