1999, 1 hr 35 min., Rated R for strong sexuality, crude sexual dialogue, language and drinking, all involving teens. Dir: Paul Weitz. Cast: Jason Biggs (Jim), Chris Klein (Oz), Thomas Ian Nicholas (Kevin), Tara Reid (Vicky), Alyson Hannigan (Michelle), Sean William Scott (Stifler), Mena Suvari (Heather), Natasha Lyonne (Jessica), Eugene Levy (Jim's Dad), Eddie Kaye Thomas (Finch), Shannon Elizabeth (Nadia).

I had been looking forward to American Pie for a few months, after the buzz on the Internet compared it to classic teen comedy fare such as Porky's, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, even last year's There's Something About Mary. Now that I've seen it, I can tell you that I laughed so hard I spit out half the bucket-o-pop I was drinking. I finally had to stop sipping from its fine nectar, because so many times I was hooting and bending over in joy.

There are some slower moments to let you catch your breath and allow for moments of sincerity, but only for a minute. The scenes in the previews (the ones you think will ruin the movie for you) are expounded on ten-fold, so there are plenty of surprises.

Even better, I understood completely where the four guys (who make a pact to get laid by graduation) are coming from. At 23, I'm still a virgin and proud of it, but mine is a religious reason. Even so, the friends I hung out with every day and weekend in high school were not practicing abstinence, but weren't exactly frolicking in bedrooms with the opposite sex, either. Which means sexual frustration ran rampant, which leads to a lot of talk about sex, all morning at school, all afternoon after school and all night out on the town.

With that in mind, all I kept thinking during the movie was "This is me and my friends when we were in high school!" They were almost the same conversations about life, sex and girls; just not as frequently, but it's only a two-hour film. Any guy will appreciate American Pie full tilt, and girls will realize just what hoops guys jump through in order to get their attention, let alone in their pants.

Yes, females, if you only truly understood what us males will put ourselves through for your attention; even initiating a conversation is enough to make most guys cringe. Heck, driving home I went through another tradition: Driving behind a car full of three females, I just hoped to catch up and get a glimpse, just to see if they were cute. Not as if I had any inkling to actually speak to them, or even fantasize about somehow meeting them and dating. No, I just wanted to see if they were good-looking. So as far as I'm concerned, women have all the power when it comes to relationships.

What added to American Pie is that I liked every character, because the filmmakers didn't feel the urge to give us prototypical teen characters. Their personalities are distinctive, and their situations are all different, which leads to a hilarious finale where we see just how their pact plays out on prom night. The main character is Jim, a senior who is willing to experiment with sex, but unfortunately it is sans female. His timing is horrible, though, as his parents continually interrupt him during these moments of...um...clarity, and even when it appears he has a chance to prove his manhood in front of the entire school, he blows it.

The best actor in Election, Chris Klein again shows why he's a bright new star in Hollywood as Oz, the Lacrosse playing enthusiast who joins the choir to meet girls, and grows the most in the film. Finch (Eddie Thomas) is the braniac and most unpopular of the bunch, who hires Jessica (Natasha Lyonne) to make him popular by spreading stories of physical and sexual prowess. The fourth buddy is Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas), who already has a steady girlfriend in Vicky (Tara Reid) who loves him, but he's not quite ready for that step and therefore is still waiting to be waved home from third base. As in all teen comedies there's the jerk-athlete-sex maniac, but in Pie he's the comedic relief, and one of the most enjoyable guys in the film, the ultimate partier/keg provider at parties.

As I mentioned before, there are genuine moments on the screen where the guys and gals have revelations of sincerity. It adds a needed depth to a film like this, where it's not just raw, raunchy comedy, but important to the lives of the characters who know more than sex is at stake. Which is another reason to like Pie, there are several slices, and sexual conquest is only one of them.

The verdict: -- Ah, fond memories of high school, yet I'm still very happy that it's over with.

I didn't realize how much today's youth don't care for movies over five years old until in "American Pie" a scene with Finch and Stifler's mother involved a very "Graduate"-like moment, to the music of "Mrs. Robinson", which about six people in the theater got, and five of those were in my group. Sad.