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Sex Drive
a movie review

Kind, gentle and naìve Ian Lafferty (Josh Zuckerman) is being driven crazy by his adolescent libido. To make matters worse, his appropriately named, mad dog older brother, Rex (James Marsden) taunts him endlessly. Ian's younger brother gets dates, while he's left with Felicia (Amanda Crew), the platonic female friend.

Ian seeks solace by chatting online with Danielle, who promises the ultimate sexual treat, if only he'd drive from Chicago to Knoxville to hook up with her. The hilariously dirty journey to finally lose his unwanted virginity is accompanied by both his best friend Lance, and Felicia.

Ian takes off in Rex's '69 GTO, hoping to get lucky in Tennessee. What follows is a manic mix of travel adventure, teen movie hoo-ha with lots of sex, booze and partying — cleverly highlighting an 18-year-old's emotional awkwardness and insecurities.

The three of them get into lots of trouble along the way, as they detour to a trailer park; spend time at a carnival, land in jail, and try to get auto repairs when their "borrowed" car breaks down in Amish country.

The plot would quickly become boring, shallow and redundant, were it not for some truly interesting characters, like Lance (Clark Duke), the lovably confident guy, who always gets his way. This cool dude can even charm his rivals into cooing submission under the most unusual of circumstances.

Seth Green is also a winner as Ezekiel, the Amish car enthusiast, who can fix any vehicle this side of the Mason-Dixon Line. Just a little expertise he picked up during a long stray from his Amish roots, while living in the world at large. His skills as a mechanic paired with a definitely unAmish craving for sarcasm might render him totally useless in his current environment, or maybe not... Don't ask me how they pulled this one off, but his biting wit would make even a grandpa roll with laughter.

Speaking of grandpa, there is a trailer scene that will either make him choke on his popcorn and snort that soft drink up his nose, or jump up and walk out in a huff. So, depending on your relationship with him, you'd be better off leaving him at home with a six pack of beer and any classic Neil Simon DVD instead.

When virgin lad Ian meets Fall Out Boy performing at Rumspringa (wild Amish teen party), on the road to sexual fulfillment, anything goes. Lance is forever changed, Ian has second thoughts about the whole adventure and relationships get reshuffled in an unexpected way.

This movie is definitely for the late-teen crowd because some scenes are far too bawdy for a younger audience. Adults of all ages might find the heavy reliance on sexual slapstick too adolescent. However, that said, there is enough action, chase, excitement, surprise twists and turns and just plain over the top zaniness to make Sex Drive (if you're in the mood) just the right filthy fun.

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Other stories by Victoria Barkley:
What Just Happened -- movie review
American Teen -- movie review
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian -- movie review
A Message From Mom
A Tale of Two Bunnies
Animal Nature
Into the Wild - movie review
Darshan in the Dark Light of the Moon
Love Never Dies
Green Roofs, Weeds and Wildflowers
Greeting Sunrise
Arctic Tale - movie review
Seasons of Gandhi