At last, in November 2019, this 64 year old bachelor New York lawyer watched She's All That - and loved it. I'd heard of it often before - but it's so FAR outside the realm of movies that I or my friends ever saw or wanted to see - that I never thought of seeing it. I have now - and it's given me a wonderful quiet special romantic feeling this evening.
The plot only somewhat resembles Pygmalion (it's really the man's sister who transforms his Galatea -- and that only in appearance). It's really a straightforward high school movie circa 1999 - with much music, the traditional high school castes and cruelty. But the screenplay is often quite funny.
The movie has a BIG and positive impact however from Rachel Leigh Cook - who, manages to portray a girl bereft of her mother, from a lower middle class family, and expressing her dour pessimistic outlook on life in her art, and yet at 17 years old, has an opening - the slightest of apertures - for other possibilities. That is filled by a candid, sweet, smart, popular, handsome, athletic character played perfectly by Freddie Prinze, Jr. It's an unusual character - hugely popular, successful at everything - yet oblivious, self-doubting, rather nice and vulnerable.
Cook and Prinze really do create romantic magic - with the help of a wonderful song "Kiss Me" sung by Sixpence None the Richer.
I loved this movie - and am so glad I saw it. Cook should be in MUCH - she's special - at no point does she over-act, over-dramatize, make one feel that she is acting. She's rare. I want to see much more of her - in movies now as adult as she - a relatively young woman (just 40) I want Hollywood to put her in more - much more.
Thanks to all who made this film charming, memorable and lighted up my evening.
The plot only somewhat resembles Pygmalion (it's really the man's sister who transforms his Galatea -- and that only in appearance). It's really a straightforward high school movie circa 1999 - with much music, the traditional high school castes and cruelty. But the screenplay is often quite funny.
The movie has a BIG and positive impact however from Rachel Leigh Cook - who, manages to portray a girl bereft of her mother, from a lower middle class family, and expressing her dour pessimistic outlook on life in her art, and yet at 17 years old, has an opening - the slightest of apertures - for other possibilities. That is filled by a candid, sweet, smart, popular, handsome, athletic character played perfectly by Freddie Prinze, Jr. It's an unusual character - hugely popular, successful at everything - yet oblivious, self-doubting, rather nice and vulnerable.
Cook and Prinze really do create romantic magic - with the help of a wonderful song "Kiss Me" sung by Sixpence None the Richer.
I loved this movie - and am so glad I saw it. Cook should be in MUCH - she's special - at no point does she over-act, over-dramatize, make one feel that she is acting. She's rare. I want to see much more of her - in movies now as adult as she - a relatively young woman (just 40) I want Hollywood to put her in more - much more.
Thanks to all who made this film charming, memorable and lighted up my evening.