| Thu. 08 18. 2005 12:00 AM EDT
The title says it all. Steve Carell stars as The 40-Year-Old Virgin, a nerdy comic book collector who's never done the nasty. Not once. Not even a little bit. Aghast at this reality, his work buddies resolve to make him a man. The premise is comic gold. And there's a good reason why. Whether the
Stifler. Stifler's mom. Jim's dad. The names have become as iconic as Austin Powers or Darth Vader. Why is Pie a classic? Maybe it's the use of baked goods as a sex toy. Or because no one can say "band camp" anymore with a straight face. But the real charm is its unexpected heart: there's surprising warmth to the plight of Jason Biggs and his three best friends, who all vow to stain the sheets by prom night. Think Dangerous Liaisons meets The OC. Sarah Michelle Gellar is deliciously bitchy as she challenges stepbrother Ryan Phillippe to deflower the purest girl in high school (Reese Witherspoon). Not an easy task, since Reese published the essay "Why I Choose to Wait." Selma Blair plays the film's second virgin, who gives it up to Phillippe, then locks lips with Gellar, winning the MTV award for Best Kiss. In one of his earliest roles, a baby-faced Tom Cruise embarks on a quest to lose his innocence, by way of Tijuana. Joined by high school buddies Spider, Wimp, and the sex-obsessed Dave, Cruise runs into sleazy cops, barroom brawls, Not too many laughs here. In her directorial debut, Sofia Coppola explores the tragic consequences of repressed sexuality. The virgin Lisbon sisters are idolized by the neighborhood boys -- so much so that their crazed mother (Kathleen Turner) virtually imprisons them. With a sensitive touch, Coppola creates a last summer of innocence whose bloom fades when Kirsten Dunst falls for stud Josh Hartnett. 1982 was the Year of the Virgin. Weeks before The Last American Virgin hit theaters, writer Cameron Crowe brought us Fast Times, a classic comedy about virgins, sex, and surfer stoners. This time the awkward teen is Jennifer Jason Leigh as a 15-year-old desperate to get laid. Many in the sex-crazed cast would go on to bigger things, including Sean Penn, Anthony Edwards, and Judge Reinhold. |
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