Review of The Virgin Suicides (2000) by Melvin W — 14 Sep 2011

Doctor: What are you doing here, honey? You're not even old enough to know how bad life gets.

Cecilia: Obviously, Doctor, you've never been a 13-year-old girl.

"Beautiful, mysterious, haunting, invariably fatal. Just like life.".

The Virgin Suicides is an emotionally charged, stylistic, depressing and beautiful film from Sophia Coppola. The movie has a fabulous cast and a nice little soundtrack. It manages to be sad and funny at the same time. For example when a girl is talking about her grandmother eating her rat poison pie. Don't judge; it's funny as shit.

Although the whole movie is composed of big names, there are a few standouts. Kirsten Dunst gives one of my favorite performances from her and Josh Hartnett gives the first performance that I've seen from that isn't completely horrible. He actually fits that character very well. Kathleen Turner and James Woods are good in their roles as the over protective, religious parents.

The movie is so stylistic, which can with some filmmakers take away from the movie. There are moments in this movie where I thought it was a little too much, but after watching the whole movie and looking back, I don't think it was too much. I definitely wouldn't say this is an example of style over substance. The movie has a lot of substance; just not a whole lot on the surface. It is thought provoking and really makes you think about what Sophia Coppola is trying to get across.

The Virgin Suicides isn't the most fun movie you'll ever watch, but it is a brilliant piece of filmmaking. It's a movie that ends up hypnotizing you with it's beautiful picture, haunting ideas and stunning performances. I wouldn't quite call it a masterpiece, but it's about as close as one can get without being considered one.