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American Pie Presents: The Book of Love
Common Sense says
- NR
- 2009
- 93 minutes
Parents say
Kids say
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A lot or a little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this direct-to-DVD unrated addition to the American Pie series has none of the innocence of the first two movies. In fact, for a movie that stars three guys who are supposedly virgins at the start, there's an incredible amount of sexual content (oral sex, naked fantasies, masturbation, prostitutes, porn-viewing, and so on). Parents are not able to control their kids who drink in excess among other things, and the "respect women" advice the teens are given is coming from men who clearly don't respect women. Not only is this DVD lewd and crude with language that would make a sailor blush, but it could do some damage to healthy teenage psyches where healthy sexual development is concerned.
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User Reviews
- Parents say
- Kids say
Not For Kids if you know what I really mean.
What's the story?
The first scene has Rob (Bug Hall) engaging in a sexual act with a sandwich. His brother films this act, and sends it viral so that the entire school (and his mother) see it. No matter, he's a guy after all, and guys just wanna have sex, right? According to this movie, that's all that's on their minds. Rob's pal Nathan (Kevin H. Norton) is trying to get to home base with his girlfriend, and Lube (Brandon Hardesty) has a mad crush on a cheerleader, who he has graphic fantasies about. When a fire in the library causes the sprinkler system to go off, Rob discovers a handmade book that describes in detail every aspect of sexual encounters. The boys use this "bible" to try to get "laid"-- even going to Canada to get it on with a prostitute -- and when the book fails them, they contact the original authors of the book. It ends up that these authors include Jim's dad, Mr. Levenstein (Eugene Levy), who tells the boys to "treat a girl with respect, and whatever happens is meant to happen." Yeah, right.
Is it any good?
This movie does a dangerous thing: it tries to add the word "respect" to an irreparable trail of damage. After the boys have said and done many lewd things, the adult men in the movie tell them to be honest with women, as they talk about various anal sex techniques, or favorite foods with which to masturbate. Is this funny? No, it's not really funny, it's twisted. Watching Rob's mom view a video of her son vomiting on a girl he is about to have sex with is disturbing enough. The fact that the mom doesn't think to talk about consequences is mind-blowing. Three words: not for kids.
Talk to your kids about ...
Families can talk about boundaries on the Internet. Rob watches porn as if it is as normal and everyday as eating a PB&J sandwich. How does your family deal with Internet boundaries? Here are some tips about how to make browsing the Web safe and appropriate for all members of the family.
Sex is on the mind of teens naturally enough. But all of the media that encourages sexual activity can lead to very irresponsible behavior. This article has some eye-opening stats about how sex in media directly affects kids and teens.
How are girls and women portrayed in this movie? Why do they need to be respected? Why wouldn't they be respected in the first place? Who are the female role-models in this movie? Are they prey to the lewd behavior of the males, or are they respected?
A lot of "sexting" goes on in this movie. One character asks girls to kiss for a video he wants to post on his "sit-on-my Facebook page." Even Rob's mom sees videos of her son engaged in inappropriate sexual acts. Here is some advice about keeping teens safe in a digital world where privacy is a thing of the past.
Movie details
- On DVD or streaming: December 22, 2009
- Cast: Bug Hall, Eugene Levy, Rosanna Arquette
- Director: John Putch
- Studio: Universal Pictures
- Genre: Comedy
- Run time: 93 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
For kids who love high school comedies
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Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.