DVD Reviews

American Pie 1-6 Boxset

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Well, it was funny while it lasted. Before Old School and Anchorman we had American Pie. The proper Animal House for the Scream generation, it had laughs by the bucketload and didn't skimp on the boobs. Sure, there were redundant characters (Oz, Kevin, Vicki, etc.) but they were all outweighed by the crass and hilarious Stifler, the awkward ramblings of Jim's Dad and the pie-riding exploits of Jim himself. The second installment is actually a solid sequel, as the producers realised that Seann William Scott was the main reason dudes liked the movie and threw him more funny one-liners and a couple of lesbian 'oh look, here's a dildo' sequences. The third was notable for the absences of Chris Klein, Tara Reid and an explanation for those absences; but again, the funny far outweighed the bland and it was a generally an amusing flick. Then came the direct-to-DVDs, all included here. As standalone films, they could just be derivative riffs on the likes of Van Wilder and Old School; but as sequels to such a successful franchise, they're insultingly bad. First up is American Pie: Band Camp, where Steve Stifler's little brother Matt gets sent to band camp as punishment for sabotaging the school band. Second is American Pie: The Naked Mile, where Stifler's cousin Erik struggles to cope with the burden of the Stifler name, so goes to his cousin's college to try and get up on some unsuspecting randomer, after his sweet Mrs. gives him a ride-away weekend pass. The third is American Pie: Beta House, where Erik and his posse of hormone-inflicted friends get to actually attend college, and join a frat house headed by the legendary Dwight Stifler (who is played by a dude who should be arrested for stealing Ryan Reynolds' persona... badly). Eugene Levy makes an embarrassing cameo in all three DTD sequels, but he only serves to remind us of how funny this franchise once was. While they're all not without their moments (angry midgets in Naked Mile offer a few chuckles... but that's a given with any angry midget), the three sequels offer nothing new, and will only appeal to 15-year-old boys who have yet to see real boobs since the first few months after childbirth. Still, the first three are funny.

Review by Mike Sheridan