Alrighty then. Before you even bother to read this review, here is a quick tip for you. If you have not
seen any or all of the following movies then you may not want to consider seeing this teen movie spoof.
AMERICAN PIE, 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, SHE'S ALL THAT, CLUELESS, CAN'T HARDLY WAIT, PRETTY IN PINK,
RISKY BUSINESS, AMERICAN BEAUTY, NEVER BEEN KISSED, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, BRING IT ON, SUMMER CATCH,
KARATE KID, FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMOUNT HIGH, SIXTEEN CANDLES, FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, ROAD TRIP,
SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL OR ANY ASSORTED RAPSTER MOVIES . I think there was even a little bit from PORKY'S.
Okay are you leaving now. Bye, see ya, come again...wait, wait go back to
I-REVIEWMOVIES there's probably something else you want to check out.
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"I'm a unique rebel."
What a year it's been at at John Hughes High! Hey if you don't get the gag on the name then you haven't seen a lot
of the movies I've listed. NOT ANOTHER TEEN MOVIE is to teen movies what SCARY MOVIE was to horror films. Only
SCARY MOVIE was funnier. When I saw the screening for this film, there was plenty of laughter, especially from that
guy in the back who guffawed at everything. Well okay not everything. The film did make two major mistakes on two jokes. During
these two scenes, not a sound, not a peep came out of the audience, dead silence. In one scene a rejected young lad sits
discouraged over a girl. His father comes in and says he has the perfect date and sex partner for him. It's his mom. Well let me
tell you folks if someone had dropped a pin it would have echoed like thunder in the auditorium. In the other situation we have a
sister who has the hots for her brother. Another one that hit the laugh-o-meter below zero. I guess the writers must have felt that
incest is funny. Man were they wrong.
"What's that buzzing sound?"
In case you have not got the idea yet, this movie spoofs all the other teen movies that have come out over the years. Most of the
gags used substiute actors except in the case of Paul Gleason and Molly Ringwald. Paul Gleason reprises his
role, sort of, from THE BREAKFAST CLUB as the nasty detention room teacher. Ringwald comes in at the end to give the
youths words of encouragement. The rest, of course, are different actors playing the parts of those that are being spoofed. Some are
good and some plain stink.
"I am the Token Black Guy."
The story centers around a bet made by the popular young stud concerning the The Pretty Ugly Girl, Janey Briggs (Chyler Leigh).
Chris Evans playing Jake Wyler (The Popular Jock) has to get her ready and beautiful to take to the prom. Janey of course wears
the glasses, dresses in paint stained overalls and wears a pontail. Of course in trying to change her, Jake falls for her. This story idea is
only the center piece around which all the spoof gags revolve. Jokes use the following characters:
The Bitchy Cheerleader, The school's Haughty and Cruelest Girl, The Desperate Virgins, The Obsessed Best Friend, The Perfect Girl,
The Stupid Fat Guy, The Cocky Blonde Guy, The Foreign Exchange Student who has a habit of shedding her clothes at the drop of a hat
or anything else that happens to drop. Then we have the Undercover Reporter, The Beautiful Weirdo, The Siamese Twin,
The Unemployed Father and of course the movies Token Black Guy who is actually called Malik.
"I've got two words for you Jake. Prom girl material."
First-time director Joel Gallen starts off the film with probably one of the funniest routines is at the beginning of the movie. Janey Briggs
is in her room having a fantasy with her vibrator. In comes her father, then the brother and anybody else who happens to be around.
The well handled situation turns out quite hysterical.
"I am so happy to be in America. My Breasts are perky, yes?"
