Never Been Kissed

Never Been Kissed

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DVD Reviews of Never Been Kissed

DVD Review: Satirical comedy settles for cliches
Summary: 2 Stars

So far, so good. Never Been Kissed starts off like it is headed towards being a nifty satirical comedy. It is, until Josie walks through the doors of the high school. Then it comes dangerously close to becoming just another stock teenage comedy. The students and teachers she meets are all interchangeable with characters you see in almost every other isn't-high school-a-drag-but-don't-you-just-love-it-anyway movie. There are the two dream boats - one a student, the other a teacher. We have the blonde girls of the drop dead [gorgeous] club, the jocks without brains, and the nerds without a clue. And, of course, the apex of life before twenty - The Prom. [I should admit here that I went to an all boys' school, so there was no prom. Instead, we had a party that lasted from junior year until well into college. Worked for me!]

I am fond of Drew Barrymore, who co-produced this movie. Some critics have said her talents are worthy of her illustrious theatrical family. They may be right, but it's time for Drew to get past the ingenue roles. Besides, this is the second time in three years she has played a Cinderella. She did the far superior Everafter in 1997. It is too predictable to her going from an ugly duckling to a swan, as she does in Never Been Kissed, since she is one of the more beautiful women in movies today. She is hysterically funny before her makeover is complete. She is blithely unaware that she has bad hair, bad clothes and bad timing. She trips over things, and she walks into doors. Had she been in a movie where she stayed this way, I am sure the reviews would have been glowing, because she played against type. But this is a fairy tale, so she must be transformed. In the process, the whole premise of the journalistic expose falls by the wayside.

There are enough bits and pieces of old songs played in this movie to fill at least two CDs. This trend is becoming tiresome, because it is so blatantly commercial. The movie studio and the recording company are usually owned by the same conglomerate these days. They call it synergy, and, indeed, in some cases, the soundtrack makes more money than the movie. Still, the process is rarely a creative one, and I lately have begun to cringe when the newest credit line - Music Supervisors - comes on. What exactly is it that these supervisors get paid for? To get the most Oldies but Goodies for the least amount of money? Is it a full time profession? Will an Oscar be created for it?

Never Been Kissed had the talent behind it to stand well above the others, but this same talent chickened out and opted for the old tried and true. It's a case where sorry might have been better than safe.

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