American Pie (1999)

American Pie is a 1999 teen sex comedy film written by Adam Herz and directed by brothers Paul and Chris Weitz, in their directorial film debut. It is the first film in the American Pie theatrical series. The film was a box-office hit and spawned three direct sequels: American Pie 2 (2001), American Wedding (2003), and American Reunion (2012). The film concentrates on five best friends (Jim, Kevin, Oz, Finch, and Stifler) who attend East Great Falls High. With the exception of Stifler (who has already lost his virginity), the guys make a pact to lose their virginity before their high school graduation. The title is borrowed from the song of the same name and refers to a scene in the film, in which the protagonist is caught masturbating with a pie after being told that third base feels like "warm apple pie". Writer Adam Herz has stated that the title also refers to the quest of losing one's virginity in high school, which is as "American as apple pie." The film's theme song is "Laid" by James, which is also the theme for the entire franchise. In addition to the primary American Pie saga, there are four direct-to-DVD spin-off films bearing the title American Pie Presents: Band Camp (2005), The Naked Mile (2006), Beta House (2007), and The Book of Love (2009). In response to the success of American Reunion, a fifth theatrical film, under the working title American Pie 5 was announced on August 4, 2012.

Plot

Five high school seniors from West Michigan are good friends: Jim Levenstein (Jason Biggs), an awkward, nerdy and sexually naïve character whose dad Noah (Eugene Levy) attempts to offer sexual advice including purchasing and giving him pornography; Chris "Oz" Ostreicher (Chris Klein), a member of the high school lacrosse team; Kevin Myers (Thomas Ian Nicholas), the nerdy leader of the group who wants to lose his virginity to his girlfriend Vicky (Tara Reid); Paul Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas), a mochaccino-drinking sophisticate and nerd; and Steve Stifler (Seann William Scott), a raucous jock who often throws wild parties when his mother is away, and is also the only one of the five who has lost his virginity. At Kevin's prompting, Oz, Finch, Jim, and Kevin make a pact to lose their virginities before their high school graduation after a dorky classmate, Chuck Sherman (Chris Owen), claims to have done so at a party hosted by Stifler. Vicky later accuses Kevin of being with her only for sex, so he must try to repair his relationship with her before the upcoming prom night, when the four plan to lose their virginity. He eventually succeeds. Oz, meanwhile, joins the school jazz choir in an attempt to find a girlfriend. From a college girl he tried to seduce, Oz learns about sensitivity and that it is about asking girls questions and listening to what they say. He soon wins the attention of Heather (Mena Suvari), a girl in the choir. However, he runs into problems when Heather learns about Oz's reputation and breaks up with him, although he manages to regain her trust when he leaves the lacrosse championship to perform a duet with her in a choir competition. Jim, meanwhile, attempts to pursue Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth), an exchange student from Slovakia who asks Jim for help to study for an upcoming history test. After being told by Oz that third base feels like "warm apple pie", he practices having sex with a pie, only to be caught by Noah (who lets him keep it a secret from his mother). Stifler persuades him to set up a webcam in his room so that they can all watch Nadia changing clothes. The plan suffers a hiccup, though, when Nadia discovers Jim's pornography collection and sits half-naked on his bed to read and masturbates to it. Jim is persuaded to return to his room, where he joins Nadia, unaware that he accidentally sent the webcam link to everyone on the school list. Nadia is interested in him, but he suffers premature ejaculation twice and is unable to have sex with her. Nadia's exchange family sees the video and sends her back home, now leaving Jim dateless for the upcoming prom and without hope of losing his virginity before high school is over. In sheer desperation, Jim asks band camp geek Michelle Flaherty (Alyson Hannigan) to the senior prom as she is apparently the only girl at his school who did not see what happened. Finch, meanwhile, pays Vicky's friend, Jessica (Natasha Lyonne), $200 to spread rumors around the school of his sexual prowess, hoping that it will increase his chances of success. Unfortunately, he runs into trouble when Stifler, angry that a girl turned him down for the prom because she was waiting for Finch to ask her, puts a laxative into Finch's mochaccino. Finch, being paranoid about the lack of cleanliness in the school restrooms, and unable to go home to use the toilet as he usually does, is tricked by Stifler into using the girls' restroom. Afterwards, he emerges humiliated before a crowd of fellow students and is also left dateless. At the prom, things seem bleak for the four boys until Vicky asks the girl that Chuck Sherman claimed to have bedded about her "first time." She proclaims to everyone at the prom that she and Sherman did not have sex at Stifler's party, leaving Sherman embarrassed and making him wet himself. The revelation takes the pressure off of Jim, Kevin, Oz and Finch, and they head to the post-prom party at Stifler's house with new hope. At the after-party, all four boys fulfill their pledges. Kevin and Vicky have sex in an upstairs bedroom. Vicky breaks up with Kevin afterwards on the grounds that they will drift apart when they go to college. Oz confesses the pact to Heather, and renounces it, saying that just by them being together makes him a winner. They reconcile and wind up having sex. Oz, honoring his newfound sensitivity, never confesses to what they did. Jim and Michelle have sex after he finds out that she is actually not as naïve as she let on and that she saw the "Nadia Incident" after all. She accepted his offer to be his date because of it, knowing he was a "sure thing" but makes him wear two condoms to combat his earlier "problem" with Nadia. Jim is surprised at Michelle's aggressiveness in bed. In the morning he wakes up to find her gone and realizes that she had used him for a one-night stand, which Jim thinks is "cool". Dateless, Finch strays downstairs to the basement recreation room where he meets Stifler's mother (Jennifer Coolidge). She is aroused by his precociousness, and they have sex on the pool table. The next morning, while Stifler searches for his mom, he finds her on the pool table with Finch, and is so shocked that he faints. The morning after the prom, Jim, Kevin, Oz, and Finch eat breakfast at their favorite restaurant where they toast to the "next step". From Slovakia, Nadia watches Jim stripping on his webcam: Noah walks in (to which Jim is completely oblivious) but happily walks out and also starts dancing.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Pie_(film)

