‘American Reunion’ is Tasteless, Stale Piece of Comedy Pie

Printer-friendly versionE-mail page to friendPDF version

Rating: 2.0/5.0

CHICAGO – “American Reunion” is not unlike the event from which it takes its title. Some of it rekindles memories of what worked in the past in a nostalgic, even sweet way. Some of it reminds one what they liked about these people in the first place. Some of it is just sad. Ultimately, it’s too inconsistent a movie to recommend in any way even if Seann William Scott and Eugene Levy pull every weapon from their comedy arsenals to try and save it. It’s a stale piece of pie.

Of course, “American Reunion” opens with an awkward scene of a sexual nature as we quickly learn that Jim (Jason Biggs) hasn’t really matured much since he was a virginal teenager even though he’s now married to Michelle (Alyson Hannigan) and has a precocious son. In the opening scene, he starts to masturbate to internet porn while his wife takes a bath when he’s interrupted by his toddler. Hilarity ensues. At least it’s supposed to. As with nearly everything that happens with Jim in “American Reunion,” there’s a desperation to the raunchy comedy like the writers are going through the motions instead of writing characters. “Well, we have to open with Jim being embarrassed, right?” Wouldn’t it have been more interesting and set the tone for something fresh instead of recycled if they didn’t?

American Reunion
Photo credit: Universal Pictures

Getting down on a film like “American Reunion” for being overly familiar is probably ill-advised. It’s why people go to see it, for the most part, to be reminded that we don’t really change all that much from our high school incarnations. It’s not so much a flaw of the film that these characters have grown so little since “American Pie” but that the recycled nature of it all lessens the entire franchise. It’s like someone doing a cover of “Closing Time.” Not only does it seem unnecessary but you’ll probably just be reminded that the original wasn’t that good in the first place.

The plot of “American Reunion” is pretty self-explanatory. Most of the characters from the first film pop up in major or minor parts (some VERY minor…just a warning Natasha Lyonne and Shannon Elizabeth fans, who I think combine for about 45 seconds of screen time) and echo plotlines from the first three films. To be fair, there aren’t nearly as many references to band camp as I expected. Although the writers do think every time someone says “Stifler’s mom” that it constitutes an actual punchline.

The four central male characters all get a simple plot arc. Jim and Michelle are struggling with their sex life post-kid and the man-child faces temptation when he returns home for the reunion and the now-18-year-old girl (Ari Colbin) who lives next door decides that he should be “her first.” Meanwhile, Oz (Chris Klein) brings his model girlfriend Mia (Katrina Bowden of “30 Rock”) to the reunion but he’s clearly still in love with Heather (Mean Suvari), who came with her beau Ron (Jay Harrington of “Better Off Ted”). It says something about the complete lack of chemistry and character in the Oz/Heather plotline that I would have much rather hung out with Mia & Ron. There’s an assumption on the part of the writers that viewers have feelings for Oz & Heather like they’re some great cinematic romance. They were MEANT to be together. Based on how limp the film goes when they’re on-screen, that assumption was wrong.

American Reunion
Photo credit: Universal Pictures

What about the other three guys? Sensitive soul Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas) has a gorgeous girlfriend for whom he cooks and schedules times to watch “Gossip Girl.” Of course, when he runs into Vicky (an awful and wooden Tara Reid), old feelings are rekindled and a hungover morning leads him to believe that he may have done something wrong the night before. Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) speeds up on a motorcycle telling stories of world travels that never ring true and starts a romance with a band-girl-turned-goddess named Selena (Dania Ramirez).

And then there’s Stifler (Seann William Scott). At first, his aggressive horny teenager routine seems grating but when you realize that he’s the only fun character (besides a typically effective Eugene Levy), he essentially walks away with the entire movie. Scott is having quite a year as fans can compare his subtle work in “Goon” to this over-the-top horndog. Scott is very funny here, producing laughs while also actually understanding the heart of the film better than anyone else. He wants to rekindle the fun of his high school days because he misses his friends and his daily work routine isn’t exactly fulfilling. Scott’s damn funny.

American Reunion
Photo credit: Universal Pictures

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that there were a few jokes here that work. I laughed a few times, although probably less than the other three movies in the franchise. It’s the connective stuff that fails. We don’t care about Jim & Michelle’s problems or if Oz & Heather will get together. There’s a little bit of heart courtesy of Levy & Scott but that’s what’s missing from the rest of the film. The first “American Pie” worked because it grounded the gross-out humor in relatable dynamics – we’ve all been teenagers looking to get laid and horny enough to do awful things to desert items. “American Reunion” doesn’t care nearly as much about its characters, going flat between the big moments instead of giving us characters which whom to relate. Like most high school reunions, it’s fun to see everyone at first and then you remember why you haven’t seen them in the last decade.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com