Review of The Virgin Suicides (2000) by Kylie P — 02 Feb 2010

From February 25, 2008:

For a freshman film-making effort, Sofia Coppola showed quite a lot of maturity and produced an amazing film in The Virgin Suicides. This movie is a masterpiece because of the attention paid to detail in the film, from story to visual to atmosphere. At first glance, the narrative is disjointed and incomplete - but it's meant to be that way. The story is told entirely from the perspective of all of the engrossed pubescent boys living in the neighborhood, which lends comic relief but also is from a perspective that is never meant to have the complete story, since they were never privy to the inner workings of the family. It's a neighborhood mystery, and the only answers that could ever really come would come from the Lisbon family itself. The fact that the movie never strays from this perspective, not in the least, makes the mystery itself satisfying and the viewer content not to know for certain what may have been the last straw. The viewer, like the boys, is left with only educated guesses. What's even more gratifying is that Sofia Coppola, as screenwriter and director, never takes a stand or force-feeds the viewer any particular possibility as truth. She allows the guesses to linger and evaporate, but the guesses and the outcome are haunting and thought-provoking in the process.

That may be because the story itself is meant to be relatable on several levels. On the one hand, it proves to be a social commentary on the plight of and pressures placed upon the American young woman of any time period, though it seems to offer some hope in its subtle whimsy. On the other hand, it's a sly examination of parenting and possible outcomes, even if the threads cannot necessarily be sewn together between the parents' and the children's actions. On still another hand, it's a graceful study on an epidemic that threatens generations more and more as time plods forward: teen angst to the furthest extremes and the actions taken by teens to cope, including suicide.

What's also amazing about this movie is the visuals. Since the story's told from the boys' perspective, the meandering from reality to fantasy as they attempt to piece together the mystery of the Lisbon girls is quite effective. The cinematography, with its delicate, nostalgic haze, lends well to the blend between the two extremes. The whimsical insertion of fantasy scenes, like the boys' pretend vacations with the girls when the latter is under house arrest and confinement, lightens the viewer just enough to keep from being overcome by the looming, ultimate eventuality.

The soundtrack was also amazing, score and song alike. It hit all the right notes and lent well to the sequence of events unfolding on the screen.