She's All That

MPAA Rating: PG-13

for sexual content, crude humor, brief strong language and teen drinking

Reviewed by: Debbie Blanton
CONTRIBUTOR

Moral Rating:

Very Offensive

Moviemaking Quality:

Primary Audience:

Teens Adults

Genre:

Romantic Comedy

Length:

95 min.

MPAA Rating:

Starring: Freddie Prinze Jr., Rachael Leigh Cook, Matthew Lillard, Paul Walker, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, Kevin Pollak, Kieran Culkin, Elden Ratliff / Director: Robert Iscove

“She’s All That”—is it a modern-day “My Fair Lady” for today’s high school crowd? Some may think so, but this movie with potential is unfortunately marred by unnecessary profanity and sexual situations.

Student Body President Zachary “Zack” Siler (Freddie Prinze Jr.) returns to school from Spring Break to find that his conceited girlfriend has dumped him for an older guy who was on MTV’s “Real World” (and gotten a tattoo in the process). In order to save his “legacy” Zack makes a bet with one of his friends that he can take any girl and mold her to be the next prom queen just by helping her get fixed up and dating her. His friend chooses a nerdy-type girl (Rachel Leigh Cook) who is into art and is struggling to find herself amidst her dark paintings. Zack also finds himself struggling with his future and having trouble making decisions about what to do, leading to problems with his father. The two find themselves unexpectedly falling in love with each other, discovering the beauty inside and encouraging each other to reach their full potential.

There is no nudity but the movie does contain several sexual innuendos and one especially cringing lunchroom scene involving pubic hair. It also contains a couple of instances of implied sex, plus displays of teen drinking. It contains several instances of profanity which include one “F” word and one use of God’s name in vain. Although the acting and the plot were well written I found myself thinking that this is not a movie I would recommend for anyone to see, much less a child or teenager. There were several offensive moments in the movie that should have been left out that would not have changed the story.

Year of Release—1999

I personally found this movie offensive and cliche. Sticking to the stereotypes that teenagers care about only three things; sex, drugs, and image. It made it look like the only to be happy was by being popular (the main character’s attitude approved greatly when she began running with the “in” crowd). Plus, her life became perfect merely because she got contacts, some new clothes, and a haircut. Yeah, like that would ever happen!!! I hold to same opinion of this movie I do of Dawson’s Creek; it makes us all look like sex crazed airheads. Especially the teenage girls!!!… All the so called cool ones had no clue as to what was going on in life and they all looked like Barbies or something. Sending across the message that only the good looking ones are well liked. Being unconventially attractive (or in the case of this movie a nice person) means you’re uncool and thus everyone hates you. I felt the plot was poorly written. It looked more like a rip off of an episode of! 90210. I personally am waiting for a movie about teen life that does not disgust and appall me!!!… I demanded my money back after the movie, but apparently a failed plot isn’t enough of an excuse for a refund!
—Elisabeth Moore, age 17

This was a good movie. I see worse things everyday at school then what the kids did in this movie, and the movie did not glorify bad things but just poked fun at the mundane and deadly atmosphere of the US educational system. It’s a funny movie with a cute moral and some funny people.
—Luke, age 19

The movie had a great plot, it kept you involved in the movie. I thought it was great EXCEPT for the many sick parts. The movie did seem to send a message that she (the nerd) wasn’t attractive or “cool” until she changed her image. Kind of like that comical why be you when you can be me.
—Kassy Smith, age 14

I totally loved this movie! It is sqauerly aimed at teens, and teaches a good lesson that beauty’s more than clothes and geeky coke-bottle glasses deep. “She’s All That” had good acting, and, for a teen movie comedy like this, it wasn’t too bad. It is one of my favorites, and I definitely recomend it to teens. With some profanity, a few crudities and a really gross, but sorta funny, gag, “She’s All That” is pretty good.
—Gabe Rodriguez, age 15

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of She’s All That to an evangelical Christian audience is that the song “Kiss Me” by the critically-acclaimed Christian band Sixpence None the Richer is played twice during the movie. Otherwise, there’s little to distinguish She’s All That from the numerous other television and movie Pygmalion ripoffs that have followed My Fair Lady.
—Matthew Prins, age 21

This is a very good movie about a high school aged girl who just can’t seem to find her place within all the clics in her school. It’s a “chick flick” I went and saw it with a couple of my girl friends and we thought it was a good movie… There are quite a few referances to sex and there is a scene with a crack pipe in it…
—Diann Cumbee, high school age

I found the baseline of this movie very good. The two main characters are very nice. Although the baseline of this movie was good my friend and I walked out of the movie during the pubic hair scene which was totally out of place and not needed in the movie. I also found the movie quite perverted from the beginning to the part where the two teens made the bet about making any girl prom queen but from that part to the lunchroom scene the movie was quite enjoyable.
—Rachel, age 16