Easy A – A Sony Pictures’ Release

http://www.letsnotandsaywedid.com/

Release Date: September 17th

Rated 14A for sexual content, language may offend

Running time: 93 minutes

Will Gluck (dir.)

Bert V. Royal (screenplay)

Brad Segal (music)

Emma Stone as Olive

Amanda Bynes as Marianne

Dan Byrd as Brandon

Thomas Haden Church as Mr. Griffith

Patricia Clarkson as Rosemary

Stanley Tucci as Dill

Our reviews below:

_______________________________________________

Easy A Review By John C.

*** (out of 4)

Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) wears a red A on her shirt in Easy A, but she need not wear a letter, as this young actress is going to be a star.  The A is inspired by The Scarlett Letter and is worn to symbolize Olive’s sexual promiscuity, or lack there of.  This is probably one of the only recent teen sex comedies where no sex is actually had, with the hilarious scene of a fake hook up being all the funnier for its lack of actual intercourse.

To save “Kinsey 6 gay” Brandon (Dan Byrd) from getting relentlessly bullied, Olive pretends to sleep with him at a party.  But while boosting his reputation and self-esteem, Olive ends up ruining her own, yet isn’t able to shake the habit of doing favours for unpopular classmates.  Rumours spread like wildfire and soon Olive is known as a slut to the girls, but somewhat of a hero to the boys.  Through Facebook, text messaging and all means of social media, her life starts to spiral out of control.  Although the film does falter with a sub-plot involving an obnoxious guidance counselor played by Lisa Kudrow, the general storyline has more than just humour to say about our overly connected culture.

The intelligent script is filled with pop-culture references and clever one liners that freely fly off the lips of the talented cast, even if they aren’t all equally funny.  The dialogue is fast-paced and razor-sharp, with many of the high school clichés being forgiven due to the strong leading work from Emma Stone.  Olive’s parents are played to great amusement by Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson in roles that could have been obnoxious with less talented actors.

In one of the most memorable scenes, Olive looks into her webcam and informs us that John Hughes did not direct her life.  Perhaps Hughes would have injected more genuine heart into the proceedings, but the throwbacks and comparisons to many ‘80’s teen comedies run rampant, although in this day and age round iPod speakers prove more practical than a clunky boombox.

I wouldn’t go as far to say that the titular letter stands for awesome as Olive deadpans at one point and many critics have already suggested, but it certainly doesn’t stand for awful.  This is an entertaining and of the moment teen comedy that I think is worth seeing.  It’s not as good as the classics, but certainly superior to the majority of the modern.

___________________________________________________________________________

Easy A Review By Erin V.

*** (out of 4)

Olive (Emma Stone) is living the anonymous high school life, when a lie that she tells her friend becomes a rumour that spreads across the whole school within minutes, like some sort of out of control wildfire.  She is now noticed and recognized – the problem is, it’s as a tramp.

Suddenly, misfit guys who are bullied and teased find a way out.  Olive is willing to perpetuate her lie by pretending that she has been ‘with them,’ which leads to a very funny scene where at a party she and a boy named Brandon (who is actually gay) jump on the bed and make all kinds of noises so that the eavesdroppers outside the door will presume that they have ‘done it,’  and leave him alone.

The problem with this new life she’s created, is that while the guys she helps are no longer the pit of jokes, it’s as though with each one, she ends up not stopping the teasing, but reflecting it onto herself instead.  As this continues, the girls all think she is disgusting for being with so many different guys in a short period of time, and the guys being helped by her lies won’t leave her alone as they keep telling their friends how she can help them too.  After one girl insults her in class while they’re discussing The Scarlet Letter, Olive decides to take her up on what she said and attaches a big red A on all of her clothes to make a statement.

Easy A makes some interesting points, and was certainly fine to pass the time, but it doesn’t go down in my book of favourites.  Some of the jokes are funny, others fall flat, but with the actors all carrying their roles well, it is worth checking out – even if it’s eventually on DVD.

___________________________________________________________________________

Easy A Review By Nicole

*** (out of 4)

How far would you go to get noticed?  Easy A is a quirky teen comedy about one girl’s lie getting out of hand.  Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) is a virgin who as far as her classmates are concerned, doesn’t exist.  She figures that by merely lying to her best friend about a non-existent one night stand, she will become popular.  Olive’s lie spreads like wildfire, initially boosting her status at school.  Now with her bad reputation, she decides to “help” a closeted gay boy named Brandon, by pretending to sleep with him.  (This is one of the funniest scenes.)  Inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Olive alters her wardrobe, sewing a red “A” onto her new floozy fashions.  But things really get out of hand when lies turn into rumours that Olive (who is still a virgin), is a skank.  These rumours are only made worse by a Christian clique run by God-fearing girl Marianne (Amanda Bynes).  How will Olive be able to get out of this mess?

