The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 15, 2013

Boaz Davidson's "The Last American Virgin" (1982) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features on the release include an original trailer for the film; and new video interviews with director Boaz Davidson, actors Lawrence Monoson and Diane Franklin, and cinematographer Adam Greenberg. The release also arrives with a collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and publisher Robin Bougie and an interview with The Last American Virgin super fan Eli Roth conducted by Calum Waddell, illustrated with original archive stills and posters, as well as a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by The Red Dress. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

"I Want You to Want Me..."

This truly wonderful film belongs to an era that is long gone – the era of harmless casual sex, great hairstyles, and fantastic music. Most people who first saw the film when it was released theatrically remember it for its surprising finale and fantastic soundtrack.

The film follows closely three high-school friends who can’t stop thinking about sex. The first is Rick (Steve Antin, The Accused), a tall and handsome boy who isn’t afraid to tell the girls he is interested in what he wants. David (Joe Rubbo, Hot Chili) is overweight and not as confident as Rick, but he is willing to pay for what his friend typically gets for free. Gary (Lawrence Monoson, Mask) is very shy and broke, which is why he spends most of his time delivering pizzas.

Things between Gary, Rick, and David become complicated when they meet Karen (Diane Franklin, Better Off Dead) and her girlfriends. Gary immediately falls in love with Karen, but she begins dating Rick. She also fixes up her brash girlfriend Rose (Kimmy Robertson, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids) with Gary. So instead of having fun with his old and new friends, Gary is constantly hurting because he can’t stand seeing Karen with Rick.

Eventually, Rick decides that he has had enough of Karen and moves on to the next girl. Sensing that this is the perfect time to win her heart, Gary makes a crucial move. He also buys her a very special birthday present to make the obvious even more obvious – that his heart belongs to her.

Boaz Davidson completed The Last American Virgin in 1982. The film is an English-language remake of the Israeli director’s virtually unknown on this side of the Atlantic 1978 comedy Lemon Popsicle. (In a new video interview included on this release, Davidson mentions that the Israeli film was inspired by true events from his teenage years in Tel Aviv).

The first half of the film is structured as a collage of light and genuinely hilarious short episodes in which the three friends come up with all sorts of different plans to get laid. In the best one, the boys meet three clueless girls who agree to join their non-existent party after they are promised some of the best drugs money can buy. Another good one involves a bubbly geek (Brian Peck) who enters an unusual contest.

The tone of the second half is drastically different. Unable to cope with the fact that Karen prefers to spend time with Rick, Gary becomes seriously frustrated and later on begins questioning himself. The frustration, anger, and eventually the pain he experiences are captured without even a whiff of melodrama. The various love scenes are also filmed without the compromising sugarcoating that exists in other similarly themed films from the era.

There are a number of risky sequences, at least by modern Hollywood standards, but the young cast is truly sensational. Early reviews of the film have argued exactly the opposite, but the looks and relaxed body language are indeed wonderful.

The film is complimented by a superb soundtrack featuring music by the The Commodores (Oh No), Quincy Jones (Just Once), Journey (Open Arms), REO Speedwagon (Keep on Loving You), Devo (Whip It), U2 (I Will Follow), and The Police (De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da), amongst others.

The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.84:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Boaz Davidson's The Last American Virgin arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video.

The high-definition transfer has been struck from a dated source, but the film looks quite good. Some of the nighttime sequences look a bit soft, but close-ups with plenty of light boast decent depth (see screencapture #3). Colors are stable and healthy, but saturation could be better. There are no traces of recent degraining corrections. However, grain is often mixed with light noise (this is a source limitation). Edge-enhancement is not a serious issue of concern. Overall image stability is good - there are no transition issues or edge flicker. Compression is also very good. Finally, there are no large cuts, debris, stains, or warps, but tiny flecks occasionally pop up here and there (see screencapture #16). All in all, despite the fact that the high-definition transfer used for this release comes from a dated source, the film has a stable and very pleasing organic look. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. For the record, Arrow Video have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Seeing this film with a lossless track is quite the experience. There are so many sequences where the music creates a very special atmosphere (Lionel Richie's voice in Oh No during one of the key love scenes sounds absolutely fantastic). Generally speaking, depth and clarity are quite pleasing, but a remastering job would have certainly introduced some minor improvements in terms of balance and dynamics. The dialog is clean, stable, and easy to follow. For the record, there are no pops, audio dropouts, distortions, or annoying background hiss.

The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Boaz Davidson - in this new video interview, director Boaz Davidson recalls how The Last American Virgin came to exist and its reception in America and around the world. Boaz Davidson also discusses his work in Tel Aviv and in America with Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. In English, not subtitled. (37 min, 1080p).

• Lawrence Monoson - in this new video interview, actor Lawrence Monoson (Gary) recalls how he won his role in the film (for which he had to come up with a fake driver's license), the business scene in LA at the time when the film was shot, Boaz Davidson's directing style, etc. In English, not subtitled. (27 min, 1080p).

• Diane Franklin - in this new video interview, Diane Franklin (Karen) discusses her acting career, and specifically her work during the 80s, as well as her contribution to The Last American Virgin. The actress also discusses the character she played as well as the unusual tone and atmosphere of the film. In English, not subtitled. (21 min, 1080p).

• Adam Greenberg - in this new video interview, cinematographer Adam Greenberg recalls his collaboration with director Boaz Davidson on The Last American Virgin. In English, not subtitled. (22 min, 1080p).

• Trailer - original theatrical trailer for The Last American Virgin. In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• Cover art - reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by The Red Dress.

• Booklet - illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and publisher Robin Bougie and an interview with The Last American Virgin super fan Eli Roth conducted by Calum Waddell, illustrated with original archive stills and posters.

The Last American Virgin Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Boaz Davidson's The Last American Virgin is a wonderful film and a true time capsule. Revisiting it on Blu-ray was a special experience. Arrow Video's release also comes with some wonderful new video interviews that should make fans of the film very happy. If you can play Region-B releases, I urge you to consider adding The Last American Virgin to your collection. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.