Flashback Friday- Drew Barrymore Double Feature- Never Been Kissed (1999) & Charlie’s Angels (2000)

The name of Drew Barrymore conjures up a number of images. She was the little girl who stole our hearts in E.T., the former child star who found refuge in alcohol and drugs as a young woman and finally actress/producer/wife/mother, who has turned both her personal and professional life around.

In 1999, Drew starred in Never Been Kissed. Josie Geller (Barrymore) did not have the greatest high school experience. At the age of 25, she is eager to move up the corporate ladder from copywriter to reporter. Her chance comes when she is offered the assigned to go undercover as a high school student and peek into the minds of then current teenage population.  Unlike his sister, Josie’s brother, Rob (David Arquette) was Mr. Popular in high school. Rob offers to help his sister with her assignment. The problems arise when Josie starts to develop feelings for Sam Coulson (Michael Vartan), the English teacher who does not know that Josie is not 17.

I like this movie. I love the what if factor. What if we could go back to high school or any part of lives that we look back at with disdain and do what we really wanted or wished that we could have done? Especially for those of us whose high school experiences were unhappy ones. Would we have the courage to talk to the boy or girl that we had a crush on? Would we say yes to something when we said no at the time? What would we do differently if we had the opportunity all over again?

A year later, Charlie’s Angels was released. A film reboot of the classic 1970’s television series,  Barrymore c0-starred with Cameron Diaz, Lucy Liu and Bill Murray. While the basic premise of the show remained intact, the angels were new characters with a new case to solve.

This movie is just plain fun.  While keeping the slight cheese factor and the always awesome girl power that was the driving force of the television series, the angels did not use guns to fight. Which is nice because in most movies that fall within the action genre, the lead character usually relies on a gun as their primary weapon.

The fact that Barrymore starred and produced both of these movies is a testament to her intelligence and fortitude.

I recommend both.

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The Interview

It is a truth universally acknowledged that somewhere in the world, someone is unhappy about something. It is also a truth universally acknowledged that we can never please everyone,  there will always be someone who disagrees with us and has no problem sharing that with us.

In light of the Sony hacking scandal and the information that has been released, The Interview starring Seth Rogen and James Franco has been pulled from movie theaters.

I personally think that this movie looks incredibly dumb and a waste of my movie going time, but that simply my opinion.

What matters is that instead of standing up to Guardians Of Peace, the hackers who opened this can of worms to begin with, Sony and the companies that own the movie theaters have cow towed to the threats.

While I completely understand that the safety of their staff and customers is of the utmost importance, I firmly believe that we cannot sacrifice our freedoms, especially freedom of speech and expression to threats of violence.  This country was founded on the principle of being able to openly express one’s beliefs without fear of repercussion.

It’s just a movie. It is a work of fiction. It represents the ideals and beliefs of the filmmakers. It does not represent every single American citizen.

One of the things I have come to believe is that when a government goes after an artist because he or she uses their art to express their dislike of that government, there is something fishy going on. Especially when that government attacks an artist who is not a citizen of that country.

While the security and safety of the American people is of the utmost importance, it is as important, if not more important to remember why this country was founded. If we choose safety and security over the Bill Of Rights, then I fear that we are backsliding into a pit that we may never climb out of.