Blu-Ray Review: The Girl Next Door

After several seasons of “24,” I had come to one conclusion – avoid Elisha Cuthbert. There’s nothing personal against her, but after “24” season one, seeing Elisha Cuthbert in a four-screen split on “24” simply meant the possibility of a bad scene. This is nothing personal against Elisha. She played her role well. Unfortunately, the writers decided to pack all the stale melodrama into Cuthbert’s scenes.

“The Girl Next Door” stars Elisha Cuthbert as Danielle, a girl who recently moved into the neighborhood, and just happens to be the next big porn star. When Matthew Kidman, the typical high-school outcast, is caught spying on Danielle undress, his life spirals into the unexplored world of adult entertainment. It’s all together humorous adventure. On the surface the plot bears the typical resemblance to “Can’t Buy Me Love” or “Weird Science,” where the nerd dates the pretty girl to gain popularity. But, halfway through the story, everything changes.

If you recently caught “Miss March,” from the Whitest Kids U’ Know, you notice that “Miss March” bears a striking resemblance to “The Girl Next Door”: Playboy Bunny love interest vs. Porn-Star love interest. The only difference is “The Girl Next Door” is more about creating a real story “that could happen,” whereas “Miss March” was all about slapstick teenage comedy.

In her role as Danielle, Elisha steps out of her comfort zone to create a well-rounded and conflicted character who makes every joke believable. The story does take a while to break the shackles of cliché, but when once it does, this movie becomes a fun-filled humorous adventure.

The Bonus features include the “Eli Experience,” a comical walk through of Adult Conventions with gags on viewers. Most of the bonus features are not in HD and the extended scenes include time code, which can be distracting.

“The Girl Next Door” is fun movie to watch, filled with a few turns that will surprise even the most jaded viewer. This may not be a movie with a lot of replay value, but it is great to see Elisha break out of her “24” characterization.

Special Features:
-Full Length Audio Commentary by Director Luke Greenfield
- Scene Specific Commentary by Emile Hirsch
- Scene Specific Commentary by Elisha Cuthbert
- The Eli Experience Featurette
- A Look Next Door making-Of Featurette
- Gag Reel
- Deleted and Extended Scenes Including the Original Ending