Why Clueless is the Ultimate Coming of Age Film
Written by Georgia Balmer
Never has a film so painlessly portrayed the hazy adrift feeling of adolescence as the masterpiece that is Clueless. You may think, as if.
As if a film that reads so much like a MTV commercial, with a ditzy blonde protagonist guiding us through high school drama and a ping-pong like dating scene, could be compared to the greats of the coming of age genre.
Graphic by Dana Dang
It’s a romcom you cry! A pink filled, comedically exaggerated version of high school that can only be enjoyed at sleepovers whilst high on sugary sweets and the promise of gossip. To which I say, if you think of Clueless as nothing more than a glossy chick flick, with a handful of snappy one-liners and a great soundtrack, then you have sorely missed the point. Clueless, in all its campy glory, captures the heady and confusing feeling of near adulthood with a glee that is so often missed from coming of age films, and so badly needed.
When we talk of coming of age films, the usual suspects are normally films such as The Dead Poets Society, Lady Bird and Stand by Me. Films that treat the end of teenhood as if it's the most painful experience of our lives. They attack the subject with a seriousness that fails to portray the free-spirited fun that peaks through the confusion and angst of youth, with long monologues that betray the age of the film’s writers, and that leaves us with a feeling that teenhood should be filed with more melancholy.
There is a real beauty and power to the films previously listed, with their stoic and unflinching portrayals of teenhood that burn into the brain and feeds our inner monologues for the coming months. Seeing the class stand up on their desks for Robbin William’s character in Dead Poets so perfectly captures the disillusionment, and yet empowerment, of seeing the adults in your life as equals, as equally flawed and unsure. Ladybird flinging herself out of the car in an act of pure desperation uncannily conveys the trapped, claustrophobia of a home that we later wish we could return to when the real world feels too harsh. The Breakfast club sharing their fears of turning into their parents, sagging bottoms and all. It is these moments that stay with us, that embody our feelings of unease and quiet contempt for a world that sees us as too young, too unaware. It is these moments that speak to us and for us.
Yet there’s a seriousness that is often associated with coming of age films that feels more adult. A heavy tone that borders on depressing. Dark lighting, swelling music and metaphysical monologues that have the aged tone of someone much older than the characters, much older than the audience. There is a space for these films, and they have filled that space well, but my God, is Clueless a breath of fresh air.
Created by Amy Heckerling, who visited Beverly Hills high school to perfect the zeitgeist of the younger generation, Clueless speaks teen. Cher Horowitz, played by pouty-lipped Alicia Silverstone, narrates us through the film with a confident voice fry and quick wit that betrays an intelligence that the blonde hair and shopping addiction would otherwise have us overlook. There is a lack of pretense in the dialogue, these characters speak flippantly and brashly to each other with little worry about how their words will be perceived. Yet, in their actions, the doubt and pressure of a strict social hierarchy is painfully clear.
The film follows the ‘cool kids’, the in-crowd that most of us watched with thin veiled envy and contempt during our own school years. Both wanting to be and loving to hate. It is through Tai, a new student, that we view this world until Cher finds herself outmaneuvered from the group. With their good looks, wealth and parties, it could be difficult to identify with these characters, but there is a warmth and familiarity in which Heckerling presents them. They’re aware of the eyes that watch and judge them, Cher quipping that she and Dionne are friends for the sole reason that “they know what it feels like to have people be jealous.” They know exactly how precarious their spot on the top of the social hierarchy is, and it is that vulnerability which allows us to like them.
However, there is a flippancy that follows Cher throughout the film that makes it easy to see why she’s written off as an airhead by many. Her driving is reckless, her iconic RSVP speech demonstrates little interest in the world outside her own, yet perfectly captures the benefit of immigration to cosmopolitan life, and her attitude to criticism is dismissive. Love interest, and ex-step brother, Josh, sums her up in the line, “if I ever saw you do anything that wasn't 90% selfish I’d die of shock”. Cher’s quick response however, “oh, that would be reason enough for me”, is a reminder that the ditzy airhead act isn’t completely accurate.
Of course, this flippancy is understandable. Cher is a young, privileged girl with none of the ugly responsibilities of adulthood. Her life is a “noxzema commercial”, a rotation of parties, new clothes, and pink lipgloss. Her priority up until the last section of the film is having fun, and considering the fact she has little else to worry about, blaming her for this seems bitter. Yet, she also shows contempt for the shallow world of high school from the offset. Throughout the film, we’re reminded that “she’s saving herself for Fred Perry”, she has no interest for high school boys or involving herself with the drama of dating. Her grades, whilst bolstered by flattery and extra credits, are good, and her outrage at a C, which drives the film’s plot, implies that her mind is somewhat focused on the future. As she points out, she has direction, and not just to the mall.
We have been conditioned to believe that ‘good’ films must be serious, they must force us to see a new perspective and do so with a gritty rawness that boarders on uncomfortable. Films like Clueless who take a lighter tone, who blend humor and pop culture to create a fun viewing experience, are judged as lesser than for not delivering this grit. Yet, life isn’t always difficult. It flows through moments of intense joy and confusion and sadness. To criticize a film for mirroring life in a joyful and happy light belittles the complexity of our experiences, and it takes away the fun of being a teen.
What Clueless excels at is capturing that tipping point before adulthood in a way that a teen would, and not like a room of 30-year-old writers reminiscing on their youth. This is a film that feels like it comes from the mouth of a peer, and that is because Heckerling respected teens enough to allow them to shape her narrative. What we get as a result is a nuanced and complex portrayal of high school that is warm and funny, and most importantly, feels like somebody is listening to the good in our lives.