Barnes & Noble

Teen angst in the '70s takes on tragic proportions in this haunting adaptation of the Jeffrey Eugenides novel. Sophomore director Sofia Coppola, the daughter of Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, The Conversation), breaks out in her own right with this tale of five beautiful blonde teenage sisters (Kirsten Dunst, Hanna Hall, Chelsea Swain, A. J. Cook, and Leslie Hayman), who mesmerize the adolescent male population of their suburban Michigan neighborhood before ending their own lives. Dunst, playing the most charismatic of the sisters, is superb as a rebellious yet vulnerable dream girl, but the film also features fine (and surprising) performances from James Woods as the girls' nerdy science teacher father;Kathleen Turner as their frumpy, repressed mother; and Josh Hartnett as a high school stud whose fling with Dunst has dire consequences. What makes The Virgin Suicides truly memorable, though, is the atmosphere of dreamy nostalgia and melancholy that suffuses every frame. The boys' uncomprehending idealization of the sisters is expressed in slow-motion, soft-focus fantasy sequences of the golden-haired girls running through sun-dappled fields -- distorted images of femininity derived from '70s shampoo commercials. The score's deft use of period arena-pop by acts like Heart and Styx enhances to the '70s scenario. At once lyrical and creepy, The Virgin Suicides is a modern fairy tale that casts a lingering spell. Gregory Baird

All Movie Guide

A dark comedy punctuated by moments of drama, The Virgin Suicides explores the emotional underpinnings of a family starting to come apart at the seams in 1970's Midwestern America. The Lisbons seem like an ordinary enough family; Father (James Woods) teaches math at a high school in Michigan, Mother (Kathleen Turner) has a strong religious faith, and they have five teenage daughters, ranging from 13-year-old Cecilia (Hannah Hall) to 17-year-old Therese (Leslie Hayman). However, the Lisbon family's sense of normalcy is shattered when Cecilia falls into a deep depression and attempts suicide. The family is shaken and Mother and Father seek the advice of psychiatrist Dr. Hornicker (Danny DeVito), who suggests the girls should be allowed to socialize more with boys. However, boys soon become a serious problem for Cecilia's sister Lux (Kirsten Dunst). Lux has attracted the eye of a high-school Romeo named Trip (Josh Hartnett), who assures Father of his good intentions. But Cecilia finally makes good on her decision to kill herself, throwing the Lisbons into a panic; and after attending a school dance, Trip seduces and then abandons Lux. The Lisbons pull their daughters out of school, as an emotionally frayed Mother keeps close watch over them. Meanwhile, Lux continues to attract the attentions of the local boys, and she responds with a series of clandestine sexual episodes with random partners as often as she can sneak out of the house. The debut feature from Sofia Coppola (whose father, Francis Ford Coppola, co-produced this film), The Virgin Suicides also features supporting performances from Scott Glenn and Giovanni Ribisi. The film was shown as part of the Directors Fortnight series as the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 097363381747
• Source: PARAMOUNT
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital Surround, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English, Français
• Subtitles: English
• Time: 1:36:00
• Sales Rank: 3,673

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• American Beauty/Virgin Suicides

Features:

DVD MENU