Slap Her, She's French!

I remember seeing the trailer for this movie a few years ago and wanting to see it. It was originally supposed to come out in the summer of 2002, but ended up sitting on the shelf for a while. A few months ago, I caught it on the ABC Family Channel under the title SHE GETS WHAT SHE WANTS. While SLAP HER...SHE'S FRENCH is a much better title, I can see why it was changed. I guess it's not very PC, but then again, the movie itself isn't very PC, which is one of the reasons I liked it. It wasn't afraid to be a bit edgy. In addition to being edgy, the film is also quite over-the-top at times. While some may be bothered by the over-the-top scenes, I enjoyed them. They fit in well with the tone of the picture.

This is the the kind of movie MEAN GIRLS wanted to be. When one thinks about it, it's somewhat unfair that MEAN GIRLS got a theatrical release while this went straight-to-television since this is far superior. It's far better than most teen comedies that have come out in the past few years. **1/2

I don't think that this movie has aspirations to greatness, but it was enjoyable enough, and has some very good performances.

Top of the list for me was Jane McGregor. She really gave her all in playing Starla who was, after all, not a particularly sympathetic character. She has a real flair for comedy - at the tender age of 19 - and is very attractive as well. I will be looking out for Jane's work in future.

I also enjoyed the minor role from the little brother, not too overdone, and the mother with the ever present "iced tea".

Overall, a pleasant diversion, fairly lightweight, but with some good work from the cast.

Like most people I groaned when I saw the trailer and, ahem, the title for this movie. But I rented the DVD on a whim and hey, turns out this is pretty darn funny after all.

It's not subtle, but it is good fun, which is more than can be said for other teen comedies from 2002. The two leading ladies are genuine stars of the future (McGregor is that rare breed of beautiful actress who isn't afraid to humiliate herself for the sake of comedy) and some of the jokes are laugh-out-loud funny.

If you liked Drop Dead Gorgeous or The New Guy, you'll love this.

She Gets What She Wants, also known as "Slap Her, She's French," this little movie is about a solipsistic Texas high-school cheerleader named Starla (Jane McGregor), whose family takes in a foreign exchange student from France named Genevieve (Piper Perabo). The plot then devolves into a less subtle version of Mean Girls (2004) with the Genevieve becoming popular at school, stealing the affections of the family and taking Starla's place on the cheer- leading squad. Will young Starla be able to take her social life back or will the conniving Genevieve successfully ruin her future.

This movie was released overseas mere months before the invasion of Iraq and wasn't given a TV release in the United States until 2005. By that time freedom-fries were all the rage and Franco-hatred was on the rise. The creators probably felt there was finally a market for this unfairly shelved movie. Thing is this movie is less about Americans hating on France's stance on Iraq than it is a sardonic and satiric look at American culture told from an outsider's perspective. Starla, our protagonist is so insulated to the trappings of American life that she doesn't realize there's something very off about Genevieve. The final reveal at the end of the film only reinforces that idea that our culture as a whole conditions us to be self-centered, confrontational and petty. Even if that comes at the cost of our reputation. Now, in 2015 we've stopped eating freedom-fries but there's not a chance in hell we're eating humble pie.

OK, I'll go out on the limb here by stating that I really liked this movie, and was pleasantly surprised by it. This flick simply does what it says on the cover: a comedy that is actually funny, rather than gross or grotesque. There is a real story, real development, a real turn-around, real acting; the plot is funny, as are the quotes and dialogues ("Our love dried up like a three day-old croissant!") and the running gags (such as the students adopting "Ouais!" as their interjection-du-jour in an attempt to emulate Geneviève, or Starla's alcoholic mum's fixation on her "special" ice tea); in fact, and especially considering the movie's provenience and target audience, the humour is often astoundingly dark. This is all the more laudable as both cast and production are sort of B-listish (by fame, not performance).

My only brickbat would be that I thought that Starla's magic conversion from teenage queen-bee to "real person" with concomitant change of boyfriend was predictable, moralistic, unnecessary and naff.