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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.

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $0

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 date; Australian critics are listed first)
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See this film and be captivated by the spell it casts.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/01/00
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Bob Grimm
Bob Grimm
Sacramento News & Review

It's yet another case of blame-the-parents, and, more precisely, blame-the-overprotective-mother.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
07/24/07
Rob Gonsalves
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

Sofia Coppola tackles the issue of teenage suicide with an assured treatment in The Virgin Suicides, effectively employing a seriocomic tone.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
07/18/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A very curious and eclectic piece of work.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
07/18/07
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader

A most assured debut, this darkly humorous exploration of a tough subject benefits from original narrative and the fact that, unlike most American teen movies, the appealing cast consists of actors who are the same age as the characters they play.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
10/21/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The strongest directorial debut of the year.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

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

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 stellar debut feature from Sofia Coppola and it's a must see.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Chris Gore
Chris Gore
Film Threat

Concentration on either the writing or the direction, but not both, may have spawned a better film from first-timer Sofia C.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

Mergulhando com sensibilidade na amargura do universo adolescente, com seus anseios e frustrações, Coppola estréia de forma memorável na direção.

comment Comment
01/26/05
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

A disarmingly poetic - and specifically female - vision of adolescence that it belongs in a category of its own.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
12/31/03
Moira MacDonald
Moira MacDonald
Seattle Times

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

Black comedy has never looked so good.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
05/14/03
Jeanne Aufmuth
Jeanne Aufmuth
Palo Alto Weekly

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

If [Coppola's] debut film is any indication, talent does run in the family -- even if it is a somewhat disjointed talent.

Full Review Source: Pitch.com | comment Comment
11/12/02
Jon Niccum
Jon Niccum
Pitch.com

In the end, the strengths of the movie are overwhelmed by what is pretentious, unplugged and boring to boot.

Full Review Source: Cincinnati Enquirer | comment 1 Comment
10/15/02
Margaret A. McGurk
Margaret A. McGurk
Cincinnati Enquirer

A heartbreaking glimpse at the secret life of adolescents... shockingly tender and remarkably acted.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Today | comment Comment
09/06/02
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Entertainment Today

...a tragic fable, as diffuse as an imperfectly remembered dream

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
07/31/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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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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