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Clueless

By Colburn Tseng

Movie titles like Clueless and Dumb and Dumber are the snide critic's dream. Big, bold sentences filled with clever, cutting puns march through the mind

at a steady pace begging to grace the printed page. But alas, snide cleverness will have to wait because Clueless is neither dumb nor dumber.

Light-hearted, amusing and sometimes very funny, Clueless takes a look at the familiar territory of high school through the eyes of a 16-year-old girl from Beverly Hills.

Alicia Silverstone plays Cher, the film's heroine, an incurable optimist who's got life all figured out. Fabulously wealthy and immensely popular, Cher breezes through school, cellular phone in hand, looking for 'projects' to keep her busy.

Cher has a curious habit of tinkering with other people's lives, and it isn't long before she's sparked a romance between two teachers and taken the new girl, Tai (Brittany Murphy), under her wing, determined to make her popular.

Romance is a major concern for the girls. Cher's best friend Dionne (Stacey Dash) is constantly at odds with her boyfriend, Murray (a hilarious Donald Faison). Tai develops a crush on Travis (Breckin Meyer), the resident stoner, then at Cher's urging, sets her sights on Elton (Jeremy Sisto), before falling for Josh (Paul Rudd), Cher's college-going step-brother.

Cher falls for Christian, a recent transfer student, and the disastrous results of this pursuit slowly begin to unravel her previously unflappable confidence.

Part of Clueless' charm is the affectionate way its characters are satirized. Cher's gross naiveté is what makes her so appealing.

Unfortunately, the film is not as funny or original as it needs to be. Travis' dopey stoner has had a dozen incarnations since Sean Penn defined the archetype as Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (also directed by Amy Heckerling). Cher's eventual jealousy of Tai is predictable, and the romantic relationship Cher winds up in at the end raises some truly bizarre moral questions.

The film's best feature is its young stars. Faison and Meyer are great fun to watch, and Silverstone, demonstrating a genuine flair for comedy, proves that she has what it takes to become a huge star.

FILM: Clueless. Written and Directed by Amy Heckerling. Starring Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, and Brittany Murphy

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