Entertainment :: Movies
Whip It! by Jim Teti
EDGE ContributorFriday Oct 2, 2009 Whip It!, director Drew Barrymore’s slice of teen life comedy, bursts with spunk and life for the most part. An engaging performance by the reliable Ellen Page and general all around appeal help make this an adequate, if not groundbreaking, affair.
The story follows Bliss (Cavendar (Page), an awkward teenager who is struggling to find herself. Bliss is stuck working in a dead end diner, socially outcast and in gridlock with a domineering mother who insists she follow her beauty queen footsteps.
Things change for her, however, when she oversees women in a female roller derby team dropping a flyer off in a mall store. Immediately taken by their punk rock look and girl power attitude, Bliss decides to check out their show with her best friend Pash (Alia Shawkat). While there, a team member named Maggie (Kristiin Wig) convinces her to try out for the sport.
From this point, Bliss becomes slowly immersed in the roller derby world, filled with bone crushing girl fights and drunken evenings. It turns out she’s a natural skater too. With this increased confidence and spirit, she begins to stand up for herself and even manages to find love with a young musician.
Whip It! starts off very strong. The dialogue is sharp and the energy is full throttle. Barrymore manages to keep things moving at a very nice pace. With a generous amount of humor, and a very appealing angle in the rollerderby aspect, Whip It! could have been of the great teen comedies of this decade.
Sadly, the movie eventually trips on its own skates. A teenage love sub-plot causes the story to sink in the midsection, as do several confrontations between Bliss and her judgmental mother Brooke (Marcia Gay Harden). The final third of the movie does bring back some of that life, but missteps again with a drawn out ending.
T
The performances are all respectable here. Page shows that she can break out of her typecast persona and play a girl who’s softer, more vulnerable. Gay Harden nicely (and shockingly) underplays the mother role, and Daniel Stern gives a wonderful turn as the supportive father figure. Special mention also to Kristin Wiig, who despite her comic experience, gives a poignant performance as one of the derby women.
Whip It! is a fun but flawed experience. Very little is learned about the actual sport of roller derby, or about the women who partake in it. Still, Barrymore makes an admirable effort, and for a coming of age teen movie, there is enough kick-ass here to keep one entertained for 90 minutes.
|
|
|
Email
Print
Share