The Matrix (1999)

The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction film written and directed by The Wachowskis, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantoliano. It depicts a dystopian future in which reality as perceived by most humans is actually a simulated reality called "the Matrix", created by sentient machines to subdue the human population, while their bodies' heat and electrical activity are used as an energy source. Computer programmer "Neo" learns this truth and is drawn into a rebellion against the machines, which involves other people who have been freed from the "dream world". The Matrix is known for popularizing a visual effect known as "bullet time", in which the heightened perception of certain characters is represented by allowing the action within a shot to progress in slow-motion while the camera's viewpoint appears to move through the scene at normal speed. The film is an example of the cyberpunk science fiction genre. It contains numerous references to philosophical and religious ideas, and prominently pays homage to works such as Plato's Allegory of the Cave, Jean Baudrillard's Simulacra and Simulation and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The Wachowskis' approach to action scenes drew upon their admiration for Japanese animation and martial arts films, and the film's use of fight choreographers and wire fu techniques from Hong Kong action cinema influenced subsequent Hollywood action film productions. The Matrix was first released in the United States on March 31, 1999, and grossed over $460 million worldwide. It was generally well-received by critics, and won four Academy Awards as well as other accolades including BAFTA Awards and Saturn Awards. Reviewers praised The Matrix for its innovative visual effects, cinematography and its entertainment. The film's premise was both criticized for being derivative of earlier science fiction works, and praised for being intriguing. The action also polarized critics, some describing it as impressive, but others dismissing it as a trite distraction from an interesting premise. The film has since appeared in lists of the greatest science fiction films, and in 2012, was added to the National Film Registry for preservation. The success of the film led to the release of two feature film sequels, both written and directed by the Wachowskis: The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. The Matrix franchise was further expanded through the production of comic books, video games and animated short films in which the Wachowskis were heavily involved.

