Easy Awesome

Rating: 8/10 (31 December 2010)

When I went into this film I knew absolutely nothing about it. Well, I knew it was a teen comedy of sorts so I knew... something.
So here we go.
To quote Emma Stone "A is for Awesome". She couldn't be any more correct with this film. As Will Gluck's second film this really shows some style and ability though there is no doubt that the brilliant screenplay helped make this film what it is. It's smart, funny and most importantly - genuine. It's not been that long since I was in college I know how things can spread, insanely fast, and how some people can really want to fit in.
The film starts with Olive (Emma Stone) and her webcast and with a brilliance in the script that continues throughout the whole film, she says "There are 2 sides to every story. This is my side—the right one."
To compress the story we have Olive telling a lie which involves sex to her bff Rhi (Alyson Michalka). A lie that so many people tell in real life it's no surprise they all end the same way, they bite you in the arse. In no time at all the arse-biting commences and Olive becomes the schools bimbo thanks to one extremely religious puritan (Amanda Bynes) who spreads what she overheard like wildfire.
Here we link in with the base theme of the story; "The Scarlet Letter". Olive and the rest of her English Language class are reading it and with coincidence as subtle as a . It links in so well as it is meant to, after all this is a sort of modern take on the classic.
Olive meets Brandon (Dan Byrd) in detention and this is the start of Olive's downfall. She feels sorry for him and she, as she does with many other people later in the film, pretends to rock his world. This happens with a number of people and eventually the rumours have made the worst happen. What she thinks is a real date turns out to be somebody who wants to pay for the real thing and the realisation hits her - everybody thinks she's a whore.
The Easy A title and Scarlet Letter links come in not long after the Brandon incident (which was brilliantly funny). Rhi tells Olive that the whole school thinks Olive is a "Dirty skank" which annoys her so she starts to wear... more risqué clothes with a large red A either embroidered - in most cases just over her breast.
A little more on the script. I can't go on more about how brilliant it is. It's so... genuine. Everything seems so real and so much like what somebody would say, even lines like "The Accelerated Velocity of Terminological Inexactitude" which as Olive explains is her obnoxious way of saying lies travel fast. I suppose talking like that hits close to home with me because I can be obnoxious with the use of longer words instead of simplifying. Rhi finds out her identifier are her... sizable breasts and is so happy about that. Somebody I knew was very much like that. Marianne is the only one I couldn't particularly see because while I knew religious people I never knew a religious freak who was willing to condemn me to hell for whatever I did that contradicted their beliefs. Even minor character like Evan(Jameson Moss), an overweight nerd, asks olive and she wants to know why - his line is "look at me".
There's a lot more but generally speaking the screenplay is excellent and acting follows in suite with even tiny mannerisms by all the characters fitting in perfectly. Emma Stone was perfect, it was a role i would say designed for her, with her in mind every step of the way. Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci as Olives parents were the liberal parents, offering support when needed but brilliant comedy also when needed. Thomas Haden Church was great as Mr. Griffith. No matter what the reason was, he sold me as a teacher because he was certainly channelling my old history teacher. The approachable, enthusiastic and understanding. Alyson Michalka sold me as Rhi, a rather vacuous self centred girl but still a good friend. Amanda Bynes was great as the puritanical Christian leader of the school. Lisa Kudrow was even great in her small part. Not too far from her Phoebe character but it had some good moments I didn't expect. Namely when she outright tells Olive she's going to screw her over and she knows that people won't even believe the truth if Olive states it simply because she's the Guidance Councilor.
Really, I could go on forever and then spend another eternity trying to put all this off-the-top-of-my-head review into a perfectly coherent review but I'll leave it with this.
Easy A is the best film of 2010. It doesn't have the effects or big names of Inception. It doesn't have the thought provoking drama or story of Shutter Island or Black Swan (or Inception!). It's not even as stylised as Scott Pilgrim. Why is this film the best? Synergy. Every single part of this film comes together and makes it my personal favourite film of 2010.
Watch it. Now.