Two of the characters that I especially enjoyed were Les, The Beautiful Wierdo played by Riley Smith from TV's FREAKS AND
GEEKS and Areola (Cerina Vincent) who is the clothes shedding Foreign Exchange Student who seems to make it her duty
to gratify young American boys. She is simply there to titllate with casual nudity. Les spoofs the character Ricky from AMERICAN
BEAUTY, the enigamtic and disturbed
photographer boyfriend to Thora Birch's character. The in gag here of course is also in the the fact that Les was the
father's (Kevin Spacey) name in AMERICAN BEAUTY. If you saw the movie then you also should find the plastic bag
that constantly swirls around Les very funny.
"Let's get one thing straight. This is not a cheerocracy. I'm the cheertator. I make the cheercisions around here."
Jaime Pressly walks away with any of the scenes she is in. She has been in such films as TOMCATS and JOE DIRT.
In this movie she plays Priscilla the head cheerleader who seems to think her team can out black the black cheerleaders. The verbal
sparing between her and the black head cheerleader is really slick and just seems to flow right out of their mouths with little effort. This
is an excellent scene to watch.
"Give me an 'H'! Give me a 'U'! Give me a 'G'...iant $%*%$!"
Here are few other highligts for you. Sandy Sue is the 1950's Cheerleader who tries out for the vacant cheerleader position. She's good
but has one small problem...Tourette's syndrome. Ed Lauder plays the football coach. During a practice one of the loser players
catches the ball. Watch carefully what happens to him. You'll laugh but you'll feel guilty.
"Shut your hole Wang Chung."
Jake's sister Catherine is played by Mia Kirshner. She is very good and has been in many features such as MAD CITY,
ANNA KARENINA, THE CROW:CITY OF ANGELS as well on TV in WOLF LAKE and 24. She agrees to help Jake
get Janey ready for the prom but she wants her own brother, Jake in exchange. Unfortunately as I stated earlier this incest joke did not
go over with the audience. Catherine has Jake sing a song for Janey to get her attention. This one gag just didn't seem to click. Guns and
students is not something audiences can laugh at easily.
"Hey what're you doing here? I'm supposed to be the only black guy at this party."
"The Token Black Guy" (Deon Richmond) is destined to play the most minimal, degrading comic-relief role in the interest of
political correctness. Sean Patrick comes in a walk on role as another black guy at a party. He is there to represent the movie SAVE
THE LAST DANCE.
"Congratulations. You just got your first slow motion entrance."
NOT ANOTHER TEEN MOVIE takes aim at many teen movie gimmicks such as the slow motion entrance of "the" high school
goddess and the slow clap of the crowd at the finale of these type of movies. Remember the slow clap in NEVER BEEN KISSED,
it was one of the best. Of course director Gallen doesn't forget to include the horny young lads getting to watch girls undressing in the
locker room. The exploding toilet was there to gross me out as well. Hey, we can't forget the infamous hot dogs as sexually devices
scenes.
"I'm only in the song because I'm the black guy."
The film had too many charcters to really give all of them enough time to develop. So we are short changed on character development.
Do not worry, though because the music in this movie makes up for a lot of defiencies. The soundtrack really sparkles with retoolings
of Soft Cell's TAINTED LOVE and Nena's 99 (LUFT)BALLOONS.
"I made that bet before I knew you."
The title of the movie, NOT ANOTHER TEEN MOVIE, just about says it all. The film is fun in many spots and scores lots
of touchdowns but overall it just doesn't make it all the way out of the ballpark. The premise is fine and the attempt was admirable
and it is worth seeing if you like a decent spoof. Keep in mind that even though it spoofs lots of older and newer teen movies be
prepared to see lots of the usual new teen movie accoutrements...flatuence jokes, scat jokes, nude jokes, pie jokes and of course
cheesy cheerleader jokes. It is too bad that most of the people who will go to see this film were probably still in diapers when most
of the films the writers target, were first shown. It has to be a tough job to spoof films that were already satires, such as
AMERICAN PIE. Well, as a last word, remember to stick around during the credits as there will be some bits
still to be seen. Good film to see at the drive-in where you won't spill your popcorn over the person in front of you when the good jokes
hit you. Okay now go away I got some pies baking.
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