Plot

Trinity, an infamous hacker, is cornered by police in an abandoned hotel. She overpowers them with superhuman abilities and escapes, but a group of sinister and superhuman black-suited Agents lead the police in a rooftop pursuit. She answers a ringing public telephone and vanishes. Thomas Anderson is a computer programmer living a double life under the hacker alias "Neo". He believes something is wrong with the world and is puzzled by repeated online encounters with the cryptic phrase "the Matrix". Trinity contacts him, saying that a man named Morpheus can explain its meaning; however, the Agents, led by Agent Smith, apprehend Neo at his office. Undeterred, Neo meets Morpheus, who offers him a choice between a red pill that will allow him to learn the truth about the Matrix, and a blue pill that will return him to his old life. Swallowing the red pill, Neo's reality disintegrates and he awakens, naked and weak, in a liquid-filled pod, finding himself one of countless people connected by cables to an elaborate electrical system. He is rescued and brought aboard Morpheus's hovercraft, the Nebuchadnezzar. Morpheus explains that, in the 21st century, humans waged a war against intelligent machines that they had created. When humans blocked the machines' access to solar energy, the machines began to harvest the humans' bioelectricity for power. The Matrix is a shared simulation of the world as it was in 1999 in which the minds of the harvested humans are trapped and pacified; Neo has been living in it since birth. Morpheus and his crew belong to a group of rebels who hack into the Matrix and "unplug" enslaved humans, recruiting them as rebels. The rebels' understanding of the true nature of the simulated reality allows them to bend its physical laws, granting them superhuman abilities. Neo is warned that fatal injuries within the Matrix will also kill one's physical body, and that the Agents he encountered are powerful sentient programs that eliminate threats to the system. Neo's skill during virtual combat training lends credence to Morpheus's belief that Neo is "the One", a man prophesied to lead the insurrection of enslaved humans against the machines. The group enters the Matrix to visit the Oracle, a prophet who predicted the emergence of the One. She implies that Neo is not the One, and warns Neo that he will soon have to choose between his life and the life of Morpheus. Before they can leave the Matrix, the group is ambushed by Agents and tactical police. Morpheus allows himself to be captured so that Neo and the crew can escape. However, their getaway is hindered by Cypher, a crew member who betrayed Morpheus to Agent Smith in exchange for a comfortable life within the Matrix. Cypher disconnects and murders several crew members as they lie defenseless in the real world. He then prepares to disconnect Neo and Trinity as well, but is confronted and killed by Tank, a crewman whom he had left for dead. In the Matrix, the Agents interrogate Morpheus in an attempt to learn his access codes to the mainframe computer in Zion, the rebel humans' last refuge in the real world. Tank proposes killing Morpheus to prevent this, but Neo, who believes that he is not the One, instead resolves to return to the Matrix to rescue Morpheus, and Trinity insists on accompanying him. They succeed in rescuing Morpheus, and in doing so Neo gains the necessary confidence in his abilities, performing feats on par with those of the Agents. Morpheus and Trinity exit the Matrix, but Neo is forced to fight Smith after the latter intervenes and thwarts his escape. Outmatched, Neo attempts to find an exit while fleeing from the Agents; he eventually manages to locate an exit in an apartment, only to run into Smith and be fatally shot upon arriving there. In the real world, "sentinel" machines attack the Nebuchadnezzar, while Trinity stands over Neo and whispers to him that the Oracle told her that she would fall in love with the One. She kisses Neo, and he revives, this time with the power to perceive and control the Matrix. He effortlessly destroys Smith and then leaves the Matrix in time for the ship's electromagnetic pulse weapon to disable the attacking sentinels. Some time later, Neo makes a telephone call in the Matrix, promising the machines that he will show their prisoners "a world where anything is possible". He hangs up and flies into the sky.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Matrix

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is a 1999 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas, produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is the first installment in the Star Wars prequel trilogy and stars Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Ian McDiarmid, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Pernilla August and Frank Oz. The film is set 32 years before the original film, and follows Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi as they protect Queen Amidala, in hopes of securing a peaceful end to a large-scale interplanetary trade dispute. Joined by Anakin Skywalker—a young slave with unusually strong natural powers of the Force—they simultaneously contend with the mysterious return of the Sith. Lucas began production of this film after he determined that film special effects had advanced to the level he wanted for the fourth film in the saga. Filming started on June 26, 1997, at locations including Leavesden Film Studios and the Tunisian desert. Its visual effects included extensive use of computer-generated imagery (CGI); many of its characters and settings were completely computerized. The film was Lucas's first directorial effort after a 22-year hiatus following Star Wars in 1977. The Phantom Menace was released to theaters on May 19, 1999, almost 16 years after the premiere of the previous Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi. The film's premiere was extensively covered by media and was greatly anticipated because of the large cultural following the Star Wars saga had cultivated. It received mixed reviews; critics praised the visuals, action sequences, score and many of the performances, but criticized the writing, characterization, and Ahmed Best's (as Jar Jar Binks) and Jake Lloyd's (as Anakin Skywalker) performances. It grossed more than $924.3 million worldwide during its initial theatrical run, making it the second-highest-grossing film worldwide at the time, behind Titanic. It became the highest-grossing film of 1999 and the highest-grossing Star Wars film (until the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015), and is currently the seventeenth-highest-grossing film in North America unadjusted for inflation. A 3D reissue, which has earned an additional $102.7 million at the box office and brought the film's overall worldwide takings to over $1 billion, was released in February 2012. The film was followed by two sequels, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones in 2002 and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith in 2005.

