Andy Samberg, Will Forte, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller: just a few of Extreme Movie’s credited writers whose bona fides weren’t as bona fide when this comedy was made. By the time it was released, they likely wished they’d used pseudonyms.
Against better judgment, I laughed several times while watching it. I certainly didn’t expect to. After all, the movie:
• sat on Dimension Films’ shelves for, like, ever
• went straight to DVD
• lists 10 screenwriters
• boasts the word “movie” in the title — rarely a good sign
Oh, it’s no gem, but for something with so many strikes against it going in, Extreme Movie ain’t that bad. It’s a sketch film in the same throbbing vein as Kentucky Fried Movie or Amazon Women on the Moon, but with all the bits centered on teen sex to cash in on that American Pie fever. Several characters recur in parts scattered throughout, but there’s no pesky plot to follow.
If there’s a main character, it’s Ryan Pinkston (Soul Plane) as a scrawny high school virgin perpetually embarrassed by the sex-ed lectures of his teacher (a scene-stealing John Farley, brother of Chris). In other sequences, Screamer Matthew Lillard dishes out sex advice as himself; MTV manchild Andy Milonakis dates a sex toy (not a doll, a toy); and Frankie Muniz (Stay Alive) learns how wild his girlfriend really is. Seeing Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) asked by a online hookup to show up at her door posing as a rapist — but accidentally going to the wrong apartment — is funny (and only because Cera is Cera), but seeing Jamie Kennedy do his thing is not.
Spotty is an apt descriptor for the film; even with missed targets, the brief running time won’t leave you feeling too cheated. Cameos from a gay Abe Lincoln and a horny puppet might help compensate for a surprising lack of nudity for such below-the-belt material. —Rod Lott