CONFESSIONS OF A

TEENAGE DRAMA QUEEN

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Because of: negative teen behavior

Rated:

Teen girl bubble gum films are all too common, and the Disney Darlings (otherwise known as Linsday Lohan and Hillary Duff) make a living turning them out. Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen is no different, but does have a slightly peppermint flavor.

Life is officially over. Or so Mary Elizabeth Cep (Lindsay Lohan), otherwise known as "Lola" to her friends, believes. Forced out of her inner-city New York life into "Deadville," New Jersey, this budding teenage starlet is completely certain that nothing will ever be okay again. Used to pent house apartments and traveling twelve blocks to school, this new world of actual grass, trees, and sane high school students completely baffles the girl her family has affectionately deemed a "drama queen." Madly in love with her favorite Rock Star, Lola immediately is befriended by the school's only other obsessed fan, Karen (Glenne Headly). The only child of a rich pair of socialites who don't approve of their daughter's choice in friends, Karen is one of the least-popular girls in school. She is constantly downtrodden by the infamous trio of snobs, lead by Ella (Allison Pill).

Determined to become the most popular ... or at least, the most widely recognized girl at school, Lola immediately makes an enemy out of Ella by auditioning for the same role in the school play: that of a modernized Eliza Doolittle from George Bernard Shaw's classic story of an egocentric professor and his naive, street-slang protégée. In the midst of related stresses comes the worst possible news: Lola's idol, Stu (Adam Garcia) is leaving his rock group. One final performance will be given in New York before the band officially parts ways. With Ella waving around her backstage passes with gusto, Lola will let nothing stand in her way of being at that last performance, crashing his after-party if possible, and showing Ella that she's not just some Big City hick without connections.

If the film has one thing going for it, it's not predictable. Too many tween movies fall into the category of being simply foolish, but this one tries its best to keep the audience guessing at what will happen next. It involves a lot of deception and plans gone wrong, but Lola does pay for her crimes when she realizes that she's made such a reputation for being a liar that no one believes the truth even when she tells it to them. Melodramatic to the hilt, she's a very likable girl despite her problems, but I wasn't too pleased with the way she set out to achieve her goals. She tries to sneak into a concert without tickets, lies to several security guards, crashes an elite party, "borrows" a dress from the costume department, and encourages a friend to deceive her parents. But she also realizes that she's wrong in many instances, and sets things right by telling the truth and accepting the resulting punishments. Her parents aren't made out to be idiots, but instead look out for her well being.

Her idol worship is troubling for a time, but eventually she comes to realize that Stu is a flawed human being with an alcohol addiction. It doesn't stop her from gushing, but she is very disappointed to find he's not everything she hoped for. She actually helps him to become sober with some valuable comments. Even her rivalry with Ella is ended. There aren't many questionable elements since essentially this is a fluff piece for the junior set, but the girls dress immodestly, in tight, short skirts and sleeveless dresses. Karen uses the word "crap" once. There's some slapstick violence of girls falling on wet floors, throwing trash cans around, and attacking each other with hairspray. To protest that she cannot attend the concert, Lola lights candles in her room and meditates in an impersonation of the Dali Lama, complete with humming. The movie is not as cute or memorable as Freaky Friday, but is good enough to be recommendable. 

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