‘Senior Year’ Review: A Fun And Quirky Rebel Wilson Isn’t Enough To Make Us Want To Cheer For This Unoriginal Plot
So, I have watched many American teen movies and let me tell you, I am obsessed with their high school culture even though it looks pretty toxic. And I will do anything to be a cheerleader and go to prom. But the recent movies are just out of mind and want me to skip the whole teen drama trope. So, I watched the latest teen drama film released on Netflix titled Senior Year starring Rebel Wilson as a quirky, fun, stylish cheerleader..oops, sorry, cheer captain but the half-baked plot and uneven writing made me say ‘What The F!’ So, here is my spoiler-free review if you like high school or Rebel. Both are amazing, by the way!
View this post on Instagram
Plot
A quick question, have you seen Never Been Kissed, Clueless, F*&% The Prom, 13 Going On 30, or Mean Girls? If the answer is yes, then you probably know the story of Senior Year. The story revolves around a teenager named Stephanie Conway (Angourie Rice). She wants to be popular and wants to live a perfect life that will start when she will become the prom queen and will marry her hot boyfriend Blaine. Okay, then!
However, during a cheerleading stunt, she lands in a coma for 20 years and wakes up as a 37-years-old woman (played by Rebel Wilson) who behaves like a 17-years-old. After she realises that her archenemy Tiffany Blanchette (Zoë Chao) is living her dream life, she decides to return to high school to claim her crown. However, it’s not gonna be easy because everything has changed except for her.
The Cast Of Senior Year
Let me tell you, I have never seen a film which is full of good looking actors but Senior Year made it possible. It features Sam Richardson, Zoë Chao, Marry Holland, Justin Hartley, Chris Parnell, Michael Cimino, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Brandon Scott Jones, Joshua Colley, Jade Bender, Avantika, Tyler Barnhardt, and Zaire Adams in pivotal roles. They all look fabulous and they deserved more screen time in my opinion.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
My favourite characters are definitely young Stephanie played by Angourie Rice, Yaz played by Joshua Colley, and Janet Singh played by Avantika.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack deserves a special mention. Even though I didn’t like the story, the soundtrack of this film is literally *chef’s kiss*. The soundtrack includes some of the classic songs, including ‘C’est La Vie’ by B*Witched, ‘Man! I Feel Like a Woman’ by Shania Twain, ‘Come on Over (All I Want Is You)’ by Christina Aguilera, ‘Sk8er Boi’ by Avril Lavgne with some original songs like ‘Consent’ which is written by Rebel Wilson and Aakomon Jones.
Rebel Wilson with her teenage friends also pays homage to the iconic singer Britney Spears and it’s the best thing about this film. They recreated the song ‘(You Drive Me) Crazy’ and it’s totally spot on. The most shocking part is that Rebel looks like Britney at a point in the dance sequence, I’m so impressed by her. And Avantika, Joshua Colley, Jeremy Ray Taylor, and others did a fabulous job.
Take a look at the video here:
View this post on Instagram
Also Read: ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Review: Hits The Feel-Good, Comfort Watch Sweet Spot. But Needs To Boldly Go Get Exciting
Verdict
Even though I’m in love with the characters, I have to admit that the story lacks creativity and proper execution. It feels like the makers tried to take bits from every American teenage movie and dumped them in one film hoping that it will work but it clearly didn’t. And I thought Senior Year was supposed to be a comedy film but looks like the makers forgot to include it because I was not able to find any funny scenes in the film which is quite surprising because Rebel is literally the queen of comedy. The jokes don’t land perfectly, the dialogues were so bland, and the emotional scenes were not sad enough (making people cry is the easiest task, duh). To be very honest, some of the scenes made me cringe really bad. But one good thing about this average film is that it’s full of nostalgia and pop culture references. Well, how can I forget to mention Alicia Silverstone? The Clueless star portrays the role of Deanne Russo, she tells Stephanie that if life has given her a second chance, she should focus on her studies and other important things instead of trying to win that useless crown and daydream about that so-called perfect life. Preach, sis!
View this post on Instagram
Rebel Wilson did quite a good job, as expected but this fun, quirky, hot, and bold cheer captain isn’t enough to make me want to cheer for the unoriginal plot, to be honest. All the side characters are just used as a prop, they have no back story, no motive, no character development, and no dialogue which is so disappointing. However, I enjoyed watching the dance sequences, that was very interesting and the ending scene where the whole star cast shakes a leg on the dance floor was amazing. The movie gives an important message that you should believe in yourself and should keep your loved one close but sadly it gets lost in the translation. All things being said, I’m giving this movie 2 stars.
And I’m totally voting for Janet Singh for President by the way, even though I don’t live in the United States!
Also Read: ‘Heartstopper’ Review: This Perfect Book Adaptation Of A Teen Love Story Made My Heart Go All Gooey And Warm
The film is directed by Alex Hardcastle and the screenplay is written by Andrew Knauer, Arthur Pielli, and Brandon Scott Jones. Currently, Senior Year is streaming only on Netflix.
‘Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness’ Review: Sam Raimi Conjures A Creepy, Trippy Ride, Fortified By Elizabeth Olsen. But Spell Breaks When You Slow Down
