Stone shines in this funny teenage comedy with echoes of John Hughes

Rating: 8/10 (4 December 2010)

EASY A (2010) *** Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Dan Byrd, Thomas Haden Church, Patricia Clarkson, Stanley Tucci, Cam Gigandet, Lisa Kudrow, Malcolm McDowell, Alyson Michalka, Fred Armisen. Stone shines as a teenager facing a scandalous rumor – of being a harlot – that only snowballs when she cannot control and instead embraces the innuendo to largely comic affect echoing some John Hughes and of course "The Scarlett Letter". Director Will Glick ably gets a lot of mileage from virginity jokes and the like from the fairly smart and funny script by Bert V. Royal but gets more mileage from his even brighter supporting cast particularly the always welcome Clarkson & Tucci as the acridly humorous (and highly, capably understanding) parents. Stone's star is on the rise and she also rises above what would have been another ordinary teen farce but her trademark pluck and smoky voice add panache to what could have been a lackluster role. A nice surprise for a change in a genre that needs fresh blood!