The Virgin Suicides

In "The Godfather" Part 3, Sofia Coppola proved she could act about as well as a professional wrestler.

But in "The Virgin Suicides," Coppola proves she can direct the hell out of a movie.

Based on a novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, the story is economical. In 1970's suburban Michigan, the five teenage Lisbon sisters live under the aegis of their strict Catholic parents. When rules are relaxed and the girls are allowed to bring boys over, their behavior takes a predictable turn. A stern crackdown ensues, which leads to the tragic events heavily implied in the title.

A plot summary can't really do this film justice, though, because it leaves out the eerie atmosphere which pervades "The Virgin Suicides." There are two major reasons for this disturbing mood. First, we barely get to know all but one of the Lisbon sisters; they remain mysterious pretty things throughout the film. Secondly, we are warned at the outset and throughout the film of the tragedy to come.

Coppola helps build this atmosphere not with fancy tricks, but with an understated direction. She uses straightforward camera angles and provides only brief glimpses of the misdeeds, large and small, committed by the sisters.

As for the music, Coppola has always shown she has good taste, but she hasn't always known the right time to use it. (Putting the Strokes on your soundtrack is rarely a wrong move, but it certainly is in a film about Marie Antoinette.) Here she eschews quality--save for a nice recurring score by the French duo Air--in favor of songs which encapsulate adolescence in the 1970's.

The faults of "The Virgin Suicides" lie mostly in the plot. We are told that everything changes when the girls are allowed to invite boys over, but they attend a public coed school. Haven't they already been exposed to plenty of testosterone? More puzzling is that the film continually insists that the events of its climax are a mystery, impossible to explain, even though the reasons are all laid out for us.

In fact, this explanation may be the film's greatest strength. "The Virgin Suicides" is a first-rate portrait of adolescence: the ignorance and immaturity of the boys, the sexual allure of the girls, and the persecution complex of both genders which can sometimes lead to unspeakable acts.