better than you think!

Rating: Null/10 (30 August 2001)

A fun, cheesy flick that guarantees a good video night - "Bring It On" actually resembles "Clueless" in it's tongue-in-cheek mentality. There is nothing wrong with cheesy flicks, but I like them even better when they are being a little bit subversive. We are introduced to the world of cheerleading through the eyes of Missy Pantone (Eliza Dushku), a gymnast with a punk outlook on life. She becomes friends with Torrance (Dunst) when she joins the squad, and gradually we begin to see a world that is totally alien to us and it beomes the norm. "Bring It On" probably won't win any awards, but it has several clever little scenes which lift it above many other teenage romantic comedies. Most of the scenes between Torrance and her potential love, Missy's brother Cliff, are done without words - particularly an early scene in which torrid passion is displayed through the act of teeth brushing! Dunst displays a comedic talent in a role which could have made the whole film fall flat if played incorrectly. Her little gestures and idiosyncracies will bring out a smile even if she isn't meant to be playing it for laughs in a scene. Kudos also to Dunst and Jesse Bradford for giving deeper layers to the relationships between siblings which is often overlooked in films of this ilk. It's not just a cheerleading movie.