|
"Sex. Clothes. Popularity. Is there a
problem here?" "Jane Austin's Emma meets Beverley
Hills 90210 in California teen lifestyle parody."
Director Amy Heckerling's, "Clueless,"
is fun, funny, and a good natured comedy about teenage matchmaking
and romance. Based on a Jane Austin novel, "Emma,"
this updated story revolves around Cher Horowitz , a popular
Beverly Hills teen, her friends, her Dad, Mel Horowitz (Dan
Hedaya), and stepbrother, Josh (Paul Rudd), and the humorous
predicaments that result from Cher's efforts at trying to help
romance bloom, for those she feels need her help, as well as
for herself.
Flushed with success after successfully matching
two of her teachers, Mr. Alphonse Hall (Wallace Shawn), and
Miss Geist (Twink Caplan), Cher (Alicia Silverstone) and her
friend, Dionne (Stacey Dash), enthusiastically take a new, "clueless"
girl, Tai Fraiser (Brittany Murphy), under their wing; to befriend
her, give her a make over, and try to find her a suitable boyfriend.
In the process, Cher discovers that she is the one who is clueless,
when it comes to her own feelings about her own relationships.
The other coinciding story explores other teen
problems, such as learning to drive, family/ personal relationships,
and what to do about dismal grades. Cher comes up with some
comical solutions, and weathers the consequences, both good
and bad. The two stories intermingle in the end, resulting in
a satisfying film.
CLUELESS was written and directed by the talented Amy Heckerling.
Heckerling made a name for herself in directing in the 1982
film. FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH. With the success of that
film, she directed her own screenplay, LOOK WHO'S TALKING.
Both EMMA and CLUELESS were based on the same
Jane Austin novel, "Emma." Heckerling does a good
job of adapting most of the elements of the storyline of EMMA,
to a modern time setting in rich Beverly Hills, adding some
characters and situations to make her screenplay unique, adding
the current youth culture of 1995 into the mix.
The entire cast does a great job, under the
great direction of Heckerling.
Alicia Silverstone is perfectly cast as Cher, the totally popular
teen queen, with a well-meaning heart to help others find love.
She also does her best to take care of her father. She previously
was seen in THE CRUSH, BATMAN AND ROBIN, (as Bat Girl), Kenneth
Branagh's LOVE'S LABOUR LOST, and music videos, such as the
Aerosmith video, "Crazy".
Paul Rudd, as Josh, does a good job portraying
Cher's older, critical half brother, who was the son of Cher's
ex step-mother from a previous marriage, who was briefly marriedto
Cher's father, Mel Horowitz. Josh can be counted on to come
to the rescue on several occasions, to offer constructive criticism
and brotherly advice, whether asked or not.
Dan Hedaya, as Mel Horowitz gives a convincing
performance as the tough, litigation lawyer, a little scary
to those who don't know him, but with some soft spots for his
daughter and his stepson, Josh.
Brittany Murphy gave a memorable performance
as the clueless girl, Tai Fraiser, who Cher and Dion adapt at
school to makeover and find a suitable boy friend for her. This
role was the big break in her acting career, that got her noticed.
Short, frazzle-haired character actor Wallace
Shawn is also quite entertaining as one of Alicia's teachers,
Mr. Hall.
Rated PG-13 for sex related dialogue and some
teen use of alcohol and drugs.
|
CLUELESS
... THE COMEDY REVIEW
