Threesome (film)
Encyclopedia
Threesome is a 1994 film, written and directed by Andrew Fleming
. The film is an autobiographical comedy mixed in with some social commentary, and is based on the college memories of Fleming. It was given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America
. The movie stars Lara Flynn Boyle
, Stephen Baldwin
and Josh Charles.
n jock Stuart (Stephen Baldwin
), end up with a female roommate. The university thought that Alex (Lara Flynn Boyle
) was a man (based on her name) and thus the three students are forced to live with each other until the university can move Alex to a female residence hall.
Alex falls in love and tries unsuccessfully to seduce Eddy; Stuart is in love with Alex, and Eddy falls in love with Stuart. The trio become good friends and scare off anyone who tries to seduce the other. Eventually, Alex, Stuart and Eddy agree to have an actual threesome
that seems to destroy the friendship, and raises the possibility that Alex might have become pregnant.
After the threesome, they start to drift apart. Three weeks later the semester ends and Alex moves to an apartment. The next year Eddy gets a single dorm with no roommates and the three continue to drift apart. Eddy (who acts as the film's narrator
) eventually finds a boyfriend, Stuart finds happiness in a monogamous relationship with a woman, and Alex remains single. While they drifted apart, only to see each other for lunch occasionally, they do not seem to regret the friendship they had while in college.
reported that 26% of critics gave Threesome positive reviews, based on 23 reviews. Critics such as Roger Ebert
felt that film was unfunny, and that "Like many kids their age, these three are more bold in talk than action, and the movie sounds right; it sounds like undergraduate human dialogue, intended to shock, to liberate, to amuse." Peter Travers
' review for Rolling Stone
magazine stated, "We're supposed to get all teary when kinkiness threatens to break up a friendship that was hard to swallow in the first place. There's lots of glossy cinematography, courtesy of Alexander Gruszynski
, as the three lovers wander the campus separately, looking contemplative. Now there's a laugh. Eddy, a film student, actually makes reference to François Truffaut
's ménage à trois classic, Jules and Jim. Eddy, you wish."
Andrew Fleming
Andrew Fleming is an American film and television director and screenwriter. He directed and wrote or co-wrote the films Bad Dreams, Threesome, The Craft, Dick, Nancy Drew and Hamlet 2. He also directed, without writing, the 2003 film The In-Laws...
. The film is an autobiographical comedy mixed in with some social commentary, and is based on the college memories of Fleming. It was given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
. The movie stars Lara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle is an American film and television actress best known for her performances as Laura Palmer's best friend Donna Hayward in Twin Peaks and Assistant District Attorney Helen Gamble in The Practice...
, Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin is an American actor, director, producer and author. One of the Baldwin brothers, he is known for his roles as William F. Cody in the western show The Young Riders and as Stuart in the movie Threesome...
and Josh Charles.
Plot
Due to an administrative error two male college students, the shy and intellectual Eddy (Josh Charles) and the All-AmericaAll-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n jock Stuart (Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin is an American actor, director, producer and author. One of the Baldwin brothers, he is known for his roles as William F. Cody in the western show The Young Riders and as Stuart in the movie Threesome...
), end up with a female roommate. The university thought that Alex (Lara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle is an American film and television actress best known for her performances as Laura Palmer's best friend Donna Hayward in Twin Peaks and Assistant District Attorney Helen Gamble in The Practice...
) was a man (based on her name) and thus the three students are forced to live with each other until the university can move Alex to a female residence hall.
Alex falls in love and tries unsuccessfully to seduce Eddy; Stuart is in love with Alex, and Eddy falls in love with Stuart. The trio become good friends and scare off anyone who tries to seduce the other. Eventually, Alex, Stuart and Eddy agree to have an actual threesome
Threesome
A threesome is a group of three engaged in the same activity. In relation to a sexual activity a threesome refer to the activity involving three people of any gender or sexual orientation...
that seems to destroy the friendship, and raises the possibility that Alex might have become pregnant.
After the threesome, they start to drift apart. Three weeks later the semester ends and Alex moves to an apartment. The next year Eddy gets a single dorm with no roommates and the three continue to drift apart. Eddy (who acts as the film's narrator
Narrator
A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
) eventually finds a boyfriend, Stuart finds happiness in a monogamous relationship with a woman, and Alex remains single. While they drifted apart, only to see each other for lunch occasionally, they do not seem to regret the friendship they had while in college.
Reception
Upon release, the film received negative reviews. The review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 26% of critics gave Threesome positive reviews, based on 23 reviews. Critics such as Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
felt that film was unfunny, and that "Like many kids their age, these three are more bold in talk than action, and the movie sounds right; it sounds like undergraduate human dialogue, intended to shock, to liberate, to amuse." Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Peter Travers is an American film critic, who has written for, in turn, People and Rolling Stone. Travers also hosts a celebrity interview show called Popcorn on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com.-Career:...
' review for Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine stated, "We're supposed to get all teary when kinkiness threatens to break up a friendship that was hard to swallow in the first place. There's lots of glossy cinematography, courtesy of Alexander Gruszynski
Alexander Gruszynski
Alexander Gruszynski, is a Polish-American cinematographer, actor and director. He attended the National Film School of Denmark, Copenhagen. In 1985 Gruszynski moved to America and is now a member of the American Society of Cinematographers...
, as the three lovers wander the campus separately, looking contemplative. Now there's a laugh. Eddy, a film student, actually makes reference to François Truffaut
François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...
's ménage à trois classic, Jules and Jim. Eddy, you wish."