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Christina Ricci, Martin Donovan, Lisa Kudrow, Lyle Lovett, Johnny Galecki ... see more see more... , William Lee Scott , Ivan Sergei , Rodney Eastman , Harrison Young

Screenwriter Don Roos made his directorial debut with this oddball sex comedy. The tale is narrated by 16-year-old Louisiana tramp Dedee Truitt (Christina Ricci), who buries her stepfather and then he... read more read more...ads for Indiana to visit her homosexual half-brother Bill (Martin Donovan). Recovering from the AIDS death of longtime companion Tom, schoolteacher Bill has linked up with a new partner, handsome Matt (Ivan Sergei). After Dedee seduces Matt and claims she's pregnant by him, the couple steals $10,000 from Bill's safety deposit box and heads for L.A. Alarmed by Matt's seeming disappearance and hoping to blackmail Bill into disclosing Matt's whereabouts, Bill's former student (also Matt's former beau) Jason (Johnny Galecki) accuses Bill of molestation four years previous, a charge that jeopardizes Bill's job as a schoolteacher. To clear his name, Bill, and Tom's sister Lucia (Lisa Kudrow), leave for L.A. to locate Matt and Dedee. Lucia is a repressed old maid who flinches from even the thought of sex, but even so, weird Sheriff Tippett (Lyle Lovett) takes a fancy to her. Meanwhile, questions are raised about the true father of Dedee's baby, and the film comes to a climax with a shooting, a cross-county chase, and the inevitable showdown between the quirky characters. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

Flixster Users

56% liked it

15,874 ratings

Critics

80% liked it

41 critics

R, 1 hr. 41 min.

Directed by: Don Roos

Release Date: May 29, 1998

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DVD Release Date: November 17, 1998

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Stats: 645 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (645)

  • kiriyamakazou
    July 9, 2011
    kiriyamakazou
    The Opposite of Sex works as both a wonderful, if cruel, character study, and a parody of audience expectations. Christina Ricci plays an absolute bitch in this movie. Her life revolves around ruining the lives of others. She doesn't even seem to get that much out of it, her rewa... read morerd is to cause people pain. Whether that be acting out at a funeral, inviting herself to stay, getting pregnant, or stealing her half-brother's boyfriend. Ricci narrates in a self knowing tone, explaining why we feel sorry for certain characters and not others. This often works comically, especially when building sympathy for her brother, she then shows the clips where he doesn't sit around brooding. On the opposite end of the spectrum we have Martin Donovan. He is so painfully nice you just want him to lash out. He's an absolute joy of a character, bringing a chilled and relaxing counterpart to Ricci's hobag. We also have Kudrow as a woman so scared of her own life she interferes with others. She tells everyone how to live their life, and her journey is one of the sweetest as the film reaches a satisfactory and moving conclusion.

    This is a film about the power of sex, but also how there are other things out there. The only downsides were that it was sometimes too smart for its own good, and the homophobic and lack of knowledge concerning aids seemed very dated.
  • moonrivers
    June 20, 2011
    moonrivers
    Satirical and biting (altho it lags in a couple of spots) herein is an indepth commentary on relationships, and often the picture is not Hollywood pretty. One of Ricci's best performances (perhaps her best film period) and Kudrow matches her easily blow for blow. A smart film ... read moreis good to watch.
  • jennifxu
    April 28, 2011
    jennifxu
    Oh my god, I never knew Christina Ricci could be such a stabby bitch. I always wondered what Don Roos would be like without the Hollywood homogenization of Happy Endings, and I guess this is the prefix. I'm not sure how I feel about it. Funny? Yes. Entertaining? At times. But it ... read moredidn't make me think, and it didn't always make sense. I don't really think I'm suited for black comedies anyway.
  • aliceinpunderland
    April 13, 2011
    aliceinpunderland
    Everything about this film is philosophical, moving, real, and funny, except for the main attraction: Christina Ricci and her plaintive whine. The script breaks down stereotypes of love, lust, gender, sexual orientation. Love isn't always about caring for another; it could be ... read morea moral obligation. Lust isn't always about fucking; it could be as Lyle Lovett's sad-sack says, "Say it's concentration. Say it's supposed to focus your attention on the person you're sleeping with, like biological highlighter. Look for me first in any crowded room. And I'll do likewise."

