The Last American Virgin

I am so glad to see this come out on DVD. I have thought for many years that this is truly an underrated film. It goes beyond the typical teen chasing sex flick and packs an emotional punch. The emotions of the actors seem real and raw and each time I see it, I am transported back 20 years in time to the memories of what the teen years can be like.

When I was in 10th grade me and my buddy were up late at his house and were flipping around cable and started watching this movie. We watched it because it looked kind of funny and because it had boobs. But then the ending came and we just sat there completely speechless. I think after a minute of watching the credits roll he just sort of whimpered "Oh dude....." It goes from dumb 80's teen sex comedy to nihilistic realism so quickly that it catches you off guard. I have been trying to rent this movie for years and have not been able to find it - and nobody has ever seen it except for me and my friend - so it seems. But now it is available! I highly suggest renting it and brace yourself.

I love this movie. It's just like my young teenage years in 90 min. Much more realistic with those times. Unbelievable soundtrack. This movie gets edgy. Teen pregnancy. Drugs. Prostitutes. A sweet story buried underneath. Also, the biggest downer of an ending ever. It's a movie to be seen on a loop just for the soundtrack alone.

This is a very unusual teen sex comedy. One part of of it is the expected T & A laff riot, but the other half is a surprising sensitive and dead-on portrayal of teenage life. The movie keeps switching from one of these viewpoints to the other throughout the movie. In another movie, it would end up making the movie to be quite a mess. Yet somehow it works.

True, some of the comedy scenes go to the lowest denominator, but there are some wittier scenes here and there. Take the first scene, when the boys invite the girls over to Gary's house. The nervousness and awkwardness between Gary and the fat girl has me in stiches each time - because it's not only funny, but true. Though all the cast members are first-rate, it's Monoson who really steals the movie. As a shy teen looking for true love, his anguish will really break your heart.

I can't leave out the soundtrack. The songs picked for the soundtrack are excellent in so many ways. They are timeless, so they are very listenable even two decades later. Plus, they actually manage to comment on the action going onscreen at the time. I will never forget when the Commodores' "Oh No" plays during that certain sequence.

And I can't leave out the ending - when I first saw the movie, I was simply stunned at what happened at the end. I couldn't believe it at first, then I realized that hey, this kind of thing does happen.

With all the fans this movie has, I am very surprised it has not been re-released on video or DVD. MGM, you now have the rights - what are you waiting for? Though since they are rereleasing a lot of older movies on video and DVD now, maybe - just maybe - we'll be able to get a new copy in each of our hands.

Perhaps this movie was meant to be nothing but funny. Maybe it was meant to get teenage boys excited at all the nudity in it. But what I got out of it was actually something that many people believe in. And that is, " Nice guys finish last ".

There is a line in Angel Heart from Lisa Bonet's character that says " It takes a bad ass to make a girls heart beat faster. " True. Most likely. Women always say that they want the flowers and the candy and politeness and whatever. But ( at least at an early age ) they end up going for the good looking, slimy, disrespectful, untamed guy. The one they know they can't conform to their beliefs. And that is part of the attraction. After all, what is exciting about a guy that is already the way you want him to be? I believe this may have happened to Boaz Davidson. And what he has to say in this film that is disguised with sex and nudity and parties and everything else that teens can relate to, is that you will get your heart broken. It happens to everyone and it will happen to you. And that is a strong final statement in the film. But having said all that, the movie is fun. It is funny and it shows the antics of highschoolers quite well.

This is a rare film that is sleezy enough to please the teenage crowd it caters to but also intelligent and poignant enough to show what it;s like to get your heart broken. No highschool film has ever done this better. Like I said, I think the writers must have experienced a situation like this first hand. Maybe we all have.

This is an old film, but if you ever come across it gathering dust on a shelf in your local video store one night, pick it up, you may be surprised. It is a hell of a lot better than Never Been Kissed.