Sharp writing lifts demented 'Sex Drive' to comedic heights
By Phil Villarreal
Pvillarreal@azstarnet.com
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 10.16.2008
As long as there are insecure teenage boys — and men who used to be them — there will be comedies like "Sex Drive."
The comedy follows in the vulgar tradition of "The Last American Virgin," "The Sure Thing" and "American Pie," rolling out a barrage of embarrassing sex jokes.
You won't want to repeat anything you see or hear in public, but when you're in the theater, sucked into the movie's demented little world, you happily wallow in the sticky comic mud.
Unloved nice-guy Ian (Josh Zuckerman) is the ever-wounded hero. A high school senior with a major crush on his oblivious friend, Felicia (Amanda Crew), Ian puts up with needling from his pugnacious older brother, Rex (James Marsden).
His best bud is Lance (Clark Duke), a bespectacled, pudgy casanova who gets women to lust after him by treating them like garbage. Lance's approach is dubious at best, but it helps the comedic effort because he's so unreasonably overconfident.
Desperate to lose his unsexed stigma, Ian meets up with a girl online who says she'll relieve him of his virginity if he drives several hundred miles to meet her at the Bob's Big Boy. Ian is wary, but Lance convinces him they should go, noting that Ian can also get back at Rex by taking his prized car. Felicia tags along as well, and the trio is off on a "Dumb & Dumber"-style lust-driven road trip.
The gang meets an angry hitchhiker, happens upon an Amish community that's hosting a Fall Out Boy concert, checks out an unusual dance group at the fair and runs afoul of the law more than once. An effective gimmick cuts away to show the most scandalous moments instantly posted on blogs or YouTube.
Just as in the awful "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist," nothing the kids do or encounter is related in even the slightest way to reality. "Sex Drive," though, manages to get away with its nonsense because you're laughing too hard to unsuspend disbelief.
The writing is sharp, helping the comedy move at a brisk pace, but it's the rapport among the three leads that really sells the romp. Zuckerman is an amiable stooge with the impeccable self-deprecating timing of Ben Stiller, and Crew lends some depth and personality to what could be a cookie-cutter character.
It's Duke, however, who glues the film together. Nearly every time the audience howls with laughter it's because of something Lance did or said. There's also a sweet side to the character, who sees himself as something of a life coach for Ian.
Seth Green deals out a few gut-busters in a small but memorable role as a passive-aggressive Amish mechanic who helps out unsuspecting travelers, guilting them into sharing in farm chores.
Well cast and executed, "Sex Drive" is a guilty pleasure that keeps on giving, even during the end credits.
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