Never Been Kissed (1999)
As perfectly captured in The Jane Austen Book Club: “High school’s never over.” There are a few people who would argue that point, but those few probably didn’t like the movie Never Been Kissed, a comedy about a woman who gets a second chance to recreate her high school years. Drew Barrymore stars as a frumpy journalist who gets teased by her more promiscuous friend, Molly Shannon, for not owning fancy underwear and never having experienced a really passionate kiss. Their bosses, John C. Reilly and Garry Marshall, gives Drew an undercover assignment to infiltrate a high school and report how teenagers are really behaving. Obviously, in order to find out nitty gritty details that will make her bosses happy, she can’t just hang out with the mathletes like Leelee Sobieski; she has to gain admittance to the popular crowd: Jessica Alba, Marley Shelton, Jordan Ladd, Jeremy Jordan, and James Franco in his first movie. As a teenager, Drew was picked on mercilessly, so she has no idea how to become popular. Her brother, David Arquette, says he’ll pose as a student as well and help her popularity soar. In a hilarious cut-to, Drew declares it impossible to become popular overnight, and David is seen in the cafeteria chugging a vat of coleslaw. He’s instantly popular, and once he spreads it around that Drew’s cool, fun, and easy, she becomes popular, too.
While it might seem like this movie teaches terrible things to young people, it’s not teaching anything new. Everyone who’s been to high school knows how miserable the unpopular kids feel and how self-important the popular kids feel. I was blessed with four years of popularity and good memories, but I do understand the other side of things and how a teenager’s formative years never leave them. High school’s never over.
Believe it or not, the portion of the plot I’ve just described in detail isn’t the main attraction. Since Drew’s character is really 25 years old, she’s the same age as one of her teachers, Michael Vartan. While the beginning set-up of the plot is interesting and entertaining, the main focus is the student-teacher romance that develops against both their better judgement. Once again, Never Been Kissed appears to be teaching a bad message to its young, impressionable audience, but it’s just a silly chick flick. It’s not really condoning student-teacher romances; instead it’s merely a fantasy for every underage viewer who has a crush on her teacher to wish, “If only I was older. . .”
If somehow you missed seeing this one in the theaters, rent it to remind yourself what high school was like in 1999. I’m sure every generation believes their batch of high school movies are the best, and I’m no exception. The Brat Pack has nothing on Never Been Kissed, 10 Things I Hate About You, Clueless, and Whatever It Takes.
More James Franco movies here!
While it might seem like this movie teaches terrible things to young people, it’s not teaching anything new. Everyone who’s been to high school knows how miserable the unpopular kids feel and how self-important the popular kids feel. I was blessed with four years of popularity and good memories, but I do understand the other side of things and how a teenager’s formative years never leave them. High school’s never over.
Believe it or not, the portion of the plot I’ve just described in detail isn’t the main attraction. Since Drew’s character is really 25 years old, she’s the same age as one of her teachers, Michael Vartan. While the beginning set-up of the plot is interesting and entertaining, the main focus is the student-teacher romance that develops against both their better judgement. Once again, Never Been Kissed appears to be teaching a bad message to its young, impressionable audience, but it’s just a silly chick flick. It’s not really condoning student-teacher romances; instead it’s merely a fantasy for every underage viewer who has a crush on her teacher to wish, “If only I was older. . .”
If somehow you missed seeing this one in the theaters, rent it to remind yourself what high school was like in 1999. I’m sure every generation believes their batch of high school movies are the best, and I’m no exception. The Brat Pack has nothing on Never Been Kissed, 10 Things I Hate About You, Clueless, and Whatever It Takes.
More James Franco movies here!