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The Virgin Suicides (1999)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:91
Fresh:70
Rotten:21
Average Rating:7/10
Consensus: Sofia's successful directorial debut lies in the movie's compelling story and the actors' genuine emotions.
Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: Based on the 1993 novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES tells the dreamlike tale of the Lisbons, a family living in a sheltered 1970s suburbia. When Cecilia (Hannah Hall), the youngest of... Based on the 1993 novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES tells the dreamlike tale of the Lisbons, a family living in a sheltered 1970s suburbia. When Cecilia (Hannah Hall), the youngest of the five teenage Lisbon daughters, inexplicably commits suicide, the rest of the family--Mr. Lisbon (James Woods), an awkward high school math teacher; Mrs. Lisbon (Kathleen Turner), a stern, humorless housewife; and the four remaining sisters: Lux (Kirsten Dunst), Bonnie (Chelse Swain), Mary (A.J. Cook), and Therese (Leslie Hayman)--recedes into a morbid cloud of repression and denial. As the girls are forced to retreat from everyday life by their conservative mother, they become the subject of fascination for a group of neighborhood boys, who narrate the story and hope to rescue the girls from their listless confinement. The first feature by director-screenwriter Sofia Coppola (Francis Ford Coppola's daughter), THE VIRGIN SUICIDES is a mesmerizingly atmospheric film that perfectly captures both the moody tone of the book and the light-saturated feel of the 1970s. Dunst gives a standout performance as the promiscuous Lux, who becomes the sole obsession of high school ladies' man Trip Fontaine (Josh Hartnett). The movie also includes cameos by Danny DeVito and Scott Glenn. In addition to songs by Heart and Todd Rundgren, the film features an evocative score by the French duo Air. [More]
Starring: James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett
Starring: James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, Hannah Hall, A.J. Cook, Chelse Swain, Danny DeVito, Scott Glenn, Jonathan Tucker, Leslie Hayman, Anthony DeSimone, Michelle Duquet, Michael Paré
Director: Sofia Coppola
Director: Sofia Coppola
Screenwriter: Sofia Coppola
Producer: Dan Halsted, Chris Hanley, Francis Ford Coppola, Julie Costanzo
Composer: Air
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Reviews for The Virgin Suicides
It's yet another case of blame-the-parents, and, more precisely, blame-the-overprotective-mother.
Sofia Coppola tackles the issue of teenage suicide with an assured treatment in The Virgin Suicides, effectively employing a seriocomic tone.
A most assured debut, this darkly humorous exploration of a tough subject benefits from original narrative and the fact that, unlike most American teen movies, the appealing cast consists of actors who are the same age as the characters they play.
The tone of wistful regret and longing doesn't preclude a good deal of gentle humour. It's a restrained, subtly suggestive piece which disintegrates if you try to get a fix on it.
A rather stunted and sliggish exercise in style whose sporadically haunting visual quality doesn't make up for its shallowness and ponderous pace.
Concentration on either the writing or the direction, but not both, may have spawned a better film from first-timer Sofia C.
Mergulhando com sensibilidade na amargura do universo adolescente, com seus anseios e frustrações, Coppola estréia de forma memorável na direção.
A disarmingly poetic - and specifically female - vision of adolescence that it belongs in a category of its own.
Coppola's direction engagingly avoids the coming-of-age cliches and the film boasts an excellent performance from Kirsten Dunst.
If missteps hold the film back from achieving the full grandeur it aims for, there is no denying the way it conjures a magic-realist American suburbia, rarely before brought so convincingly to life.
If [Coppola's] debut film is any indication, talent does run in the family -- even if it is a somewhat disjointed talent.
In the end, the strengths of the movie are overwhelmed by what is pretentious, unplugged and boring to boot.
A heartbreaking glimpse at the secret life of adolescents... shockingly tender and remarkably acted.
When a film's most sensible character commits suicide within the first 15 minutes it cannot be a good sign.
Latest News for The Virgin Suicides
July 15, 2005:
Trailer Bulletin: Pretty Persuasion
One of Sundance's more buzzed-about films was the dark high school comedy "Pretty Persuasion," and now you can check out the trailer over at Quicktime's Trailer Site.... More...
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