By Gary Goldstein
Fancast.com
[Watch Girl Next Door right now]
The Girl Next Door, a kind of Risky Business for the 2000s, stars Emile Hirsch as Matthew Kidman, an over-achieving, sheltered high school senior who falls for his gorgeous new next door neighbor Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert), unaware she’s an ex-porn actress. Though the film didn’t hit the heights of the sexy 1983 comedy that made Tom Cruise a top gun, it had its own share of stylish, coming-of-age pleasures. As a prelude to watching the full movie on Fancast, Gary Goldstein recently talked teens, proms, and porn with the film’s original writers, David T. Wagner and Brent Goldberg.
Gary Goldstein: Okay, ‘fess up: as teenagers, who was your fantasy “girl next door?”
David Wagner: I’d have to go with Phoebe Cates from "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." Who can forget that classic pool scene?
Brent Goldberg: The movie that got me through puberty was “Sixteen Candles.” And, although I felt Molly Ringwald was perhaps attainable--at least in my mind--it was the prom queen in that movie who really did it for me.
GG: What was the moment of inspiration for the script?
DW: The germ of it came from some real kid who took a porn star to his prom. From what we know, it was a much more sordid relationship than the one we wrote, but it made for an interesting jumping off point.
GG: How did you develop it all into a full movie?
DW: It's a wish fulfillment movie where the good-natured smart kid gets the hot girl. We also were interested in exploring the dichotomy of the two lead characters--a boy with a future meets a girl with a “past.”
BG: Insert some conflict and great set pieces and voila, you have a full movie.
GG: I’m going to ask you something I’ll bet no one has ever asked about “The Girl Next Door”: how much was it influenced by “Risky Business?” (yes, that first part was a joke).
DW: What's "Risky Business?" Is that a movie?
BG: Never heard of it. Oh, wait--is that the movie with that Scientology guy...John Travolta, right?
DW: Actually, our original draft leaned a lot more toward "Pretty Woman" meets "American Pie."
BG: I remember in one of our development meetings, a high-ranking executive said, "When writing the set pieces, think: fucking the pie.” That’s been my mantra ever since--and it’s never steered me wrong.
GG: Seriously, were you ever concerned it would be too heavily compared to “Risky Business,” which is, after all, a teen classic?
DW: “Risky Business” came out in 1983 so we felt our audience might not remember it too well, even though we knew we might get compared to it. Tonally, though, “Girl Next Door” went a lot more in the direction of “Risky Business” subsequent to our drafts.
BG: I wasn't really concerned about the comparisons until I saw a TV review that showed side-by-side scenes from both movies. I was like, “Yeah, I guess there is a slight resemblance.” In the end, though, all you can do is write the best script you can.
[watch Girl Next Door now]
GG: I read that you sold the script after writing it on spec, though it began as a story you pitched around town. What gave you the confidence to think the idea had a shot of selling?
DW: It wasn't confidence, it was a case of "I'll scratch your back, if you scratch mine." Chuck Gordon, the producer, promised to get us a studio rewrite job if we wrote “Girl Next Door” for him on spec. We were young and hungry, and it was before “Van Wilder” [which the team also wrote] was greenlit. So, we did it. Plus, we really wanted to write the screenplay. We always believed in the idea.
BG: So did Chuck. He told us to just suck it up, write the script, and it would get made. The guy had a “Die Hard” one-sheet in his office so we figured he knew what he was talking about.
GG: The screenplay was ultimately also credited to Stuart Blumberg (“Keeping the Faith”). Where did he come in to the process and how did he build on your work?
DW: Stuart was brought on after the director [Luke Greenfield] was attached. As mentioned before, the script was given a darker edge in later [Blumberg’s] drafts.
BG: I have a lot of respect for Stuart. Prior to him being hired, David and I had literally written ten drafts. Different studios were having us take it in so many different directions. Ultimately, we had to let it go. The director had a working relationship with Stuart so, after a restraining order, we were court-ordered to let them do a rewrite. [laughs]
[check out Fancast photo gallery]
GG: Looking back, what are your favorite moments in the film?
DW: I like the opening montage over the Queen/David Bowie song [“Under Pressure”]. And I always enjoy the part when Matthew's parents ask [his buddy] Eli if their prom dates go to their high school and he deadpans that the girls are porn stars. I love the parents’ reaction.
BG: I also love the hero shot moment--the slo-mo walk in after the porn shoot has wrapped at prom, all eyes on our guys, with their hot dates. That really worked for me.
GG: Most quotable line of dialogue?
DW: “Always make sure the juice is worth the squeeze."
BG: It’s a tough question because, well, we didn't write some of the most quotable lines, but I still really like: "This guy’s the tits," "Is that a Monet?," "We're a fuckin' tri-pod!"
GG: Favorite porn star? Just kidding. Sort of.
DW: Tera Patrick is a “special talent,” with honorable mention to Jenna Jameson for her entre-porn-eurial skills.
BG: Her name is Stormy and she bears an uncanny resemblance to Heather Graham. She’s also Steve Carrell's fantasy chick in the funniest movie of all time, “The 40 Year Old Virgin.” And I will not confirm nor deny that one afternoon, my wife came in and caught me preparing to--
GG: Okay, too much information! Thanks for the revisit, guys.