A guilty pleasure...a comedy, teen classic!! One of my favorites..I admit it

Rating: 8/10 (29 March 2009)

I don't remember when I first saw Bring It On but I can tell you that since then I've probably seen it 100 times. At one time I might have even told you that this silly, teen, cheerleader romp was a perfect 10 but I have seen it so many times that it has slightly worn thin but not much. Slapstick one liners, cheerleader, valley girl expressions and some rather impressive performances given the genre. There have been many cheerleading movies since, including some decent but, never as good, straight to video sequels, but nothing ever comes close to this film. Some will certainly chastise me and think I am downright crazy for uttering classic around this film, I mean clearly it isn't Gone With The Wind but in it's own genre for what it stands for and what it aims to do it is truly near perfection. The characters are fantastic, the story is an underdog, sports type film but with loads of valley girl teenagers, a silly little romance and plenty of cheerleading stunts. It just has a little bit of everything for a little bit of everyone. Of course there is a key demographic, I think that is pretty clear but anyone who can let loose, put their brain on the back burner can enjoy the film.
Teen star Kirsten Dunst headlines the cast just about perfectly. Dunst has always been a decent actor with some very good roles under her belt. However, ironically or not she excels at playing the teen queen role. She also is great at comedy and really lowering her intelligence a little to play her slightly vapid but likable character. Eliza Dushku endeared herself to me as the twisted Faith in Buffy but truthfully her characters never really stray too far from one type and this role wasn't really any different. Still she is great as the tough as nails Missy and her and Dunst are so different and yet make a great pair. Jesse Bradford is also great as Dushku's brother and Dunst's love interest. He has a great knack for comedy and has the quality of being very down to earth. His chemistry is perfect with both girls in their respective roles. The supporting cast just really adds such a great level to the film. They all have such hilarious, great roles and some of the best performances are given by Gabrielle Union, Clare Kramer, Nathan West, Huntley Ritter, Richard Hillman with an absolutely hilarious small little cameo by Ian Roberts as a hired dance instructor.
Director Peyton Reed seems to have really come a long way since even this film. Still this was really a break through for his directing. Something about his style really works for bringing this cast together and making the most of it. Somehow Bring It On exceeds the typical teen genre. I don't mean to imply that this film is some feat of film making but it just has this timeless, campy, comedic feel. If you're a teenager or love comedy and you can truly let your brain go for a couple hours this is one that is worth it all the way!! 8.5/10