HEFE'S REVIEW OF:
AMERICAN PIE 2 (2001)

OPENING THOUGHTS

    I had high hopes for this movie after the immense pleasure I received from this film's predecessor, and I am referring to both the humor and the physical pleasure if you catch my meaning. Just in case you don't though, I am referring to masturbating heavily to the nude scenes with Shannon Elizabeth. So could this live up to the heavy expectations?

ACTING

    JASON BIGGS is exactly the same in this as he was in the last film. I can't imagine why, but if for some reason you are really that interested in what I have to say about him I suggest you read the review of the first American Pie. If you are wondering why I am even bothering to mention this, it is because he was the main character and I felt obliged to at least say something. Which is ironic, because as it turns out, the things I said were nothing more than a lot of words strung together that actually say nothing about him.
    SEAN WILLIAM SCOTT was nothing short of hilarious in this film. If you thought he was funny in the first film you owe it yourself to see him in this. I can clearly remember that seeing his foul-mouthed brand of humor in this film and the first Pie was some what life changing. I didn't know how funny swearing could be if it was used properly. Now don't get me wrong, the guy is not the world's best actor, nor was he the first one to capitalize on swearing for comedy, but he was one of the first I ever saw that used it so much. Possibly as a direct result of this character I am the foul-mouthed little fucker I am today. He once again brought an energy level to this film that was unmatched by anyone else on screen, and it was a performance that I really enjoyed, and I think that might partially be because it looked like he was enjoying himself too.
    SHANNON ELIZABETH was a huge let down for me this time around, mostly because she refused to get naked. By refusing to do another nude scene she made a really bad career choice, because she made people focus more on her acting abilities and less on her amazing body. This would have been all right if she was a really talented actress, but as time would tell, she is not. As it turns out, she probably would not even have had an acting career if it wasn't for those gorgeous knockers of hers. So while I commended her for showing them in the first film, I now condemn her for refusing on the second trip, and not having the acting skills to back it up.
    MENA SUVARI felt really out of place in this film, and the last one for that matter. I have never really thought of her as a good actress, but she is even worse in comedies than she is in dramas. She did not make me laugh or anything close to that throughout the entire film. As a matter of fact I hated every scene that involved her and that high-foreheaded boyfriend of hers Chris Klein. However since I went out of my way to bash Klein on the last review, I only felt it appropriate to spread the hate around where it was deserved.

DIRECTION AND SCRIPT

    J.B. ROGERS did not do anything spectacular with the direction of this film, but in this case it was a good thing. The director of the first Pie movie didn't do much either, so much so that I didn't even mention him in my review of the film, something that is unusual for me. However, what makes this a good thing in this case is how seamlessly the two films go together. Often times, when a new director takes over a series he goes out of his way to give the film his own special unique touch, kind of like a signature proving he was involved. But Rogers didn't, in fact if I had not looked it up to see that it was directed by someone different, I would have just assumed it was the same guy. Sometimes nothing goes a long way.
    ADAM HERZ was once again the brains behind the story of the pie. Upon watching this movie, I realized something; I was quick to label these films as "sex comedies" in my last review, but I think that was a little bit rushed. Upon closer observation I began to notice that this is really a series about finding love and dealing with relationships. Sure sex is always an underlying part of the series, especially for characters like Stifler. But for most of the other characters it is about finding love, realizing that your in love, or finding out that your love is not reciprocated. I don't know how man sex comedies are out there in which four of the film's main characters are monogamous. I think this combination of romance and sexual comedy is what really first set this series apart from other film's of it's kind. It goes out of the way to give you gross out humor and nudity, but then rounds itself out in the end by showing the happiest people in the film are the ones who look for love and not just sex.

THE VERDICT

    Overall this was a good sequel, in some ways it was better and in some ways it was not quite up to par, but I still enjoyed the experience. If you liked the first one but never got around to seeing the others in the series, than I think you could watch this without being disappointed. The highlight of this film, for me anyway, had to be Seann William Scott. If you have seen Scott in other thing's and liked his energy but thought the performances fell flat, than I suggest you give this film a whirl and see why it is that he became famous in the first place.
 
 

RATING: B

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