Garota Infernal

By no means a great movie or even a very good one, but a movie that does not get credit for being an effective horror-comedy. As time goes on, I'm sure Jennifer's Body will be seen in a higher light and will gain more popularity in the film community. Megan Fox is actually very good in the film and shows that she does have some charisma that can be utilized in the right film.

I have to admit that I was initially fearing that "Jennifer's Body" was going to be another generic teenage horror movie. But luckily it turned out to transcend mediocrity and be more than an average teenage horror.

It was because of the cast that I had feared as much. I mean, Megan Fox, come on. But she actually stepped up to the plate and delivered where it counted, proving that she is more than just a pretty face.

The story is about a girl who catch a ride with some questionable Guys. And fearing her gone, her friend is relieved to find her coming back home. But Jennifer is not the same person anymore; she is so much more.

As for the story, well, it wasn't revolutionary to the horror genre by any means, but it was entertaining. And it delivered where it had to.

The practical effects were quite good, as were the special effects. The slow breakdown of Jennifer's body throughout the movie was particularly impressive.

I have seen this movie twice now, granted with years in between, but the movie does have enough contents to sustain more than just a single viewing.

It's hard to tell what to think of this film. First dismissed as trashy titillation, and now revered as an underrated classic of the 2000s, which impression is more accurate? To be honest, it's somehow both at once. The film's strengths and weaknesses follow a "spiky" profile with very strong points and very negative points at the the same time.

Let's start with the positives. Megan Fox was surprisingly adept in her performance as Jennifer, the high school queen turned seductive succubus, with every glance and smile showing her powers of manipulation over the other characters. In other scenes, she expresses fear, insecurity and love, demonstrating Fox's range beyond the shallow first impression many had of her in the 2000s. The other side of the coin is Amanda Seyfried's performance as the bookish and attached "Needy", who goes through her own transformation into a fierce demon slayer. The dynamic between these two characters is the real heart of the film, which is about Needy outgrowing her attachment to Jennifer and her self-centred ways.

Then to the negatives. Unfortunately, the critics are right about much of the film being by-the-numbers slasher fare. The deaths of many characters seemed like the same repeated scenes of idiotic horror film characters walking into their own demise. The film may have been trying to do something original by reversing the genders, but it barely goes beyond the trashy exploitation of Species (1995), and never really made any "empowering" statement to me. The aftermath of those deaths are also handled badly, as the film doesn't really know whether the audience is supposed to hear funny quips and laugh at what's happening, or see traumatised teenagers and feel deeply impacted by what's happening. This whiplash between comedy and horror muddles the emotional stakes of the film, as the protagonist is fuelled by avenging these deaths.

All in all, it's a fun film, it just didn't live up to its potential. It's a real shame that this 6/10 film was not "fully cooked", because the ingredients of a strong 8/10 film clearly lurk underneath and reveal themselves at times - but only for brief moments.

7/10 - very campy, very funny, and memorable feminist horror comedy is Megan Fox at her best and is certainly worth of the cult following it has developed.

Clearly this is a movie that polarizes opinion, but I'd urge anyone with a taste for black comedy to give Jennifer's Body a chance. Having finally seen it, I enjoyed myself so much that I was left a little mystified that so many people seem to hate it.

Let's be straight about this, Jennifer's Body isn't awards material, but neither is it trying to be. It's a deliberately cheesy and darkly comic movie that definitely harks back similar movies from the 80s. Some of the darkest parts of the movie had me stifling guilty giggles; that's good black comedy in my book.

I thought the performance from the two leads was solid and enjoyable. Megan Fox played up Jennifer's sexiness, but gave her a subtle undercurrent of insecurity which gave tension to the character. Amanda Seyfried's Needy might not have been the cheerleader but was really the more settled and self-assured of the two characters.

Friendships held since childhood can become somewhat ambiguous as people age. This movie captured that well. To me the kiss between Jennifer and Needy really showed the low-key battle that was constantly raging between them, one they weren't consciously aware of most of the time.

Funniest scene for me involved some extremely shallow hipsters involved in some very dark dealings. Deliciously silly.

So, in conclusion, give this movie a try. There's a strong chance that you'll have a very good time.