America Pie

Essay by PaperNerd ContributorCollege, Undergraduate November 2001

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The Makes of a Great Movie Comedy, drama, along with adventure is the make up of a good movie to me. Screenwriter, Adam Herz, along with filmmakers, Paul Weitz and Chris Weitz include all of these characteristics in the movie, American Pie. The movie, American Pie, is a great example of a movie with comedy, drama, and adventure, which makes it my favorite movie.

Throughout the movie seniors in high school show their funny side, sensitive side, and their adventurous side. A group of buddies, Jim, Finch, Kevin, and Oz, form a pact to help each other lose their virginity by prom night. Jim is sexually frustrated and is nervous when associating to the opposite sex. Finch, is laid back and not very popular to the opposite sex. Kevin, has been going out with his girlfriend for over a year and trying to get her to have sex with him.

Oz is the jock of the group and is not very sensitive, which makes dating girls hard for him. Throughout trials and tribulations, by the time the prom night party ends, all of the guys do lose their virginity. Although the movie contains drama and adventure, comedy plays the biggest role throughout the movie.

Comedy plays the biggest role in, American Pie, because the movie takes real life scenarios that young adults and teenagers go through, and adds comedy to them. For instance, Finch refuses to make a bowel movement in school. We all know people in high school that were like this. Then one day this other guy puts a laxative in Finch's mocha, so Finch has no other choice then to use the school's restroom. When Finch walks out of the restroom, he realizes this was the women's restroom, and everyone in the hall is pointing and laughing at him.

Another humorous part, is when Jim's dad has "sex talks" with him, because he had caught him masturbating. His dad shows him pornography magazines, while explaining what every part on a woman is. Jim has to try and contain himself so he does not start laughing.

The movie takes these every day situations and every day people and makes them funny. I think the director does this to explain to high school students that growing up comes with a lot of difficult changes, and by making the situations funny allows the teenager to more easily talk about them.

Along with being funny, American Pie, also has a lot of drama. Everyone knows relationships come with drama. At first, all of the guys are dramatized on not losing their virginity, but all the girls are worried about losing their virginity. This is because guys are more pressured by their friends and fellow peers to have sex. However, females think more about the negative thoughts that people will have of them if they have sex. By the end of the movie, Kevin's girlfriend, Victoria, of over a year is finally ready to have sex. Then Kevin gets scared and nervous and Victoria just wants to get it over with.

Drama also takes place the day after prom when everyone is talking about what is going to happen next year when they take off for college. Everyone who had to leave their friends when they went to college realize that this is a tough time, especially leaving the people we love. Kevin and Victoria break up, while Oz and his girlfriend are falling in love.

There is so much drama going on throughout the movie. The director does this to show teenagers that along with growing up and graduating we will face a lot of hard times and that it is okay to cry. Drama will always be a part of our lives and we have to learn to deal with the drama.

With humor and drama, adventure obviously takes place. The whole movie is set around an adventurous theme, the pact the boys make together to lose their virginity. They have to go through trial and error in order to lose their virginities.

For example, Oz takes on the role of a sensitive boy in order to get with a girl in the chorus. He starts watching shows on television, such as Martha Stuart, and he also joins the chorus. He does end up getting the girl.

American Pie is also adventurous, because we do not know what is going to happen next. Throughout the movie they have a lot of parties. At the after prom party, there is a lot of adventure. Jim is having sex with a flute-toting band dork; while Kevin is in the next room having sex with his girlfriend; Finch is having sex on the pool table with someone's mom; And Oz is having a romantic night with his girlfriend on the lake.

The screenwriter, Adam Herz shows adventure, to keep the plot of the movie going. Without adventure the movie would be dull and boring. We would know everything that was going to happen and therefore the movie would not be exciting at all.

American Pie has all of the ingredients to make a good movie. Without comedy, drama, and adventure the movie would be very boring and nobody would want to watch it. Even without one of these ingredients the movie would not be as interesting and thus would not be as good as a movie. Everyone should rent American Pie, if they haven't already seen it. They will be able to experience the pleasure of watching a movie with comedy, drama, and adventure all put into one movie.