Easy A has a lot of likable characters.  I liked Olive’s quirky family, including her mother (Patricia Clarkson), her dad (Stanley Tucci), and her little brother.  Olive, although she keeps telling lies, is likable, as she is more naive than badass in her quest for popularity.  Brandon, as well as the other “nerdy” kids, are likable as well.  The acting in Easy A is well done and believable.  The film pays homage to the late John Hughes, while maintaining a 21st century feel.  Easy A is a decent movie that is worth checking out.

___________________________________________________________________________

Easy A Review By Maureen

*** (out of 4)

Easy A is a smartly written teen comedy with numerous references to the late John Hughes and his classic teen films from the 1980s.  Fast forward to the 21st century and the lightening speed of adolescent communication through electronics and you have the basis for Easy A.

Set in Ojai California, Easy A is about a teenage girl, Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) and her quickly emerging reputation as the school’s bad girl.  Life at Ojai High changes for Olive when she tells her best friend Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) a lie about her supposed exciting weekend with imaginary college boyfriend, George.  When Marianne (Amanda Bynes), the school’s Bible club leader overhears the story it takes off and thanks to the world of texting and cell phones Olive is instantly noticed and talked about as being easy.  The tale takes on a life of its own when Olive is approached by outcast male students for help with their own reputations as losers.

One of the funniest scenes in the movie is when Olive and closeted gay student Brandon (Dan Byrd) fake a sex scene behind closed doors at a house party so the other guests can overhear and conclude that Brandon is straight and will stop picking on him.  When Brandon thanks Olive with a giftcard word gets around and Olive is soon approached by other needy students.  Things go from bad to worse and since the class is studying  The Scarlett Letter, Olive decides to wear a Scarlett A on her tarted up new wardrobe to further enhance her reputation.

The story is told through voice overs by Olive and webcasts she creates about her new reputation.  What works in Easy A is the perfect performance by Emma Stone.  She is an absolute delight to watch.  The dialogue is crisply written and Stone’s delivery is perfectly timed.  Another high point in Easy A is the performances by Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci as Olive’s parents.  I loved every scene they were in.

While there are a lot of stereotypes in this movie with a fair bit of colourful language and some plot points that seem out of place overall Easy A is a fresh take on teenage sexuality.  With the wonderful performance by Emma Stone Easy A is worth checking out.

___________________________________________________________________________

Easy A Review By Tony

**1/2 (out of 4)

Despite being brilliant with gifted but quirky parents (Patricia Clarkson & Stanley Tucci), Olive (Emma Stone) feels invisible in her school. To avoid a camping trip she lies to her persistent best friend (Alyson Michalka) that she spent the weekend with a guy, but when this is overheard by the school evangelist (Amanda Bynes) it is texted all over the school.  At first annoyed by her undeserved reputation, Olive decides to make the most of it, sewing an A onto her clothes like the scarlet letter in the novel she is studying. When a gay friend (Dan Byrd) confides to her that he can no longer stand being bullied they agree to noisily pretend to hook up at a house party in what is arguably the funniest scene in the movie.  When other lonely guys offer her various gift cards to say she was with them as well, things quickly spiral out of control, especially once teachers get involved. Fortunately with the help of an old friend Olive finds a way to take back her life.

Easy A is an uneven film, not as good as some of the work from John Hughes and others with which it has been compared. Despite some very funny moments a lot of the humour  seemed forced to me and the overall story was a bit disturbing. At least the high school setting was not as hopeless as in many American shows, such as Glee, where most adults are total losers.  Here the favourite English teacher (Thomas Haden Church) was actually quite good and the principal (Malcolm McDowell) was at least decent compared to his useless Glee counterpart. Only the guidance counsellor (Lisa Kudrow) kept to the usual abysmal standard depicted in high school dramas. What keeps the film watchable is the sharp wit of Emma Stone’s Olive, supported by a good cast.

___________________________________________________________________________

Consensus: With a sharp-witted script and fast-paced dialogue, Easy A features many clever one liners and slick pop culture references.  Although it could be called an uneven film, what really makes it worth watching is the strong leading work from Emma Stone. *** (Out of 4)