Seductive shots of a woman’s mouth forming suggestive and inviting expressions appear while a cheeky trail of male whispers fade in and out with porn-esque music. Another sequel to “9 1/2 Weeks?” No, it’s actually the beginning of “The Girl Next Door.” What was expected to be another B-class teen flick actually grabs the movie-viewer’s attention as something more.
Naturally, the enticing introduction turns out to be nothing more than a misleading scene of a high-school senior picture day (a sneaky test for the dirty mind). With this comes the realization that the film rests upon a basic “coming-of-age” plot about a righteous high school senior, Matthew Kidman (Emile Hirsch, “The Emperor’s Club”), deciding between doing the right thing and doing the wrong thing for the right reason after he meets the love of his life, Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert, “Love Actually”). However, things become interesting when Matthew finds out that his mysterious hottie is actually a bonafide porn star.
Unfortunately, “The Girl Next Door” cannot possibly make it up to the high-quality line with the mediocre performances delivered by Kidman and Cuthbert, who have almost no chemistry together. It would be nice to see Cuthbert in some other role than the risqué sex-goddess (“I’m all wet, can I come inside?”). By the end, you’ll realize that the entire time you’ve been paying more attention to the secondary actors and gratuitous cameos by silicon implants than to the principal actors and their so-called “obstacles.” The effort is very cute, but sadly the movie could have been just as funny without it.
Still, the film manages to up the ante with quite a few thrilling antics. Who can say no to the uproarious acting by Timothy Olyphant (“Rock Star”) as Kelly, Danielle’s misfit porn-star pimp? He and other bizarre men chase between Hirsch and a nearly naked James Remar (“Sex and the City”), who plays snazzy porn king Hugo Posch. The intrigue of the film proves (in a good way) to be a little racier than expected with its ballsy appeal. Several scenes actually keep your interest perked and ultimately turn out to be quite clever.
Yes, “The Girl Next Door” should inevitably be categorized as a second-rate teen movie. But all in all, kudos to director Luke Greenfield and co-writers David Wagner and Brent Goldberg for refraining from adding a stoner friend and too many staged high school parties with suspiciously old-looking high-schoolers. “The Girl Next Door” is more unique than the otherwise archetypal teen-comedy. It’s no film classic, but aside from the disappointing acting, it does loyally deliver what it is supposed to — some good, old, twisted humor.
