'American Reunion' Reviews Are In and They Are... Mixed

The reviews are in on the much anticipated “American Reunion” and “charming” is about as good as it gets. By most accounts, the latest installment of the “American Pie” movie series doesn’t really live up to its hype. That, however, is unlikely to matter to the flood of locals expected to rush to theaters to see it.

The movie is set to launch today, April 6. It was less than a year ago , just for a while, became ., home to the much anticipated reunion of the now grown up raunchy teens who made the "American Pie" series a classic. Locals in Walton County set up chairs in downtown Monroe and watched the idols of their youth prepare for movie takes. Mike Cash’s store still bears the mural advertising the imaginary falls just a few blocks away for which East Great Falls is supposedly named.

However, looking for signs of real hometown haunts might be the most exciting part of this night at the movies. Neil Rosen’s Big Apple Rating gives “American Reunion” just Two Apples.

“All of this wasn’t that funny the first time around, it’s predictable and tired,” Rosen said in his critique. He did, however, say this latest installment does “offer up marginal enjoyment and a couple of yuks for fans of the series.”

Bostom.com's review wasn’t so kind. "'American Reunion' isn’t even half-baked," is what it says, and that is just in the headline.

Carole Mallory’s review in the Huffington Post, however, wasn’t quite so harsh.

“Fun, outrageous and charming,” is her opening line.

“Yes, charming.

Who would have thought that this group of unintentionally vulgar young men could be charming? The timing of American Reunion makes it charming. The direction by Jon Hurwitz and Adam Schlossberg is top-notch -- they know their comedy. The gags work because the editing is tight and takes you out of a scene just before the joke is about to become stale.”

According to Comingsoon.com’s plot summary, in “American Reunion” all the original characters from “American Pie return a decade later to East Great Falls for their high-school reunion. The movie covers one weekend as they discover what has changed and what hasn’t. In the update, Jim and Michelle are married, Kevin and Vicky said goodbye and Oz and Heather drifted apart, but there is still a hankering back to the hormonal teenagers who launched the comedy classic.

The returning cast members are the same, just 10 years older. These include Jason Biggs, Alyson Hannigan, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tara Reid, Seann William Scott, Mena Suvari and Eddie Kaye Thomas.  

But even if the ratings aren’t that good, there is still that raunchy humor that grabbed everbody's attention a decade ago with the first "American Pie." And if the plot falls short, there is always the fun of looking to see how much of the real Monroe shows through in the side streets of East Great Falls, Mich.

Showtimes:

Carmike Gateway 12, 416 Exchange Blvd., Bethlehem
‎12:01am‎
AMC Discover Mills 18, 5900 Sugarloaf Parkway, Lawrenceville,
‎12:01am‎
Great Escape Hamilton Mill 14, 2160 Hamilton Creek Parkway, Dacula
‎12:00am‎
Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium 20 & IMAX, 3333 Buford Drive, Buford,
‎12:01‎ - ‎12:15‎ - ‎12:30am‎
AMC Stonecrest 16, 8060 Mall Parkway, Lithonia,
‎12:01am‎