High school take on Jane Austen's "Emma" has sex, drugs.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Products & Purchases
some
Materialism is a major theme: Jeep, Tiffany, Calvin Klein, Cartier, Coke, and the Beverly Hills high-end shopping mecca Rodeo Drive are featured. Lead characters often carry Starbucks cups. A student, in a mock "acceptance speech" for having the most tardies, "thanks" McDonald's and their Egg McMuffins. One character sings along to the Mentos commercial jingle playing on television, and an Advil label is clearly shown.
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
some
Teens drink beer and wine and smoke marijuana ("doobies") at a party. They discuss other drugs (one mentions the beverage Coke, and someone thinks she means cocaine). A student joins a 12-step program to get clean and is shown donating his bong to help flood victims. A drunk teen at a party vomits in a pool. One group at high school is identified as the "druggies."
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Several instances of "s--t," "bitch," "hell," and "oh my God" (as an exclamation). Characters also say "a--hole," "crap," "boink-fest," and "crimson wave" (menstruation). The slur "retard" is used several times. Sexual innuendo includes talk of "virgins," crooked penises, and double entendre over the word "balls." Kids are called "loadies" (i.e., "druggies") and a goatee gets called "chin pubes."
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Teens kiss, make out, and frequently discuss sex. Teen girls and peers discuss virginity as embarrassing and problematic. A minor is implied as not being a "virgin." One character tells another girl that she's "hymenally challenged." Main character gives advice on how girls should "draw attention" to the mouth and "show skin" to "remind guys of being naked" so they will think about sex. A group of teens ogles a waiter and defines him as "doable." (Spoiler alert!) The central romance has a notable age difference, taking place between a 16-year-old girl and her ex-stepbrother, who's in college.
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The main character gets sexually harassed and mugged at gunpoint. A student walks to the window of a classroom as if he's going to jump out; teacher tells him to sit down and jokes about suicide. A teen gets bullied and knocked around on a dance floor. There's also arguing/yelling in a car when teens get alarmed as their friend drives onto the freeway by mistake.
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Cher shows confidence in her own abilities and demonstrates empathy by debating for immigration and participating in community drives. But she also has a loose approach to drinking and drugs and stereotypes people based on their appearance and social class. Cher's father is supportive of her, and of his former stepson, though he's also brusque and rude to others. Main characters appreciate literature, quoting Hamlet and Dickens and reading books by Nietzsche and William Burroughs.
Positive Messages
a little
Responsibility comes with privilege, but this message can get lost in the movie's satirical format.
Diverse Representations
a little
The film is a satire that heavily stereotypes and glorifies characters with socioeconomic privilege: Characters wear designer clothes, drive fancy cars, etc. The main character is a White teen girl who's hyper-focused on food and body image (she reads a book titled Fit or Fat and says she feels like a "heifer" after eating two bowls of cereal). Other supporting characters include a gay teen portrayed sympathetically, a Black couple in a sexist relationship (e.g., girlfriend tells him to quit calling her "woman" and that "she can't drive"), and a Salvadoran woman who works as a maid (when she's mistaken as Mexican, her employer responds, "What difference does it make?"). Students generalize one another as "Persian mafia," "loadies/druggies," etc., and call P.E. teachers "same-sex oriented." A teen calls a 40-something couple "old people." Teens strongly conform to mainstream standards of beauty and judge on appearances (the main character gives advice to other girls on how to "draw attention" to the mouth and "show skin" to "remind guys of being naked"). Written and directed by female filmmaker Amy Heckerling.
Parents need to know that Clueless is a teen comedy about a materialistic Beverly Hills teen (Alicia Silverstone) who occupies herself with matchmaking. It's a satirical retelling of Jane Austen's Emma, but among the "as if!" and "whatever!" catchphrases, mixed messages abound about teen sex, food and body image, gender roles, underage drinking and drug use, and materialism. Teens kiss, make out, and frequently discuss sex. Occasional language includes "s--t," "bitch," and the slur "retard," plus there's frequent innuendo about virginity, crooked penises, the word "balls," "chin pubes," etc. A drunk teen vomits in a pool, and a "loadie" student donates his bong to charity. The main character gets sexually harassed and mugged at gunpoint. Written and directed by female filmmaker Amy Heckerling, the movie stars a confident female teen and includes a supporting gay male character portrayed sympathetically. But the cast is almost all White, and the movie glorifies girls' having food and body image issues. (Spoiler alert!) The central romance has a notable age difference, taking place between a 16-year-old girl and her ex-stepbrother, who's in college. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Language is mild to PG-13. But is there a teen party where there is lots of drugs and passionate kissing in the background. There is also a scene where the main character Cher gets robbed at gunpoint. (***NO BLOOD OR VIOLENCE***) So in my opinion it is not for younger kids.
The final romance is that the 16 year old main character falls for a college aged man who thinks of her in a really condescending and patronizing way, yet somehow their getting together is considered romantic. This type of unequal power dynamic in a relationship shouldn't be portrayed as something positive. Also, there's joint smoking, alcohol drinking, passed out high school kids at multiple parties. No thanks. We can do better.
What's the Story?
In CLUELESS, Cher (Alicia Silverstone) just can't keep herself out of other people's business. After one successful attempt at matchmaking, she decides to make over and set up the new girl in school—with disastrous results. As she begins to fall from her place at the top of the school pecking order, Cher realizes there's more to success than high school popularity.
This popular movie is loosely based on Jane Austen's Emma and transfers the story into a (sometimes questionable) high school romp. Cher is genuine in her efforts to do some good in her school community, but Clueless hasn't aged especially well—particularly in how it portrays food and body image concerns. But Silverstone's effortless portrayal of a confident albeit misguided teen girl finding her way makes it clear why this movie launched her into stardom.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Clueless' continued appeal. Is it still relevant? Why, or why not?
What do you think about the film's portrayals of eating and body image issues? Do you think the satire format works well, or does the film still encourage toxic behavior around food?
How are characters like Cher and Tai less than honest with themselves? What other choices could they have made?
Families also might want to look at Jane Austen's novel Emma and see how this adaptation reflects the original. Do you have favorite book-to-screen adaptations?
MPAA explanation:
sex related dialogue and some teen use of alcohol and drugs
Last updated:
August 9, 2024
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