Jason Perez
Second Unit
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2003
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Girls Will Be Girls
Studio: MGM
Year: 2003
Rated: R
Film Length: 80 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1)
Subtitles: English and Spanish
Audio: English – Dolby Digital 5.1
Release Date:
March 16th, 2004
Girls Will Be Girls is a comedic tale about the competitive nature of women, with an interesting gimmick. You see, the twist in Girls Will Be Girls is that the three female leads are played by - are you ready for this…male actors! This should hardly be a revelation, however, as the men do not look that feminine, never mind the fact that the keepcase blows their cover. Then again, in ancient Greece, men played ALL the parts in plays, so it is not like this is exactly a novel concept! In any event, all three men are incredibly energetic, and avoid going too far over-the-top to undermine the film, in their campy roles as raunchy, cat-fighting females.
Now before going any further, I must admit that it took me a while to get past both the “drag” element of this particular movie (as these guys really do make UGLY women) and some of the abortion humor (more on this later). Apart from that, however, Girls Will Be Girls, written and directed by Richard Day, turns out to be a rather original and often hilarious little film. To be sure, some of Girls is a bit on the crude and mean-spirited side, and some of the characters’ behavior is not terribly likable, but the dialogue is very smart, and a lot more of the jokes hit than miss.
By now you are probably saying, “Come on Jason, that is enough of these vague, sweeping statements”! Well, my movie-loving friends, I have heard you; so let’s discuss the plot in a little more detail. As the film opens, we find three women trying to achieve/sustain their success in show business, each with their own brand of neurosis, living together in a gaudy Hollywood house. Given their behavior, however, I was kind of surprised they would be staying together (they are constantly at each other’s throats), but I suppose if they weren’t there would be no movie!
The owner of the house, Evie Harris (Jack Plotnick), is a haggard and self-obsessed B-movie actress, whose show-biz highlight was appearing in a cheesy disaster flick titled “Asteroid” some years back. Interestingly, she wasn’t even very good in the bloody thing! In the intervening years, she has become a bitter and horny drunk, who is both angry her career is in the toilet and willing to hop into the sack with almost any willing fellow that she might happen to encounter.
One of Evie’s two flat-mates, who also serve as her verbal punching bags, is Coco (Clinton Leupp), who spends quite a bit of time fantasizing about a handsome doctor who performed several abortions for her. Appallingly, Coco got knocked up on purpose, just so she could go to have a second abortion, and a rendezvous with the object of her desire. I don’t care how you feel about the abortion issue, that someone would stoop so low just to get together with another person is a very disturbing and inhuman thought. Even more upsetting is the appearance of one of her aborted fetuses during a dream sequence. Although it takes an awful lot to get under my skin, I found this sequence to be utterly repugnant.
The last member of the unsightly trio is Varla (Jeffery Roberson), a young woman whose brighter career prospects get Evie’s panties wound into a real bunch. More specifically, Evie becomes extremely envious of Varla's success, and then angered by Varla’s romantic involvement with her son Stevie (Ron Mathews). In fact, this attention whore eventually becomes so irate at Varla for stealing what she perceives to be her spotlight that she spends most of her waking moments trying to cause her new roommate pain.
Unfortunately, Evie’s downright evil and self-centered nature make it hard to empathize with her situation, and almost impossible for the viewer to like the character, even after she is redeemed
. Indeed, all three of Richard Day’s “ladies” are either so self-absorbed and bitchy, or just so plain dumb, that it took some effort for me like any of them. Fortunately, the film’s witty, razor-sharp dialogue makes up for this a bit; although the abortion gags in this film will more than likely offend people on either side of the issue.
Another thing I think Girls Will Be Girls has going for it is how the lead characters are played as women, not transvestites, gay men, or the products of sex change operations. As I mentioned earlier, the three leading men’s energy, and willingness to be silly, helps a lot in this regard. Though I did not like the character, I must say that Jack Plotnick is particularly good as the diabolical Evie, and Clinton Leupp and Jeffery Roberson also turn in charismatic performances as Coco and Varla, respectively. Honestly, now that I think about it, I cannot imagine this material working as well as it does with female actors.
All in all, Girls Will Be Girls does have its share of problems, including less-than lovable characters, some rather ugly humor, and a somewhat less-than cohesive story arc. It also has some pretty cheesy special effects, but given this film’s budget, and that most of the film was shot inside of Richard Day’s bedroom, things certainly could have looked worse. What is more, I thought the film was funny enough, campy enough (in a good way), and fresh enough to warrant a rental in spite of its inadequacies, especially if men dressing up as women do not bother you. By no means a classic, and I am not sure I would revisit it, but Girls Will Be Girls ended up being a fun way to pass 80 minutes!
SO, HOW DOES IT LOOK?
Unlike its female characters, Girls Will Be Girls looks simply breathtaking! Presented by MGM is anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1), the colorful, and sometimes gaudy, sets and costumes assault viewer’s retinas with bold, bright, and well-rendered hues. Just check out Varla’s dress in Chapter 11 or any of Evie’s furnishings or gowns to see what I mean. Whites are stark and clean, and flesh tones, or should I say makeup tones, look quite natural!
