Cast: Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, Adam Brody
If anyone in the film industry claims that they aren’t at least a bit intrigued by the idea of a Diablo Cody horror film, then they are probably lying. Her sassy, infectious, and hugely popular debut, ‘Juno’, was the toast of the Oscars two years ago; and ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is her eagerly awaited follow-up.
The story concerns Jennifer (Megan Fox), the “hot girl” at Devil’s Kettle High School, who is sacrificed by the lead singer of a rock band (Adam Brody) looking to enlist Satan’s help in achieving fame. The sacrifice goes wrong because Jennifer is not a virgin; and she returns to life as a teenage-boy-eating demon. The only person who suspects Jennifer of the killings is her nerdy best friend, Needy (Amanda Seyfried).
While ‘Juno’ had pretentions of indie chic, ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is a comedy-horror that shamelessly targets the teenage market. The decision to cast Megan Fox (Transformers) and Adam Brody (The O.C.), while assembling a soundtrack stuffed with Emo-pop poster boys like Panic! At The Disco, is suggestive of the overall tone of the film. It is littered with teen references and gags and the hyper-real ‘teen speak’ that characterized ‘Juno’; phrases like “freak-tarded” and “cheese and fries” (as opposed to ‘Jesus Christ’) abound.
Lurking behind this teeny horror, however, are a few elements that deserve genuine praise. To begin with, some of the performances are excellent. Megan Fox is… Megan Fox. But Amanda Seyfried is an excellent young actress who brings a wild-eyed, eerie innocence to the part of Needy; and Adam Brody brings his characteristic charm and zany likeability to the role of Emo frontman Nikolei.
Secondly, the set design and general look of the film are commendable. It is a rich visual tapestry that fuses the mundane, small-town aesthetic of many legendary horror films (Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, etc) with the clean, sharp, colourful look of more modern teen-centred films.
Finally, there is Cody’s script itself. The task of dealing with an unfamiliar genre has forced Cody to stray away from her beloved quirky dialogue at certain points, and this is a positive because it forces some of her excellent observational humour to the fore. Nikolei’s defence of the sacrifice (it is impossible to make it as an indie rock band unless you have been on Letterman or made a song for a film soundtrack) is wonderfully tongue-in-cheek, and there are plenty of moments like this.
There is also the small matter of the ‘horror’ element of the film. There is nothing especially original about the horror here, but there is nothing excessively cheap or crass about it either. There are some genuinely scary sequences, and Karen Kusama has done an excellent job of teasing this uncomfortable element of the script out into the finished film. The result is a shamelessly quirky teen film that is actually quite funny, scary, and entertaining to watch.
If anyone in the film industry claims that they aren’t at least a bit intrigued by the idea of a Diablo Cody horror film, then they are probably lying. Her sassy, infectious, and hugely popular debut, ‘Juno’, was the toast of the Oscars two years ago; and ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is her eagerly awaited follow-up.
The story concerns Jennifer (Megan Fox), the “hot girl” at Devil’s Kettle High School, who is sacrificed by the lead singer of a rock band (Adam Brody) looking to enlist Satan’s help in achieving fame. The sacrifice goes wrong because Jennifer is not a virgin; and she returns to life as a teenage-boy-eating demon. The only person who suspects Jennifer of the killings is her nerdy best friend, Needy (Amanda Seyfried).
While ‘Juno’ had pretentions of indie chic, ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is a comedy-horror that shamelessly targets the teenage market. The decision to cast Megan Fox (Transformers) and Adam Brody (The O.C.), while assembling a soundtrack stuffed with Emo-pop poster boys like Panic! At The Disco, is suggestive of the overall tone of the film. It is littered with teen references and gags and the hyper-real ‘teen speak’ that characterized ‘Juno’; phrases like “freak-tarded” and “cheese and fries” (as opposed to ‘Jesus Christ’) abound.
Lurking behind this teeny horror, however, are a few elements that deserve genuine praise. To begin with, some of the performances are excellent. Megan Fox is… Megan Fox. But Amanda Seyfried is an excellent young actress who brings a wild-eyed, eerie innocence to the part of Needy; and Adam Brody brings his characteristic charm and zany likeability to the role of Emo frontman Nikolei.
Secondly, the set design and general look of the film are commendable. It is a rich visual tapestry that fuses the mundane, small-town aesthetic of many legendary horror films (Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, etc) with the clean, sharp, colourful look of more modern teen-centred films.
Finally, there is Cody’s script itself. The task of dealing with an unfamiliar genre has forced Cody to stray away from her beloved quirky dialogue at certain points, and this is a positive because it forces some of her excellent observational humour to the fore. Nikolei’s defence of the sacrifice (it is impossible to make it as an indie rock band unless you have been on Letterman or made a song for a film soundtrack) is wonderfully tongue-in-cheek, and there are plenty of moments like this.
There is also the small matter of the ‘horror’ element of the film. There is nothing especially original about the horror here, but there is nothing excessively cheap or crass about it either. There are some genuinely scary sequences, and Karen Kusama has done an excellent job of teasing this uncomfortable element of the script out into the finished film. The result is a shamelessly quirky teen film that is actually quite funny, scary, and entertaining to watch.
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