    Dede's narrator character seems to be the storyteller necessary to reveal all these other characters' stories. There's no rhyme or reason to her manipulations. Her redemption moment is nice, but the audience is never truly aware of her original impetus for seducing her half-brother's boyfriend.
  • Redlats
    March 3, 2008
    Redlats
    An OK movie. Strange cast of actors - Christina Ricci, Lisa Kudrow, Lyle Lovett, etc. Christina's role uses sex to get what she wants, and she doesn't seem too picky with who. She sure turns everybody's life upsidedown. Will she grow up a little too?
  • deano
    January 8, 2008
    deano
    This audacious skewering of straight and gay relationships, dysfunctional families, and manipulative movie conventions is wickedly funny for half its run and then gradually withers.
  • gor41
    August 15, 2007
    gor41
    Intelligent script with many great one liners is marred somewhat by an intrusive knowingly post modern voiceover. Lisa Kudrow gets all the best lines as a cynical teacher.
  • dreamfaeries
    May 11, 2007
    dreamfaeries
    Man... Christina is awesome in this.
  • Fascade518
    August 19, 2008
    Fascade518
    This was a crazy romp played out in the mind and narration of a 16 ("Sex-teen'?) year old. How far can a "juvie" play the minds and souls of 5 adults?
    See this to see how far over the bar of sexual preferances she goes!!! It's a CRAZY classic!
  • BlueTorch
    August 30, 2008
    BlueTorch
    "A 16-year-old girl visits her gay half-brother and ends up seducing his boyfriend, thus wreaking havoc on all of their lives". Christina Ricci stars as said delinquent and narrator, who manages to play the role well enough that I still hated her by the end of the film, yet beli... read moreeved she was redeemable. Everybody starts out happy (well, mostly happy) and ends up spending most of the movie in misery. I wouldn't say there were morals here, but there certainly were adult issues and ideas about sex, which is refreshing for a film to take seriously. I found it failed as a comedy, however.

    Surprising highlight: Lisa Kudrow as the sister-in-law who always seems frustrated about, well, everything.

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Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy
December 24, 2006
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

This politically incorrect comedy serves up murder, unwanted pregnancy, and other neuroses, all undercut by the acerbic asides of the Lolita-like protag (acidly played by Christina Ricci). Full Review

John Venable
December 31, 2005
John Venable, Supercala.com

A few poorly cast actors bring this one down a few notches. Full Review

Nick Davis
January 10, 2003
Nick Davis, Nick's Flick Picks

Hilarious and confident...the couples multiply, couplings turn into triangles, and the year's most unlikely authorities separate love from mere, if avid, pastimes. Full Review

Philip Martin
October 29, 2002
Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

...most of the time the film succeeds only in emphasizing the distance between the characters on the screen and the people watching them in the theater. Full Review

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
March 2, 2002
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

A hoot from start to finish. Don Roos has a real knack for fleshing out the foibles of contemporary sexual mores. Full Review

Carlo Cavagna
January 1, 2000
Carlo Cavagna, AboutFilm.com

Beyond the narration and the homosexual element... a fairly typical 1990s indie sex comedy Full Review

Michael Dequina
January 1, 2000
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com

Wild, unflinching, and aggressively un-P.C. black comedy. Full Review

David Noh
January 1, 2000
David Noh, Film Journal International

For those who like their screen comedy tart, dry and savvy on the distaff side, The Opposite of Sex should be something of a godsend. Full Review

Steve Rhodes
January 1, 2000
Steve Rhodes, Internet Reviews

Good-hearted story. Full Review

Dennis Schwartz
January 1, 2000
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Roos's first feature film as director is a snappy, satirical, and hip sitcom that tries hard not to be a sitcom. Full Review

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The Opposite of Sex Trivia

  • Three city slickers, Mitch, Ed and Phil, go on a cattle driving holiday. The discussion gets round to relationships with the opposite sex and one of the trio offers his opinion... 'Women need a reason for having sex, men just need a ----------' ?  Answer »
  • Which actor/actress has been in the following movies? 200 Cigarettes The Opposite of Sex Now and Then Mermaids  Answer »
  • Who starred in The Opposite Of Sex?  Answer »
  • Which Friends star appeared in Happy Endings, The Opposite of Sex and Analyse This?  Answer »
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