SnoopyStyle Sylvie Cooper (Sara Gilbert) is an introverted loner. Her mother Georgie (Cheryl Ladd) is sickly. Sylvie rebels against her conservative TV commentator father Darryl (Tom Skerritt). She is taken with the sexy trashy new girl (Drew Barrymore) who has a fake Ivy tattoo on her thigh. Sylvie befriends the new girl and gives her the name Ivy. Ivy starts insinuating into Sylvie's life causing trouble in her family and even seducing her father.Drew was shedding her child star status at the time. This is overwrought and pulpy. It's Lolita being even trashier. Gilbert and Barrymore are great. There is a young Leonardo DiCaprio in a minor role. This is trashy art that teases an erotic thriller. I can certainly understand how this could be dismissed but it has some pulpy fun.

RavenGlamDVDCollector (Not meant as a review)(but not to be hidden on the Board Posts either)Interestingly, the plot featured Drew Barrymore as Ivy replacing Cheryl Ladd as Mrs Cooper. A few years later, same thing with that overblown movie CHARLIE'S ANGELS. Let me come right out and say that I'm not a Drew Barrymore fan. Too trashy for my taste. I do however despair when seeing my dreamgirls age, being an old boy like I am, that goes part and parcel with the business, but I have to say, Cheryl Ladd, my favorite Angel, still looked great more than a decade after the TV series. Hey, she was all elegance and grace and allure despite playing the part. Hell, the only thing wrong with Cheryl Ladd in this movie was that she was ENTIRELY UNCONVINCING as a sickly dying-of-emphysema patient. She would not have looked like that, moved like that, talked like that, had she been trying to act the part realistically? Surely not?As for the movie, the character of Ivy is too superficial. No feeling is generated for her. And I am not talking about the feelings of ahem, the little boys in the back row. Bit of a dumb choice, little boys. Hollywood has much better to offer. Then, and now.Then again, I'm not knocking this movie, or Drew Barrymore, completely. Sure, there are moments. As trailer trash goes, at least Ivy is good quality trailer trash lookswiseCheryl's an angel though! (And hey! You who dare to vote my review as being unhelpful! Stupid dolt! This is not a review!):)

The_Void I didn't go into this film with any high hopes; all I wanted was an enjoyable thriller, but unfortunately this film falls just short of that mark. The film takes obvious influence from any number of films revolving around a callous interloper gaining a family's trust before showing their true colours - but this one doesn't work well, principally because the characters are not believable and most of the action is boring. Most of the film feels like a soap opera anyway and is more tiresome than thrilling. The story focuses on Ivy; a 'free spirit' scholarship student living with her aunt. She meets Sylvie Cooper; a weird friendless kid with rich parents and a big house. Ivy and Sylvie become friends and eventually this leads to Ivy staying in Sylvie's house with her parents - her dad, a wealthy TV presenter and her mother who is sick. However, it soon becomes apparent that Ivy has alternative motives and begins scheming her way into each family member's lives.The film somehow manages to be predictable and pointless. It's generally obvious what is going to happen way before it does, and yet the film doesn't really seem to have anywhere to go. The central character is far too ambiguous also and her motives don't have any grounding, which makes the film difficult to get on with. Drew Barrymore gives a sketchy performance in the lead role; at times she is effective, but at others she looks embarrassed with the clunky script that does the film no favours. She stars opposite Sara Gilbert; who is weird enough to make her role believable and Tom Skeritt, who gives a decent performance. The film uses a narrator for much of the duration and that plot device really just sums the lazy writing of this film up. The final nail in the coffin for me was the way that most of the focus is put on Ivy and the father character as this results in lots of tedium. The only time the film ever really approaches some interest is when it focuses on the relationship between the girls, and that is not exactly fascinating. There are plenty of films like this one that are much better than this one; meaning bothering with Poison Ivy is pointless.

Falconeer Drew Barrymore turns in the most memorable performance of her career, in this strange, beautifully filmed tale of betrayal and teenage alienation. The introverted Sylvie meets the mysterious Ivy at the posh private school they attend, and become fast friends. It seems Sylvie idolizes Ivy just a bit, for her beauty and fearless, outgoing style. And Ivy, coming from a broken home, begins to envy Sylvies life, as Sylvie lives in a gorgeous home, and has a mother and father who care deeply for her. The tale is more sad than suspenseful, and this is more of a teen drama than 'an erotic thriller. The friendship that develops between the two girls is done in a very believable way, and it is sad when things begin to go wrong, and it becomes clear that Ivy has some deep emotional problems. The plot here is not so original, but so many elements elevate 'Poison ivy' above other films of this type. The acting all around is impressive; Cheryl Ladd is beautifully fragile as the sick, bed-ridden mother, and the relationship that develops between her and her daughter's mysterious friend is touching, as the two look very similar. It is obvious that when 'Georgie' looks at 'Ivy' she is reminded of her own youth, and her own days of being wild. And this is how the connection develops between the mother and Ivy. The daughter unfortunately is unable to connect with her own mom, as the two are so different. 'Gerorgie,' like Ivy, is blond, pretty, and glamorous, while Sylvie is mousy-haired and wears glasses. This causes immediate, but subtle tension between the two girls from the outset. Tom Skeritt is perfect as the brooding, wounded husband, who feels abandoned by a wife who has given up on living. This fact makes him easy prey for Ivy as well, whose desire to become a part of this family soon escalates to a disturbing level. Sara Gilbert is likewise perfectly cast as the shy but intelligent Sylvie. So much attention is paid to small details, which is so important with films of this sort. Ivy's tattoo, which turns out to be fake, and the Egyptian eye that is shaved into Sylvie's scalp, gives these characters depth. The film possesses a strong, atmospheric tone, and Ivy's strange, childlike sexuality has an almost hypnotic quality about it. The background music as well, is lush, and darkly romantic. And many scenes are absolute eye candy, and truly erotic. Among them, the scene where Tom Skeritt's character 'takes' Ivy on the hood of his Mercedes in the forest, while the rain pours down and that haunting melody plays; classic. And the film succeeds in being erotic without being very graphic, and this is not easy to accomplish. I was lucky to see this in the theater, and was happy to find the DVD, which contains both versions of the movie, the theatrical, 'R' rated version, and a slightly more graphic unrated edition. There were some sequels to this, that were released straight to video, and are, not surprisingly, terrible exploitation trash that has nothing to do with this legitimate film. 'Poison Ivy" is an above average 'teen angst' film, and deals effectively with it's subject matter. Recommended, especially for fans of Drew Barrymore. Fans who are only familiar with her more recent films will be amazed at how great she is, and how amazing she looks, in this very special film.