Not Another Teen (2001) Movie Review
After poking fun at teen movies for years, I finally found one that hit the mark. "Not Another Teen Movie" takes all the usual cliches, predictable scenes, and typical characters from recent teen movie styles (prom, cheerleaders, and crude humor) and mixes them up with the teenage films of John Hughes from the 1980s. Sure, Hughes was way better than the recent imitators, but those who know that are probably in their 30s now won't bother watching "Not Another Teen Movie."
So, who's left in the audience? Probably the current fans of teen movies. But if they like those, are they really sharp enough to enjoy satire? Maybe for them, it's just another typical teen movie.
%20Movie.jpg "Not Another Teen (2001) Movie")
Did the movie make me laugh? Yeah, a few times, though not as much as the better teen movies like "American Pie" or "Scary Movie." I enjoyed how the characters acknowledged the cliches they were stuck in (even though "Scary Movie" did it first). The part where the hero bets he can transform the plain girl into the prom queen, and the black guy tells him, "You'll lose the bet, but learn valuable lessons," was amusing. The subtitles leaving spaces for the naughty bits in the scene with the nude foreign exchange student caught my eye. Also, the movie's recognition of the Slow Clap, a growing cliche, was a nice touch.
It was nice to see familiar faces from old movies, like Molly Ringwald offering some wise advice and John Vernon having some surreal dialogue with a student in detention class.
It was nice to spot familiar faces from old movies, such as Molly Ringwald, sharing some valuable advice, and John Vernon, diving into some almost surreal dialogue with a student in detention class. However, it wasn't pleasant to witness more excessive jokes about characters being sprayed with a ton of unpleasant stuff. The movie seems to miss the point that fart jokes need the right context to be funny. And the opening sequence involving a vibrator? Just plain cringe-worthy.
A reader reached out with a heartfelt message, urging me to go easy on "stupid" films, insisting they're "smart enough for the average moviegoer." While that may be true, one hopes being an average moviegoer isn't the final destination. Ideally, we start as below-average filmgoers, progress to average, and, guided by the efforts of hard-working film critics, reach the coveted status of above-average.
You'll know you've achieved that personal goal when it takes just a moment to realize that in December, the month studios traditionally showcase Oscar-worthy candidates, with films like "Harry Potter," "Vanilla Sky," and "Ocean's Eleven" on the big screen, and contenders like "Lord of the Rings," "In the Bedroom," and 21 other ambitious movies waiting to land, spending 82 minutes on "Not Another Teen Movie" would be a careless waste of your time, regardless of how many decades you have at your disposal.