Jennifer's Body
Megan Fox stars in Jennifer's Body
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Monday, 02, Nov 2009 10:21
Directed by Karyn Kusama, starring Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried and Adam Brody, out November 6th in cinemas, running time 102 mins.
In a nutshell...
Megan Fox wears very few clothes and kisses a girl - simples
What's it all about?
A small town high school student Jennifer (Megan Fox) becomes possessed by a demon after an up-and-coming emo band attempt to sacrifice her to the devil.
Jennifer goes from being high school evil - gorgeous, sexy, stuck-up and bitchy - to proper evil - killing and eating helpless teenage boys.
Who's in it?
Megan Fox has seen her profile rocket after the two Transformers films and being named FHM's Sexist Woman in 2008. She will next be seen alongside Josh Brolin in Jonah Hex.
Amanda Seyfried is best known for her starring role in the smash hit Mamma Mia! She will next star alongside Channing Tatum in Dear John.
Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars
Oh god no. MTV best kiss award? Hell yes.
What the others say
"A pathetically worthless horror piece from nearly top to bottom that fails in virtually every genre and subgenre it wanders into." - eFilmCritic.com
"Never mind that it's a mash-up of horror flick and teen comedy; when her characters are talking about regular stuff like toxic female friendships, awkward adolescent sex and high-school dances, it's funny in a relatable way. It's when Cody tries too hard to dazzle us that she loses her footing; meanwhile, director Karyn Kusama struggles in her own way to find the right tone amid these two divergent genres. The result: Jennifer's Body is never scary and it's only sporadically amusing." - The Associated Press
So is it any good?
Jennifer's body. Jennifer = Megan Fox. Megan Fox's body. If those last three words excite you in any way, go see this film.
It appear the most logical step after having her run around in strappy tops and short shorts while being chased by robots is to have Ms Fox dressed up in a cheerleader's outfit and kissing girls. Jennifer's Body is attempting to appeal to male audiences on such a basic level that members of the cast have even taken to promoting the film in such a way.
Amanda Seyfried is quoted in the film's production notes as saying: "You're going to want to see this film because first of all, Megan Fox and I make out. Second of all, Megan Fox is in her underwear and lastly, you're going to want to see it because... Megan Fox and I make out." It's true she does, and if that's what gets you going - go watch this film.
Outside Fox strutting around in very little and looking off-the-scale hot, there is very little else going for Jennifer's Body. The first 20 minutes are frankly appalling. The acting is shocking and the dialogue ropey to say the least. The introduction of Adam Brody's character and his band provide a little improvement with the comedic element at least recovering to a bearable level.
It is very hard to see though how screenwriter Diablo Cody went from penning the Oscar-winning Juno to this so soon afterwards. There is some appreciation, through Jennifer literally becoming a demon and the impact she has on her female friend and male class mates, of both how terrifying teenage girls are and how hard it must be to live through the hell that is high school. In every other way though Juno and Jennifer's Body are worlds apart.
Admittedly the film does start to improve in the second half, as Fox finally finds her range as the uber-bitchy psycho teen. Her dead-eyed demon bully bizarrely goes from being a joke to actually quite a likeable character.
Jennifer's Body though will only really be seen as a success through the eyes of teenage boys as everyone else will cringe at the script and baulk at some the acting on show.
5/10
Richard James