KEY POINTS:
Rating:
* * *
Verdict:
British schoolgirl comedy best left to those still in uniform.
Bend it Like Beckham
director Gurinder Chadha takes on another teen comedy with this oddly named film. But those familiar with Louise Rennison's popular teenage novels
Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging
and
It's OK
,
I'm Wearing Really Big Knickers
will find the title makes perfect sense - it refers respectively to a cat, underwear and the perfect kiss.
Amongst all the silliness, Chadha still manages to create characters who resemble real teenagers. And no matter how annoying they might be, they win you over in the end.
The film follows the teenage dramas of our heroine, the eccentric and irresistible Georgia Nicolson (newcomer Groome) whose main goals in life are to 1) get a boyfriend, and 2) throw the coolest 15-year-old birthday party ever.
Both are challenges. The rather dishy young man she has her sights on, Robbie (Aaron Johnson), already has a girlfriend (the gorgeous and well-developed school slapper). And her "stone age" parents (comedians Alan Davies and Karen Taylor) won't contemplate letting her have a party in a nightclub.
So begins the long, arduous and unfair complications of being a teenager. While elaborate plans to make the coolest boy in school notice you might seem perfectly normal to a 14-year-old, it can be pretty painful for those who have managed to banish memories of one's awkward years. Best leave this one to the teenagers.
Francesca Rudkin
Cast:
Georgia Groome, Aaron Johnson, Alan Davies
Director:
Gurinder Chadha
Running Time:
100 mins
Rating:
PG (coarse language)
Screening:
SkyCity, Hoyts, Berkeley Cinemas