The HD source also has a deep and defined black level, leading to excellent shadow detail. Similarly, fine detail is also exceptional, especially in close-ups. On second thought, maybe the image is too detailed, as this film does contain one image in particular that no one should see!
Seriously though, I only had a couple of minor quibbles with this title’s visual quality. First, outdoor shots had a slightly hazy look, which was also the case in the HD film Pieces of April. Secondly, a touch of edge enhancement is evident on a couple of occasions, although the resultant halos never become pronounced. Other than that, Girls Will Be Girls really looks fantastic, especially considering it was largely shot on a shoestring budget in and around Richard Day’s own home!
WHAT IS THAT NOISE?
Thanks to MGM, and Lucasfilm, the Dolby Digital track for Girls Will Be Girls is right on par with its excellent visuals. This is a somewhat dialogue heavy film, so let me begin by saying that the characters’ speech was reproduced in a warm, hiss-free, and easily discernable fashion. Detailed audio information, like the tinkling of dentures, or rain falling on Evie’s rooftop, also leapt from the track with stark realism.
The film’s score and music also sound very good, thanks to a spacious soundstage and imaging that belies the film’s budget. And though the front of the soundstage handles most of the action, the rear channels are frequently called upon to fill in the sound field during musical numbers and provide location specific effects. The voices that swirl throughout the listening space in Chapter 14 provide a good example of the use of rear channels to engage the listener.
Finally, Girls Will Be Girls has a much more deep and powerful low bass response than I would have expected. More specifically, the music in the film is reinforced nicely by the sub, and the thunderstorm in the middle of movie just rocked! There were a couple of other occasions when the sub really added some oomph to the proceedings, but I don’t want to spoil anything for those who want to watch the film.
I must admit that when I received this title, I was not expecting much, but in terms of both video and audio quality, I was quite pleasantly surprised. While Girls Will Be Girls certainly does not engage a listener in the same way that The Two Towers or Attack of the Clones does, the source material is handled very well on this Dolby Digital track. Skywalker Sound rules!!!
EXTRAS, EXTRAS!!!
NOTE: The disc kicks off with trailers for Camp and Pieces of April, which can be skipped through.
Feature Length Commentary
The audio commentary, by writer/director Richard Day and cast-members Jack Plotnick, Clinton Leupp, and Jeffery Roberson is plenty of fun, and offers some interesting insight into the creation of this bizarre comedy. In particular, the four men, who banter back and forth in a friendly manner, talk about ways money was saved on the production, some of the continuity errors in the film, and ideas that were added as filming began. If you like the film, I highly recommend giving it a listen.
Deleted Scenes Montage
A smorgasbord of deleted scenes is offered, as one continuous reel, some of which contain some rather funny moments and one-liners.
Girls Will Be Girls: Becoming the Girl
The “Becoming the Girl” featurette takes the viewer through the extensive process of making the three actors in the lead roles into women. Throughout, makeup artist Adam Christopher describes the effect of the technique he is using, or the cosmetic being applied, some of which is quite interesting.
EASTER EGGS
There are a total of 9 “Evie Easter Eggs”, which feature Jack Plotnick in character, making some interesting, and quite funny, observations. All are quite brief, and in my honest opinion, well worth the effort to find them. Oh, what the hell, we are all busy, so I’ll save you some work. Here is where they are:
1, 2, and 3: On the Main Menu, highlight “scenes” and press “up” to reveal an icon. You can either select this Easter egg, or press up once (or twice) more to reveal two others.
4 and 5: On the Main Menu, highlight “Special Features” and press “down” once (or twice) to reveal two more Easter eggs.
6: On the Special Features menu, highlight the “Becoming the Girl” featurette, and press “left”
7, 8, and 9: On the Special Features menu, highlight “Deleted Scenes Montage” and press “right” one, two or three times to reveal the last three Easter eggs.
Theatrical Trailer
The theatrical trailer for Girls Will Be Girls is included.
Other Great MGM Releases
Trailers are included for:
--- Manic
--- Out of Time
--- Casa de Los Babys
--- Touching the Void (theatrical)
--- On Edge
--- Dead Like Me
In addition, MGM has included the cover art for:
--- Legally Blonde
--- Le Cage Aux Folles
--- Le Cage Aux Folles II
--- City Slickers
--- The Birdcage
--- Barbershop
SCORE CARD
(on a five-point scale)
Movie: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
Video: :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
Audio: :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
Extras: :star: :star: :star:
Overall: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
THE LAST WORD
Though it is certainly no classic, Girls Will Be Girls is an offbeat, clever, and witty film that features memorable performances by its three leading “ladies”. As I already mentioned, this film’s world of make-believe is probably not one that most people will want to revisit frequently, but it is funny enough overall to warrant a rental (at least) if abortion-related humor and men playing female characters doesn’t bother you.
As far as presentation goes, the film looks very good, and sounds great (thanks in part to Lucasfilm’s Skywalker Sound) considering its budget. In addition, the disc features a humorous commentary track and a smattering of other extras, most of which turn out to be more quite funny in their own right. Certainly not the most insightful set of bonus features out there, but they compliment the film well. By the way, make sure you let the special features menu play, so you can hear Evie’s thoughts about them. Good stuff, and I bet it captures the way some people feel about the so-called “special” features on a lot of discs!!!
Stay tuned…
