Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Jason Biggs | ... | ||
Chris Klein | ... | ||
Thomas Ian Nicholas | ... | ||
Alyson Hannigan | ... | ||
Shannon Elizabeth | ... | ||
Tara Reid | ... | ||
Eddie Kaye Thomas | ... | ||
Seann William Scott | ... |
Steve Stifler
(as Seann W. Scott)
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Eugene Levy | ... | ||
Natasha Lyonne | ... | ||
Mena Suvari | ... | ||
Jennifer Coolidge | ... | ||
Chris Owen | ... | ||
Eric Lively | ... |
Albert
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Molly Cheek | ... |
Jim, Oz, Finch and Kevin are four friends who make a pact that before they graduate they will all lose their virginity. The hard job now is how to reach that goal by prom night. Whilst Oz begins singing to grab attention and Kevin tries to persuade his girlfriend, Finch tries any easy route of spreading rumors and Jim fails miserably. Whether it is being caught on top of a pie or on the Internet, Jim always ends up with his trusty sex advice from his father. Will they achieve their goal of getting laid by prom night? Or will they learn something much different? Written by Film_Fan
If you are a person easily offended by a film dedicated primarily to the glory of teen sex, you may well view "American Pie" as yet another in a long line of cinematic harbingers of the collapse of western civilization. If, however, you remember adolescence as essentially a period of unending coitus interruptus, you may well find yourself engrossed by this amusing, though admittedly crude, series of sexual and scatalogical gags woven around a plot involving the desperate attempts of a quartet of last semester seniors to lose their virginity on the fast approaching sexual armageddon known as "prom night."
"American Pie" gleans most of its comic energy from its outrageous examination of the crazy and innovative extremes desperately horny teens will go to in order to experience the thrill of sex in lieu of the real thing. An attractive, game cast helps to mitigate the crudity of many of their actions and the filmmakers' lighthearted tone encompasses the characters in such a cloak of affection that the audience identifies with, rather than condemns, their antics.
As meager compensation for the moralists among us, the film does heavily promote the use of condoms and comes up with even more creative prophylactics for those times when a partner is not available.
"American Pie" is certainly not for every taste and there are those who would argue that it serves a less than salutary purpose as a guide for already sex-obsessed teenagers. Be that as it may, the film provides a fair number of hearty chuckles for those of us who can find humor in a group of backward youngsters experiencing the frustration and desperation we have all, at one time, experienced.
I do have one troubling question though: why do none of these characters, whenever they are involved in a potentially compromising position, ever lock a door? The answer, I suppose, is obvious for, if they did, at least half the film's biggest laughs would become impossible to achieve. For this film, at least, such a suspension of disbelief may be a prerequisite.
Be forewarned but enjoy!