A movie made by ladies with a predominately female cast about a contact sport and featuring little reliance on romance? And the protagonist wears glasses? Aw shucks, count me in. Drew Barrymore's directorial debut Whip It is written by Shauna Cross, adapting her fictional book that draws from her own experiences with roller derby (which I hope to read soon). Ellen Page stars as Bliss Cavendar, a soft-spoken teenage waitress whose mother (Marcia Gay Harden) makes her take part in various local beauty pageants in an attempt to give her a way out of their small Texas town. After picking up a flyer for a roller derby event in Austin, she and her best friend Pash (Alia Shawkat) sneak out to see what it's like and Bliss is instantly smitten with the ballsy irreverence the derby players exude, sheepishly calling them her "new heroes" when meeting Maggie Mayhem (Kristen Wiig), a member of the Hurl Scouts.
Maggie encourages her to try out for the team so she can be her own hero. After lying about her age and making the team for her impressive speed, Bliss tells her parents she's taking an SAT class so she can secretly attend practices and games. She falls in love with the game, her eccentric teammates, and a way of life that can bring her out of her shell and give her a sense of direction. She also finds a new boyfriend in Oliver (Landon Pigg) a frequent derby audience member and hot lead singer of some indie band. As these new experiences draw her further away from Pash and her family, she has to find a way to fuse these two lifestyles.
Oh my goodness I love this movie. I might even be in love with it, but it's too early to tell. I honestly felt sort of reinvigorated upon leaving the theater. Whip It is smart, funny, unique, and a whole lot of fun. The cast is phenomenal- I felt like every few minutes another lady I liked was popping up on screen, from Alia Shawkat and Ellen Page to Zoe Bell, Ari Graynor, Drew Barrymore, Kristen Wiig, and (!) Juliette Lewis. I also dug Andrew Wilson (you know, the one who's not Owen or Luke) as the team's exasperated coach and Jimmy Fallon as the hokey commentator.
The whole "young person finds thing that's cool and then learns about life, love, and growing up" premise has definitely been done countless times before, but I think Barrymore and Co. did a great job injecting some freshness and modernity into the concept. Different, but integral, aspects of Bliss' life are combined effectively for an engaging and varied story. Nothing is given too much or too little focus (except maybe her school life, which was barely shown at all, but I realize that's not really important to the overall plot), so I didn't feel like any of the issues were being shoved down my throat, but I did get a good idea of what she was going through.
I think her conflicts with her mom were handled very well, realistically, relatably, and surprisingly poignantly. Her burgeoning relationship was a thing, but not that much of a thing, which was really fantastic because I'm so sick of every movie with a woman at the center focusing on some romance. Obviously the segments featuring the derby players and their interactions were the most fun to watch, with all their wacky names and penchant for violence. These ladies are independent!
I was impressed with Barrymore's directing. There are some well-placed scene cuts, great shots of the roller derby games (which couldn't have been easy to film), and generally good pacing. The soundtrack is also excellent, featuring some cool lady bands (you might recall that I am pretty into bands with ladies) and lots of Jens Lekman. I was disappointed, however, that even though their rockin' frontwoman is a main person in this movie, there is no music from Juliette and The Licks (or her new band- either one really). Quite an oversight.
Whip It isn't some sort of preachy feminist manifesto (god forbid), but rather proof that women can make an exciting, unique comedy with depth, generally feminist values, and a decent amount of punching. I really hope this opens the door for more mainstream movies in this vein, and maybe one day there will be equal numbers of well-known, successful female directors and writers. Also now I really want to see a real roller derby tournament. I'd try it out myself if I wasn't so lazy/terrified. I've been brainstorming my derby girl name, though, just in case...
4.5/5
"Bang On"- The Breeders
"Doing It Right"- The Go! Team
"Your Arms Around Me"- Jens Lekman
"Boys Wanna Be Her"- Peaches
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Whip It (2009)
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I quite agree. I saw "Whip It" at a sneak preview, a week early,and I was so glad I took the effort. I was either riveted to the screen or busting a gut laughing the entire time. I really enjoyed it. Sadly, I can't seem to convince anyone else of how good it is. Everyone seems put off by the roller derby aspect.
ReplyDeletei second that!
ReplyDelete[i knew you'd like all the lady bands].
I really liked this movie. The more I think about it, the more that I like it and I'm kind of embarrassed to admit that ever since seeing it I've been trying to think of what my Roller Derby name would be if, like you, I wasn't too lazy/terrified.
ReplyDeleteY'know what part I might have liked the best - the double shot of Maggie urging Bliss to go home, and the ensuing conversation with her parents when she goes.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching both scenes thinking to myself "This is how real people talk". No hammy yelling, no forced expression...just concerned people trying to make their way through a tough spot.
Such scenes are rare, and they were really what set the film apart for me.
Glad you found your tribe!
When I look at that picture, I fear that this a "Drew Barrymore have fun with her pals/snugglefest for 90 minutes" a la Charlie's Angels. Nice review, check out mine!
ReplyDeleteNot a bad movie, the girls are great and the it's a brilliant story.
ReplyDelete