Clueless (1995)

I am going to date myself here . . . I have a great fondness for Clueless as it came out in the theatres the summer before my senior year of high school. When I watch it now, it brings back pleasant memories of my youth in the ancient days of the 1990’s. It has been years since I have watched the movie in its entirety; therefore I was excited to watch this movie as the third item on my list for the Everything Austen Challenge. It is also my second item on my Emma bonanza spree.

Clueless is a smart, funny, and entertaining version of Emma set in the 1990’s Beverly Hills. Cher (or Emma) is the most popular girl in school. In order to try to negotiate for better grades, she sets two of her lonely teachers up and they start to date. Inspired by her skills as a matchmaker, Cher decides to make-over and help out new girl Tai by setting her up with her friend Elton. Things do not go as planned. Cher also has a “stepbrother for five minutes” named Josh that is helping her father out with a lawsuit. Josh is always dependable and helps to bring about the good in Cher. Cher may not always right, but her heart is in the right place.

I love Alicia Silverstone as Cher and especially love Paul Rudd as Josh. Whenever I see him in a movie the last few years I think “It’s Josh!” The acting and characters I think are fantastic. The teen slang and music date the movie to the 1990’s, but I think it’s great. I also love the clothes.

Overall, it’s a great movie and the best Jane Austen adaptation to current times that I have ever seen. I only wish more smart adaptations such as this would come to theatres soon!