Tout feu, tout femme

I picked this movie up looking for some old titles with Michelle Meyrink who some might remember from such films as 'Real Genius' and 'Valley Girl.'

In Nice Girls Don't Explode, Meyrink plays April Flowers, a teenage girl who is convinced that she has pyrotechnic hormones, in that whenever she is around guys, some kind of fire breaks out, leaving her utterly embarrased and afraid to show any sort of affection towards courting boys, especially Andy (William O'Leary) (who is sometimes annoying at parts), who is sure that she is mistaken about her firestarting capabilities. He is sure that April's mother (Barbara Harris) is responsible for her daughter's mishaps, setting fires so guys won't want to go near April. But how does he expose April's mother's overboard techniques in overprotective parenting?

Meanwhile, a real pyromaniac named Ellen (Wallace Shawn), floats around in the story as a frustrated and lonely fellow looking for some human interaction. He often walks around igniting fires when his attempts to converse like a normal human being fail.

I don't think this movie is as bad as the previous reviews have stated. First of all, it is a very cheap movie. Though the fact that a mother still treats her 18 year old daughter like she's two years old (take a look at her room) is pretty disturbing, it is supposed to be an exaggerated story about a girl who's mother just can't seem to let her grow up, especially when it comes to dating. The story has to do a lot to carry interest, too, being that there are times when you wonder that in the 18 or so years of her life, April never ever seemed to suspect anything of her mother? But once again, the story is supposed to be excessively exaggerated, pushing itself along on devices of stupid comedy. That's all. It's a no brainer movie that's sure to get a few laughs out of you, no matter how stupid, particularly with Wallace Shawn's character, Ellen. I definitely recommend the movie if you want to see something with Michelle Meyrink, as she is the typical Meyrink shy, but funny girl.

You watched a movie called "Nice Girls Don't Explode" and your complaining? What did you expect?

It was what I expected. Cheap? Yes, but bonkers and as funny as some other slapstick titles.

I expected it to be daft and quite enjoyed it's lunacy.

If you took the plot seriously and judged it to be too simple or weak you should stick to mainstream or predictable comedies, and there are, of course, many much better so don't watch it if you want sophistication.

The title should intrigue those with a sense of the ridiculous, that's me.

It's certainly different!

If you watch it, regardless of what you make of it, you are guaranteed to tell people you've seen a movie called "Nice Girls Don't Explode"....

April Flowers (Michelle Meyrink) is an awkward teen living under her protective mom (Barbara Harris). Fires seem to erupt spontaneously whenever she's around boys. It turns out that her mom is working with pyromaniac Ellen (Wallace Shawn). Of course, no boy lasts more than one date. Neighbor Andy (William O'Leary) has been in love with April since childhood.

This is real indie filmmaking. It's amateurish but it has a great idea and a solid cast. These actors make the material work. It's a little funny. It's very quirky. It's endearing in its low budget feel. It never really catches fire but there is a warmth to this.

In most cases, it shouldn't seem too significant that "Nice Girls Don't Explode" was the last movie that anyone watched in a given year. But much of what happened in 2006 - the Democrats winning back control of the House and Senate, various political scandals, Mel Gibson's rant, etc. - seemed to function as their own sorts of explosions. Just as the idea of a teenage girl apparently causing spontaneous combustion by getting horny is so far out that probably no one envisions it happening in reality, probably few if any people predicted much of what came to pass in 2006 (not to mention that Barbara Harris's character's actions really blew some of the other characters' minds about as much as the events of the past year). So, in my opinion, this interesting if improbable flick was the perfect way to end that year.

OK, so I'm probably reading too much into "NGDE". After all, it was most likely intended as a nice, silly comedy (which it certainly was). I gotta say that Barbara Harris's character would really be embarrassing to have as a mother. Also starring Michelle Meyrink, William O'Leary and Wallace Shawn.

I gotta say that even though Barbara Harris had clearly aged by this point, she was still kinda hot (pun intended).

It saddens me this film wasn't better received, because it's quite a sharp satire with a really unique perspective that doesn't feel like anything else I've seen and is really well put together!

Mainstream people with won't like this. But if you have off-kilter sensibilities and like to watch with your brain, there's a lot in here to latch onto. It's very good at giving you room to think, and planting seeds, and building suspense, and having unexpected payoffs. All with a surreal dreamlike tone and managing to stay humorous during remarkably disturbing content.

I'm impressed and I recommend this a lot!