Plot

Supreme Chancellor Valorum, leader of the Galactic Republic, dispatches Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, to negotiate with the Trade Federation leadership to end a blockade of battleships around the planet Naboo. Darth Sidious, a Sith Lord and the Trade Federation's secret adviser, orders Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray to kill the Jedi and invade Naboo with an army of battle droids. The Jedi escape and flee to Naboo, where Qui-Gon saves a Gungan outcast, Jar Jar Binks, from being run over and killed by a droid tank during the invasion. Indebted to the Jedi, Jar Jar leads them to an underwater Gungan city. The Jedi unsuccessfully try to persuade the Gungan leader, Boss Nass, into helping the people of Naboo, though they are able to obtain transportation to Theed, the capital city on the surface. They rescue Queen Amidala, the ruler of the Naboo people, and escape the planet on her royal starship, which is damaged as they pass the Federation blockade. Amidala's ship is unable to sustain its hyperdrive and lands for repairs on the desert planet Tatooine. Qui-Gon, Jar Jar, astromech droid R2-D2, and Amidala (in disguise as one of her handmaidens) visit the settlement of Mos Espa to buy new parts at a junk shop. They meet the shop's owner Watto and his nine-year-old slave, Anakin Skywalker, who is a gifted pilot and engineer and has created a protocol droid called C-3PO. Qui-Gon senses a strong presence of the Force within Anakin and is convinced that he is the "chosen one" of Jedi prophecy who will bring balance to the Force. Qui-Gon wagers Anakin's freedom with Watto in a Podrace, which Anakin wins. Anakin joins the group to be trained as a Jedi, leaving his mother, Shmi, behind. En route to their starship, Qui-Gon briefly duels with Darth Maul, Darth Sidious's apprentice, who was sent to capture Amidala. The Jedi escort Amidala to the Republic capital planet, Coruscant, so she can plead her people's case to Chancellor Valorum and the Galactic Senate. Qui-Gon asks the Jedi Council for permission to train Anakin as a Jedi, but the Council refuses, concerned that Anakin is vulnerable to the dark side. Undaunted, Qui-Gon vows to train Anakin anyway. Meanwhile, Naboo's Senator Palpatine persuades Amidala to make a vote of no confidence in Valorum to elect a more capable chancellor to resolve the crisis on Naboo. Though she pushes for the vote, Amidala grows frustrated with the corruption in the Senate and decides to return to Naboo with the Jedi. On Naboo, Padmé reveals herself to the Gungans as Queen Amidala and persuades them into an alliance against the Trade Federation. Jar Jar leads his people in a battle against the droid army while Padmé leads the hunt for Gunray in Theed. In a starship hangar, Anakin enters a vacant starfighter and inadvertently triggers its autopilot, joining the battle against the Federation droid control ship in space. Anakin ventures into the ship and destroys it from within, deactivating the droid army. Meanwhile, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan battle Darth Maul, who mortally wounds Qui-Gon before being bisected by Obi-Wan. As he dies, Qui-Gon asks Obi-Wan to train Anakin. Subsequently, Palpatine is elected as the new Supreme Chancellor and Gunray is arrested. The Jedi Council promotes Obi-Wan to the rank of Jedi Knight and reluctantly accepts Anakin as Obi-Wan's apprentice. At a festive ceremony, Padmé presents a gift of appreciation and friendship to the Gungans.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia -  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_Episode_I_%E2%80%93_The_Phantom_Menace

Fight Club (1999)

