AKA 35 Up, remade thematically, by idiots. I pounded out the first three American Pie films with a BFF on my last day of summer vacation before college, and I can hardly think of a better circumstance for that particular brand of horny teenage discovery. I enjoyed them all well enough (obvious reliance on conventions, juvenile comedy and narrative limitations all notwithstanding), and I have deliberately not revisited them since, lest I tarnish the memory. Turns out that, on a long enough timeline, that was pretty much out of my hands. Reunion is admittedly consistent with the preceding films, if a bit more autopilot bound, so it's likely more because of my changing tastes than the diminishing sequel syndrome that I had a fairly miserable time during this retread. Characters pop in and out in what amounts to a tossed off greatest hits package, contrived scenarios involving masturbation, horny young girls, Stifler's mom, whips and feces abound, and Eugene Levy is awkward (a high point, actually). Adages have rarely felt as dusty and hollow as they do here, and I find it vaguely offensive that a script reliant on characters behaving with magnified stupidity would have the balls to interject a spontaneous bit of Certified Copy role-playing into the proceedings. A few chuckles are to be had, if you're lucky, but they can't begin to outweigh the surrounding offenses and boredom.
Apr 8, 2012
American Reunion (2012): C-
AKA 35 Up, remade thematically, by idiots. I pounded out the first three American Pie films with a BFF on my last day of summer vacation before college, and I can hardly think of a better circumstance for that particular brand of horny teenage discovery. I enjoyed them all well enough (obvious reliance on conventions, juvenile comedy and narrative limitations all notwithstanding), and I have deliberately not revisited them since, lest I tarnish the memory. Turns out that, on a long enough timeline, that was pretty much out of my hands. Reunion is admittedly consistent with the preceding films, if a bit more autopilot bound, so it's likely more because of my changing tastes than the diminishing sequel syndrome that I had a fairly miserable time during this retread. Characters pop in and out in what amounts to a tossed off greatest hits package, contrived scenarios involving masturbation, horny young girls, Stifler's mom, whips and feces abound, and Eugene Levy is awkward (a high point, actually). Adages have rarely felt as dusty and hollow as they do here, and I find it vaguely offensive that a script reliant on characters behaving with magnified stupidity would have the balls to interject a spontaneous bit of Certified Copy role-playing into the proceedings. A few chuckles are to be had, if you're lucky, but they can't begin to outweigh the surrounding offenses and boredom.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The original gang is back and still have the comedic timing they did 13 years ago, which is always fun no matter what. There isn’t anything new or special about this entry into the series but for anyone who wants some nice 1999 nostalgia, then this is the perfect fit. Good review. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than the last two “main” sequels this series has had.
ReplyDelete