Huh-Huh! Huh-Huh! Cheerleaders! Huh-Huh! Huh-Huh!

Rating: 8/10 (30 August 2000)

Bring in the audience who loved that 1995 teen flick, CLUELESS, because we've got another film for those girls, and it's BRING IT ON. But unlike CLUELESS, this film was more original, funnier, and more charming than a modern rip-off of Jane Austin's Emma. The tale of BRING IT ON has the five time champion San Diego Toro's cheerleading squad begin a new school year. The new captain of the squad, Torrance (Kristin Dunst) is filling in some big shoes to try to get another national championship. When they look for some new recruits, only Torrance is impressed with Missy (Eliza Dushku) as the other female cheerleaders snub her thinking she's too "trashy." But it's Torrance's determination that get's the former gymnastic Missy in the squad. But there's trouble, Missy reveals to Torrance that the moves and cheers that the previous Toro's captain made were not original, they were stolen! And they were stolen from the East Compton Clovers, led by the cold and icy Isis (Gabrielle Union). So it's up to Torrance to live up to her title and try to come up with some new dance moves that appear to be more original. In the meantime, Torrance is getting more and more distant with her boyfriend who went off to college and is getting more attracted to Missy's brother, Cliff (Jesse Bradford). But don't worry, Missy and Torrance still remain friends. And that is what makes this movie fun, it doesn't really pull off stupid teenage cliches that one would see on either the Disney channel or early morning Saturday NBC line-up just before the Suns vs. the Lakers basketball game. It does have some creativity in it. I did notice some pretty darn good camera shots (and no, not just shots of the girls!) but some rather creative shots that feature the dancing and style of this movie. As I sat in the theater watching this movie (as I had a wicked smirk on my face with drool falling down from my mouth) I decided that I really enjoyed this film. It's a nice change to see the cheerleaders try to compete in a event, and not just the lame-brained football jocks. In fact, I enjoyed this film, A LOT more than any recent teenage football movie, where the players are treated like gods, and the cheerleaders are taunting sex objects. No, instead in BRING IT ON, it's the football players that are dumb and the cheerleaders are a bit more smarter. And from my high school days, that seemed more realistic, since my high school football team had a poor record. I did enjoy the acting in this film, particularly by both Kristen Dunst and Eliza Dushku. Dunst does carry a film well (DICK is a good example of that) and she does have charm and wit added to her character. And Dushku turns a two-dimensional character and makes her appear more real, as she has more feelings and intelligence than most of the other cheerleaders. And I would like to also mention that both ladies are very beautiful and if the sound went out while watching the movie, I would still be enjoying this film. O.K. so I give the "Guilty Pleasure Film of 2000" Award to BRING IT ON, but at least it's a film that I can watch with a woman and not be embarrassed, unlike SHOWGIRLS. But after thinking about it for a while, it does manage to not go routine and typical like any other teen flick. It's not the best teen flick, but it is better than a majority of the teen flicks out today. So go see this film, it's a nice and happy movie for a change. **** (out of five)