Whip It (2009)

Release Date: Friday October 2, 2009 Genre: Comedy Running Time: 111 min. Director: Drew Barrymore Cast: Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig, Drew Barrymore, Juliette Lewis, Jimmy Fallon, Alia Shawkat, Eve , Zoë Bell, Ari Graynor, Eulala Scheel, Andrew Wilson, Carlo Alban, Landon Pigg, Rachel Piplica, Kristen Adolfi, Daniel Stern

This would be Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut in feature film and I’ve got to say it was nothing short of awesome–not that we expected anything less from our little fire starter.   Along side directing she produced and acted…some folks sleep when they’re dead I suppose.  Now,  I’ve had my bias right from the trailers on this picture because my oh-so fellow Canadian Ellen Page is in the movie.  But, having said that (or rather written so) it does not negate the fact that this is still one kick-ass movie.  A great look, amazing performances, a fantastic soundtrack, romance, action…can a girl really ask for much more?

Ellen Page does a wonderful job in portraying Bliss as a young woman in the modern version of a one horse town who is desperately trying to find a way out.  She is very much at odds with the beauty pageants her mother pushes her into, the cool kids at school, and interestingly enough with many aspects of herself.  The film starts out by outlining her dissatisfaction with beauty pageants, her overbearing mother played by Marcia Gay Harden, her laid back father played by Daniel Stern, her best friend Pash (Alia Shawkat) and only salvation in the town of Bodeen known for nothing but a bonnet factory.  This seemingly dismal (bourgeois) existence could only be remedied by an epiphany that comes via shoe shopping.  Buying new boots is what inspires our dear Bliss to venture into the world of Austin for a taste of roller derby.

She convinces her friend Pash to go to Austin to watch her first roller derby match and she "sees" a boy she likes and gets an idea from one of the Hurl Scouts to put on some skates and be her own hero.  So that’s what Bliss does when she gets back to Bodeen to put on her Barbie skates and train for try outs.  At try outs she meets her arch (roller derby) nemesis personified by Juliette Lewis’s character Iron Maven.  This is where Bliss ends and Babe Ruthless begins.   She takes on this alter ego, meets a boy, falls in love, love falls apart, fights with her parents, and figures out what life is all about.  Sounds simple enough but I’m leaving out the details because that’s the good stuff.  I realized how much of a nerd I was watching this movie because I was laughing when no one else was…all’s I have to say is Charles Dickinson references in a film can do that to you. 

Everyone was really great in this including the lovely Drew Barrymore.  Daniel Stern was particularly affable and turns out to be the dad any girl would love to have.  Landon Pigg makes an interesting contribution to the film as Oliver and proves to be quite the cutie playing a musician…not a real stretch from real life…google it.  Also, two super sexy men are in this movie who are not to be missed:  Jimmy Fallon as Hot Tub Johnny Rocket, the tres cute and unappreciated announcer/commentator, and, Andrew Wilson as very sexy and dedicated Hurl Scouts coach Razor.  Both of these guys have some killer lines and stellar delivery to boot.  I guarantee that by the end of this movie everyone will have a smile on their face and a warm fuzzy feeling topped with a new found love of vintage T-shirts.  Whip It, the verdict is you’ve got to see it.

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 4th, 2009 at 5:12 pm and is filed under Comedy, Romance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.