Easy A Film Review

Easy A

High schooler, Olive Prenderghast, is overheard by fellow strict Christian student Marianne, insinuating she lost her virginity over the weekend. Greatly exaggerated rumours of her promiscuity arise after she helps fellow gay student, Brandon. They trick the other students into thinking he is straight by pretending to sleep with him. She does the same kind of little favours for other students, turning it into a fully fledged, lucrative business to not only advance her social but also financial standards. 

This  boost in popularity does not go amiss from Marianne as she does not think this behaviour is acceptable. Olive's life then begins to resemble that of Hester Prynne's in "The Scarlett Letter", which she is studying in class. She then goes on to brandish a red A onto all of her outfits in reference to the embattled heroine of the novel. The glamour and mystery of popularity quickly falls to show Olive just how ugly school can be. She goes on a mission to clear her name of the tacky rumours which also leads to the failure of her favourite teachers marriage.

Emma Stone takes on the quirky lead role of Olive Prenderghast, evoking laughter from the audience on more than 5 occasions. Stone makes everyone fall in love with Olive over and over, from her enthusiasm of food to her impromptu outbursts of karaoke. Emma uses her charm and hilarity as well as interesting facial expressions to a maximum in this film to win over fans and critics alike. Stone plays the part with the right mix of sourness and vulnerability, drawing power from everyone's false assumption. Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson appear side-by-side as Mr & Mrs Prenderghast as with their adopted son Chip played by Bryce Clyde Jenkins. The four of them in scenes together make for hilarious moments making us all wish we have a family like that. Tucci brings in dry wit and humour and Clarkson brings the motherly embarrassment to complete their roles. Thomas Haden Church comes to this teenage comedy in the role of sarcastic English teacher Mr Griffith, with Lisa Kudrow plays his wife and guidance counsellor Mrs Griffith, who we learn to love and hate. Amanda Bynes acts as Olive's rival and once friend, Marianne Bryant to whom spreads the rumour and also petitions for Olive to be kicked out of the school. Bynes takes on this role which is similar to most of her past ones of a high schooler with set opinions. Penn Badgley takes on the role of Olive's love interest 'Woodchuck' Todd who finally gets his girl in the end after many attempts and run-ins. Penn doesn't contribute to the film hugely but has his fair share of amusing one liners. Aly Michalka appears in her trademark curls as Rhiannon, Olive's best friend who becomes jealous of her new found popularity and sides with Marianne on protesting. Michalka plays the extroverted best friend effortlessly.

Arguably the best teen comedy since Mean Girls and Clueless, Easy A uses sharp dialogue and dry humour to create an almost grown up feel to the whole thing. In each 'vlog' entry, Olive likes to use ridiculously big words that not every teenager will know the meaning of, making the film that much more of a challenge, if you're like me and like to know the definitions of all words. All scenes with Tucci always end in someone laughing as he has this all round kind of humour to him that appeals to most people watching. Being a fan of eighties movies and citing "Can't Buy Me Love" (not many have heard of) as one of my favourites, it was amazing that they didn't only show a clip of the film in mention but also used its final scene as Easy A's final.

Easy A's storyline was highly predictable of a chick flick and we need to question: do all Californian Schools allow pupils to enter class in lingerie? The film really could have done better on the clothing department as  I believe it is unlikely for any student to be able to strut around in heels all day. There were also some continuity problems for example in the pool scene as one moment Todd has dry shoulders and the next they are miraculously wet.

Easy A is a fluffy, exuberant film that battles with problems in high school and popularity. The overall message of self-respect and deciding that who you want to be is old fashioned, yet clearly needed for today's generation as we watch Olive loose respect for herself and finally gain it back. The film relies heavily on eighties teen comedies, playing tribute to John Hughes and 'The Brat Pack' as an influence. The film pulls clips from such as "The Breakfast Club" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and also goes as far as to quote "Mess with the bull, get the horns". The script shrewdly boosts its IQ's by pulling parallels from "The Scarlett Letter" and hilariously "Huckleberry Finn".

Rating

87%