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EASY A
The teen angst comedies of the 1980's get a fresh and imaginative coat of paint with a surprisingly entertaining gem from 2010 called East A that works thanks to a near brilliant screenplay that nails the power of gossip and the never ending quest for high school popularity, a star-making performance from Emma Stone, and a terrific supporting cast.
Stone stars as Olive Pendergast, a high school student on the cusp of popularity who lies to her best friend, Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) about losing her virginity to a college guy and how this one lie, overheard by the school's prudish president of the chastity club (Amanda Bynes), not only gives Olive a new reputation as the school tramp but ends up causing all kinds of collateral damage that Olivia certainly didn't see coming and finds herself doing some serious back peddling to make amends.
Screenwriter Bert V. Royal has constructed a screenplay that is a loving and en pointe homage to the teen angst comedies we all grew up with, rich with pop references and borrowing liberally from these classic films, but it's OK because the borrowing is acknowledged straight out, complete with actual clips from some of the films honored here...at one moment while watching, I was thinking how much this film reminded me of Ferris Bueller's Day Offand not ten minutes later, a clip from that movie popped up on the screen...it's OK to steal from other movies as long as said theft is acknowledged and with the aid of director Will Gluck and some terrific editing, we get a loving homage to a an almost forgotten film genre that stands on its own as an independent piece of filmmaking with its own breath.
Gluck has also employed a perfect cast to pull this sometimes credibility-stretching comedy off...Stone commands the screen as Olive in a performance that evokes laughs, tears, and warmth, another one of those performances that makes us accept a character doing wrong because the actor makes the character likable and Stone does that in spades here. Royal cleverly frames the whole story around a web cast that the central character is making, totally legitimizing Stone talking directly to the camera, which the actress seems completely at ease with.
Loved, loved, loved, loved, loved, loved Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson as Olive's laid back parents, as well as a reined in Thomas Haden Church and Lisa Kudrow as Olive's favorite teacher and his guidance counselor spouse. Dan Byrd also registers as Olive's gay BFF and there are also a couple of funny cameos by Malcolm McDowell as the school principal and Fred Armisen as a pastor. A breezy and entertaining comedy that earns its credentials by giving it credit where credit is due, even if credit is from films of the past.
The teen angst comedies of the 1980's get a fresh and imaginative coat of paint with a surprisingly entertaining gem from 2010 called East A that works thanks to a near brilliant screenplay that nails the power of gossip and the never ending quest for high school popularity, a star-making performance from Emma Stone, and a terrific supporting cast.
Stone stars as Olive Pendergast, a high school student on the cusp of popularity who lies to her best friend, Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) about losing her virginity to a college guy and how this one lie, overheard by the school's prudish president of the chastity club (Amanda Bynes), not only gives Olive a new reputation as the school tramp but ends up causing all kinds of collateral damage that Olivia certainly didn't see coming and finds herself doing some serious back peddling to make amends.
Screenwriter Bert V. Royal has constructed a screenplay that is a loving and en pointe homage to the teen angst comedies we all grew up with, rich with pop references and borrowing liberally from these classic films, but it's OK because the borrowing is acknowledged straight out, complete with actual clips from some of the films honored here...at one moment while watching, I was thinking how much this film reminded me of Ferris Bueller's Day Offand not ten minutes later, a clip from that movie popped up on the screen...it's OK to steal from other movies as long as said theft is acknowledged and with the aid of director Will Gluck and some terrific editing, we get a loving homage to a an almost forgotten film genre that stands on its own as an independent piece of filmmaking with its own breath.
Gluck has also employed a perfect cast to pull this sometimes credibility-stretching comedy off...Stone commands the screen as Olive in a performance that evokes laughs, tears, and warmth, another one of those performances that makes us accept a character doing wrong because the actor makes the character likable and Stone does that in spades here. Royal cleverly frames the whole story around a web cast that the central character is making, totally legitimizing Stone talking directly to the camera, which the actress seems completely at ease with.
Loved, loved, loved, loved, loved, loved Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson as Olive's laid back parents, as well as a reined in Thomas Haden Church and Lisa Kudrow as Olive's favorite teacher and his guidance counselor spouse. Dan Byrd also registers as Olive's gay BFF and there are also a couple of funny cameos by Malcolm McDowell as the school principal and Fred Armisen as a pastor. A breezy and entertaining comedy that earns its credentials by giving it credit where credit is due, even if credit is from films of the past.