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Movies / On DVD / The Virgin Suicides
The Virgin Suicides

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The Virgin Suicides (1999)

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Reviews Counted:91

Fresh:70

Rotten:21

Average Rating:7/10

Consensus: Sofia's successful directorial debut lies in the movie's compelling story and the actors' genuine emotions.

Rated: 15

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:19-05-2000

Synopsis: Based on the 1993 novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES tells the dreamlike tale of the Lisbons, a family living in a sheltered 1970s suburbia. When Cecilia (Hannah Hall), the youngest of... Based on the 1993 novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES tells the dreamlike tale of the Lisbons, a family living in a sheltered 1970s suburbia. When Cecilia (Hannah Hall), the youngest of the five teenage Lisbon daughters, inexplicably commits suicide, the rest of the family--Mr. Lisbon (James Woods), an awkward high school math teacher; Mrs. Lisbon (Kathleen Turner), a stern, humorless housewife; and the four remaining sisters: Lux (Kirsten Dunst), Bonnie (Chelse Swain), Mary (A.J. Cook), and Therese (Leslie Hayman)--recedes into a morbid cloud of repression and denial. As the girls are forced to retreat from everyday life by their conservative mother, they become the subject of fascination for a group of neighborhood boys, who narrate the story and hope to rescue the girls from their listless confinement. The first feature by director-screenwriter Sofia Coppola (Francis Ford Coppola's daughter), THE VIRGIN SUICIDES is a mesmerizingly atmospheric film that perfectly captures both the moody tone of the book and the light-saturated feel of the 1970s. Dunst gives a standout performance as the promiscuous Lux, who becomes the sole obsession of high school ladies' man Trip Fontaine (Josh Hartnett). The movie also includes cameos by Danny DeVito and Scott Glenn. In addition to songs by Heart and Todd Rundgren, the film features an evocative score by the French duo Air. [More]

Starring: James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett

Starring: James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, Hannah Hall, A.J. Cook, Chelse Swain, Danny DeVito, Scott Glenn, Jonathan Tucker, Leslie Hayman, Anthony DeSimone, Michelle Duquet, Michael Paré

Director: Sofia Coppola

Director: Sofia Coppola
Screenwriter: Sofia Coppola
Producer: Dan Halsted, Chris Hanley, Francis Ford Coppola, Julie Costanzo
Composer: Air

[See More Credits]

Reviews for The Virgin Suicides

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

The tone of wistful regret and longing doesn't preclude a good deal of gentle humour. It's a restrained, subtly suggestive piece which disintegrates if you try to get a fix on it.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

I can't quite give the movie a negative review, because I do concur with the critical consensus that Coppola has made an impressive directorial debut.

Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic

A haunting tale and a stunning directoral debut from Sophia Coppola.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Liz Beardsworth
Liz Beardsworth
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

If missteps hold the film back from achieving the full grandeur it aims for, there is no denying the way it conjures a magic-realist American suburbia, rarely before brought so convincingly to life.

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
12/02/02
Mark Olsen
Mark Olsen
Sight and Sound

An always impressive tale of teenage insecurity, deprivation, angst, and lust.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/17/01
Michael Thomson
Michael Thomson
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Coppola's direction engagingly avoids the coming-of-age cliches and the film boasts an excellent performance from Kirsten Dunst.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
10/01/03
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

An extremely sure-handed filmmaking debut from Coppola, daughter of Francis. Her script alone is a marvel of subtlety and intelligence.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
12/10/01
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Geoff Berkshire
Geoff Berkshire
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Content in its bland enigmas, The Virgin Suicides is exquisitely boring.

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

Both accomplished in its direction and marred by freshman mistakes.

Full Review Source: Matinee Magazine | comment Comment
05/01/01
Chuck Rudolph
Chuck Rudolph
Matinee Magazine

Too much of Coppola's direction ... is devoted to scoring easy points against the squares of suburbia and their hideous home decor to create a properly magical atmosphere.

Full Review Source: Citysearch | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Citysearch

A rather stunted and sliggish exercise in style whose sporadically haunting visual quality doesn't make up for its shallowness and ponderous pace.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
12/06/05
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

a disarmingly wispy film given its subject matter, which is pretty much spelled out by its title.

Full Review Source: Premiere Magazine | comment Comment
09/10/01
Glenn Kenny
Glenn Kenny
Premiere Magazine

When a film's most sensible character commits suicide within the first 15 minutes it cannot be a good sign.

Full Review Source: Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) | comment 1 Comment
06/18/02
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

Spunky directing debut by Sofia Coppola unfortunately plays like after-school special.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
04/04/01
Jim Bartoo
Jim Bartoo
Hollywood.com

The film just bored me stupid. Very few laughs, even less memorable scenes, and definitely not an 'entertainment' film, by any stretch of the imagination.

Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
01/01/00
JoBlo
JoBlo
JoBlo's Movie Emporium

Though she wisely foregoes drawing simplistic conclusions from a story brimming with unanswerable questions, Coppola doesn't scratch very far below the surface of this enigmatic fairy tale.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Kasia Anderson
Kasia Anderson
Reel.com

Coppola has created a detective story without a solution and a coming-of-ager without discernable characters.

Full Review Source: Mr. Showbiz | comment Comment
01/01/00
Kevin Maynard
Kevin Maynard
Mr. Showbiz

Short on real insight.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
01/01/00
Louis B. Hobson
Louis B. Hobson
Jam! Movies
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
all

Latest News for The Virgin Suicides

July 15, 2005: Trailer Bulletin: Pretty Persuasion
One of Sundance's more buzzed-about films was the dark high school comedy "Pretty Persuasion," and now you can check out the trailer over at Quicktime's Trailer Site.... More...

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