American Pie: Yawn.

Last night I flipped on the TV and saw that the 1999 movie American Pie was on. I saw it only once in the theater, when it came out, but after rewatching some of it, I can definitely see it's not a film that holds up over time. Granted, when I first saw it, I knew it was just a "teen comedy" but there are some who think this is somehow transcendent of the genre, which it is not. (Though Eugene Levy is good).

During the movie, there were clips with the directors and some of the actors, and the directors mentioned that Diner was an influence. Well, Diner isn't a great movie either, but it is loads better than the silly, dated frat boyish humor that incorporates this film. There is also an homage to The Graduate where one of the characters screws his friend's mom. But the point is that American Pie is not in a league artistically with either of those two films.

I also get annoyed by this movie because it's one of those films that young guys feel the need to quote from in everyday life. (It's like what Ace Ventura was in the early-mid '90s). I remember back in '01-'03 my male coworkers would just mutter lines from this shit, and it's always a bad sign when you can't come up with your own jokes, but need to repeat the stale lines from mediocre films. Granted, another film they quoted from constantly was Office Space, but Office Space, while it can still appeal to the high school/frat boy mentality, has far better acting, writing and comic realism in that film.

Basically, if you're into toilet humor and want a film that does it well, I recommend the 40 Year Old Virgin, where the writing is much better. Here is the American Pie trailer:

The Graduate.

Yesterday Dan and I watched The Graduate for the first time. It's one of those films I've known about for a while, obviously, but never gotten around to watching. I remember an old coworker being surprised when I said I hadn't seen it, since she knew I was into "older movies" and I guess the reason I'd not seen it is because I 1) never had the chance and 2) it seemed just like a "better made Hollywood film," or in other words, something that would be pretty good but nothing great.

Well, The Graduate is a very good film, and there are some excellent technical shots. I told Dan how I thought it was a lot more innovative than Breathless as a film.



Anyway, I looked online and found this funny recut trailer, where it is presented as a horror film. Very well done, I have to say.



And for those Anne Bancroft fans, there happens to be a Charlie Rose interview posted in it's entirety.



There are a number of scenes where the Simon & Garfunkel music blends together very nicely, and just to give a comparison, it did not seem forced like the way it did in Love Story.


Overall, it's funnier than I thought it would be, and Hoffman gives a great performance. Anne Bancroft isn't bad either. I wish more of Hollywood would make films like this.