American Pie 2 (2001)

A year away at college can make you feel all grown up, until the old gang gets back together and everyone reverts to form. J.B. Rogers' "American Pie 2," written by Adam Herz, is even funnier than its hit predecessor, and it will either delight or horrify you with its brazen, defiantly raunchy celebration of the young male libido. Women in the audience may be equally shocked or tickled, since, like the original, this appealing, character-driven comedy puts the women firmly in charge while offering a front-row view of lovestruck, sex-crazed guys in all their dubious glory. In other words, it's mostly about sex: bared breasts, anatomical mishaps, the possibility of a lesbian encounter, a blue novelty sex toy, clumsy seduction tactics, the mysterious "rule of three," an unfortunate shower of "champagne," long-distance phone sex, tantric sex and, oh yes, superglue. After their first year of college, the gang from the first film rents a beach house on Lake Michigan for the summer, planning to throw wild parties and lure the local beauties. Hapless Jim (Jason Biggs) is anxious about an upcoming reunion with Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth), the sexy Czech exchange student he fumbled with the first time around, so he asks band geek Michelle (Alyson Hannigan) to teach him a few moves, and to his surprise, sparks fly. Meanwhile, Oz (Chris Klein) is struggling through a long-distance romance with Heather (Mena Suvari), Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas) can't let go of his old girlfriend (Tara Reid), Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) is studying the ancient art of tantric sex while pining for Stifler's mom and Stifler (Seann William Scott) is as obnoxious as ever. This is no innocent "Beach Party" movie: with the entire original cast back, including Eugene Levy as Jim's awkwardly well-meaning dad, pretty much anything goes, except drugs, which are conspicuously absent. The gags come almost nonstop, and Rogers, bouncing back from his debut misfire, "Say It Isn't So," handles them with impressive precision, letting his young cast, especially Biggs, the very picture of a good sport, run with lines most people wouldn't dare say out loud. The result is a liberating, thoroughly good-natured comedy that makes no apologies for its one-track mind.