I have to say that even though I’ve never seen an American Pie movie, hearing that something is a Seann William Scott movie does bring a little smile to my lips. I can’t say the same of any other American Pie cast member. I do like the guy.
He looks like a slightly skinnier version of me when I was his age, and if I’d ever made it into the movies, I’d’ve probably wanted to be about on his scale. Big enough for a bit of recognition, but not so big that you have to hire bodygurads or run from the papparazzi.
Pretty much ditto to all that (except the loving it part). The Promotion is one of those quirky little teeny tiny films that people walk out of either with a smile on their face, or scratching their heads muttering what the fuck was THAT? (as Ebert has seemingly done, though I’m not going to go read his review)
I got impatient with it and I almost considered getting up and walking out of it a couple of times but I’m so glad I stuck it out to the end. It’s strange, but I didn’t know if I liked it until the end, and then I decided that I did like it. If I saw it a couple more times I might well come to love it. In any case, I’m very glad I saw it. Seann William Scott was fantastic in it too, as an ambitious but somewhat lazy grocery store assistant manager with an inferiority complex. He holds his own next to John C. Reilly, and that’s saying something. Beyond Scott and Reilly, it’s also worth seeing for Fred Armisen (as the befuddled but steel-cored store manager), the various cameos (Justin Bateman’s 5 seconds is a hoot), and for the “walking over coals/bag over the head” scenes.
After seeing him in this, I now have a huge soft spot for SWS. If he keeps finding these little indie movies to do, he’s going to continue to have a fine career, “superstardom” be damned.
John Cho is by far the biggest star out of the American Pie movies.
I think American Pie: Beta House is actually the best out of all of the sequels. The tone of the movie is totally different from the rest of the films, and rather than being the sophomoric “frat movie” that you’d expect, it’s actually fairly intelligent. It even works in some sly postmodern social commentary on the nature of gender relations and what it means to be an alpha male in the 21st century (women valuing men for their money rather than looks or strength, hence, the theme of the “geek house” actually being the bad guys of the film and getting all the hottest women on the campus because they’re all future millionaires - a clever reversal of the Revenge of the Nerds type plot.) And I’m not trying to make some kind of sarcastic joke, either, I’m honestly serious. The movie’s big flaw is that it has a lame ending, but besides that, it’s a fun movie. “Dwight Stifler” (Steve Talley, who looks like a young Christian Bale) is a much more nuanced and likable character than the original Steve Stifler. Also there is like 39 times more nudity than the original films.
We could quibble over the use of the word “very,” but I don’t think that would add much to the discussion.
Which, in my opinion, is doing well. Very well. And it’s somewhat at odds with this:
If working steadily and building solid careers does not constitute “doing much” for an actor, I’m not sure what does.
He’s an example of someone who was widely written off as a has-been after appearing in some bombs, but then made a big comeback – at least twice. But I’m repeating myself.
Appearing in unsuceesful movies doesn’t mean you can never have a good career any more than appearing in a hit movie guarantees a lifetime of success.