Common Sense Note
Parents should know that they'll have to do some course correction after their teens see this movie -- which they'll all want to do. If your kids think this is how to relate to the opposite sex, they'll never find true love. The almost constant sexual references -- both visual (mostly girls in scant costumes) and verbal (slang for genitals and activities) -- are hormonally age appropriate but not recommended as healthy teen interaction. Sketchy behaviors revolve around a high school basketball star who dates multiple girls; the girls seek revenge by humiliating him in public. Their strategies involve crass gender stereotypes (girls get the boy to behave and dress like a "girl," assuming this is a bad thing). Characters drink alcohol.
Families who see this can have a reality check: What is the likelihood of cheating boyfriends and vengeful girlfriends? And what about revenge in general -- is it ever acceptable? Does John deserve to be put in his place? And while we're on reality checks -- whose mom looks like Jenny McCarthy? More seriously, though, what about the relationship between the mother and daughter? Does that bring up any hot spots with your own teens?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Cynthia Fuchs
Beginning with the fact that every "student" is visibly too old to be in high school, JOHN TUCKER MUST DIE is out of joint. Its plot is drawn from any number of sources, including Mean Girls and The Perfect Man, with a dash of Heathers as well. The result is that Betty Thomas' movie strains to be sweet but also cynical, without satisfying on either count.
The titular John (Jesse Metcalfe, who appeared last year on Desperate Housewives) is stereotypical big man on campus, basketball star, and pathological cheater. Three of John's most recent squeezes -- head cheerleader Heather (Ashanti), blond techie Beth (Sophia Bush), and dark-haired-vegan Carrie (Arielle Kebbel, last seen playing the villainess in Aquamarine) -- decide to teach him a lesson. To that end, they recruit new student Kate (Brittany Snow) as bait. Apparently damaged by her "totally hot" mom's (Jenny McCarthy) bad experiences with men, Kate agrees to seduce John and then dump him harshly.
Obviously, this is a bad idea. Deploying the latest technology (bra-mounted cameras, mics, and monitors), not to mention mega-doses of estrogen, the girls repeatedly confront their target's strangely immutable popularity: When John cries in public, girls love his sensitivity; when he dons a thong, boys line up to wear them too, as it demonstrates their own avant-garde taste.
Throughout the film, the four girls and John indulge in sex-chatter and mildly trashy behavior, all giddily exploring their deceitful powers. (Ostensibly, this is what it means to be an adult, as Kate's mother's experiences suggest.) Kate does meet an honest boy she likes, Scott (Penn Badgley), but she treats him badly as she pursues her aim to "get" John. The fact that Scott is also John's younger, shyer brother seems an unnecessary complication: oh the insidiousness of high school comedy plots!
Though everyone supposedly learns the value of honesty, the film closes with the song that spells out their priorities: "I want you to want me." The poor students in this high school are caught up, no matter which way they turn.
Families who like this movie might also like other recent high school movies, like Mean Girls and Saved!. For a more sophisticated and subtle look at high school, see American Dreams, the TV series now available on DVD and starring Brittany Snow.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentHigh school girls wear skimpy clothing; boys wear lacy thong underwear; some kissing and petting; references to STDs; discussion of effects of estrogen pills (jokes when boy starts crying and acting "girly"); use of phrase "uncork and pork" to refer to boy's dating strategy. |
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ViolenceBasketball games get rough (body slams; hits in crotches); face slap. |
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LanguageSeveral uses of s--t and one damn; pejoratives like "slut," shallow bastard," "pansy-ass." |
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Social BehaviorGirls engage in ongoing lying and tricking to "get even" with cheating boyfriend. |
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CommercialismShots of junk food/logos in school food center (Coca Cola). |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoDrinking at parties. |
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