Fight Club is a 1999 American film based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Chuck Palahniuk. The film was directed by David Fincher, and stars Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter. Norton plays the unnamed protagonist, referred to as the narrator, who is discontented with his white-collar job. He forms a "fight club" with soap maker Tyler Durden, played by Pitt, and they are joined by men who also want to fight recreationally. The narrator becomes embroiled in a relationship with Durden and a dissolute woman, Marla Singer, played by Bonham Carter. Palahniuk's novel was optioned by 20th Century Fox producer Laura Ziskin, who hired Jim Uhls to write the film adaptation. Fincher was one of four directors the producers considered, and was selected because of his enthusiasm for the film. Fincher developed the script with Uhls and sought screenwriting advice from the cast and others in the film industry. The director and the cast compared the film to Rebel Without a Cause (1955) and The Graduate (1967). Fincher intended Fight Club's violence to serve as a metaphor for the conflict between a generation of young people and the value system of advertising. The director copied the homoerotic overtones from Palahniuk's novel to make audiences uncomfortable and keep them from anticipating the twist ending. Studio executives did not like the film and restructured Fincher's intended marketing campaign to try to reduce anticipated losses. Fight Club failed to meet the studio's expectations at the box office and received polarized reactions from critics, who debated the explicit violence and moral ambiguity, but praised the acting, directing, themes and messages. It was cited as one of the most controversial and talked-about films of 1999. The film later found critical and commercial success with its DVD release, which established Fight Club as a cult film.

PLOT

The unnamed Narrator (Edward Norton) is a traveling automobile recall specialist who suffers from insomnia. One night, he visits a support group for testicular cancer victims, where they assume that he, too, is a victim, and he spontaneously weeps into the nurturing arms of another man, finding a "freedom" that relieves his insomnia. He becomes addicted to participating in support groups of various kinds, always allowing the groups to assume that he suffers what they do. However, he begins to notice another impostor, Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter), whose presence disturbs his bliss. The two negotiate to avoid their attending the same groups, but, before going their separate ways, Marla gives the Narrator her phone number. On a flight home from a business trip, the Narrator meets Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), a soap salesman with whom he begins to converse after noticing the two share the same kind of briefcase. After the flight, the Narrator returns home to find that his apartment has been demolished by an explosion. He calls Tyler and they meet at a bar. A conversation about consumerism leads to the Narrator moving into Tyler's dilapidated house. Outside the bar, Tyler requests that the Narrator hit him, which leads the two to engage in a fistfight. They have further fights outside the bar on subsequent nights, and these fights attract growing crowds of men. The fighting eventually moves to the bar's basement where the men form a "fight club," a routine opportunity for the men to fight recreationally. Marla overdoses on pills and telephones the Narrator for help; he ignores her, but Tyler answers the call and saves her. Tyler and Marla become sexually involved, and Tyler warns the Narrator never to talk to Marla about him. More fight clubs form across the country and, under Tyler's leadership, they become the anti-materialist and anti-corporate organization called "Project Mayhem." The Narrator complains to Tyler that he wants to be more involved in the organization, but then Tyler suddenly disappears. When a member of Project Mayhem is killed by the police during a botched sabotage operation, the Narrator tries to shut down the project, and follows evidence of Tyler's national travels to track him down. In one city, a Project member greets the Narrator as Tyler Durden. The Narrator calls Marla from his hotel room and discovers that Marla also believes him to be Tyler. He suddenly sees Tyler in his room, and Tyler reveals that they are dissociated personalities in the same body. When the Narrator has believed himself to be asleep, Tyler has been controlling his body and travelling to different locations. The Narrator blacks out after the conversation, and when he awakes, he uncovers Tyler's plans to erase debt by destroying buildings that contain credit card companies' records. The Narrator tries to contact the police, but finds that the officers are members of the Project. He attempts to disarm the explosives in a building, but Tyler subdues him and moves him to the uppermost floor. The Narrator, held at gunpoint by Tyler, realizes that, in sharing the same body with Tyler, he himself is actually holding the gun. He fires it into his mouth, shooting through the cheek without killing himself. Tyler collapses with an exit wound to the back of his head, and the Narrator stops mentally projecting him. Afterward, Project Mayhem members bring a kidnapped Marla to him, believing him to be Tyler, and leave them alone. The explosives detonate, collapsing many buildings around them; the Narrator and Marla, holding hands, look on.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fight_Club