Three guys, a girl and a golden penis

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2005)

The Girl Next Door arrived in Australia with little fanfare or advertising, largely due to its tepid response in the US. 'Girl' pitched in the trailer as a distant American Pie cousin meets Risky Business ('outrageous' incidents, nudity and 'hot chicks'), actually surpasses those film to deliver what has to be one of more entertaining 'teen' flicks of recent years.
This is not to say that this movie is a revelation in film making. The clichéd characters abound (uncool yet not gremlin-esquire lead, geeky friends, oblivious parents, the cool crowd) and the film follows a not entirely road to a happy ending, yet the journey is made satisfying by Emile Hirsch and Cuthbert's likable leads. Cuthbert in particular lends an interesting touch to her lead, she admirably conveys a young woman trapped between two worlds struggling to find her identity without being known as 'the chick from that porno'. Her early scenes with Hirsch set up a great coming of age storyline without resorting to some far fetched hi-jinx to impress.
During the middle third of this film (the introduction of Olyphant's porn producer character) the dynamic shifts from romantic comedy to comedy/drama, throwing you into some (albeit glossed over) realities of the porn industry. Hirsch becomes a more admirable lead during the later parts of the film as he comes to terms with his 'moral fiber'.
For a sex comedy closing in on two hours this film should drag in its last hurdles, and its 'climax' does feel to be pushing the boundaries of reality, but with competent leads and one of the best soundtrack's from a genre film of this type in years (Filter, David Gray, David Bowie, Echo & The Bunnymen) makes this Girl worth sticking around for.