The Girl Next Door Starring Emile Hirsch, Elisha Cuthbert Directed by Luke Greenfield Rated R for strong sexual content, language and some drug/alcohol use out of Stars, Movie Grade: A-

Theatrical Release: April 9, 2004
Running time: 110 minutes

by Kevin Lang

The enjoyable main course of The Girl Next Door reminded me a lot of a slightly obscene 80's movie with a few slices of American Pie thrown in. It was the kind of movie that if I were going to see it when I was younger, my mom would say something like, "I know that movie isn't rated R for violence." She did however consider films with the occasional breast shot okay. She would just press her lips together, shake her head, and make a strange sound with her tongue as if she was trying to pull Satan's stinger from the roof of her mouth. Mom felt so ashamed for that poor girl exposing herself on the big screen. Yet, she felt that if Arnold, Sylvester, or Jean-Claude were in it, then a little cleavage could be overlooked. "You just close your eyes or turn your head pumpkin, I think God will understand."

Despite the previews, The Girl Next Door wasn't quite as raunchy as its marketing campaign implied it to be. It still gave me the occasional prick from Satan's stinger, even if for some reason I didn't always feel it, probably due to too much MTV. The film's 80's soundtrack was a delightful change from most movies in its genre. The Girl Next Door also focused more on its story and characters than on all out raunch and toilet humor.

The movie's plot revolved around Matthew Kidman (Emile Hirsch), a shy and unpopular high school student who attracted the attention of his peers when he began to date a former porn star named Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert), who moved in next door. Conflict arose when Danielle's former manager slash ex-boyfriend came to take her back to Vegas to continue her old career. Abandoning his stringent life of endless academics, Matthew discovered a wild side that he hadn't realized he possessed, doing such things as cutting class and skinny-dipping in the principal's pool. These scenes were the typical bad girl teaches good boy how to let loose moments that we've all seen before. They failed to create a believable relationship between Matthew and Danielle. Overall, the two actors lacked enough onscreen interaction and dialogue to build a convincing relationship. Instead, Matthew's love at first sight crush never grew into much more for me, and as he risked his future for Danielle, the movie didn't necessarily convince me that the juice was worth the squeeze (refer to the film's trailer).

However, what was lacking between Matthew and Danielle didn't greatly subtract from my enjoyment of the film. Director Luke Greenfield created an original teen movie that stood out from most. It was hip, fast-paced, and filled with enough humor to make it entertaining throughout. The dialogue was fresh and the characters were developed well. Mom wouldn't approve, but I can just tell her that I shut my eyes.

"The Girl Next Door" Review written April 9, 2004, CTF.

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