Pretty Persuasion

REVIEW
Pretty Persuasion attempts a take on Heathers by way of To Die For, tackling the Southern California high school caste system and the virulent foibles of its supporting culture. Roxbury High School student Kimberly Joyce (Wood) lives in palatial comfort with her misogynistic, certified-bigot father Hank (a magnificently repugnant Woods), his third wife, and a sickly, unappealing dog. She and her father are shadowed by the memory of her brother, his son, who died in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Kimberly receives temporary respite from her discontent and her overriding obsession with the pursuit of fame with occasional three-minute phone calls from her mom. Her posse of one — best friend Brittany, who is now dating her ex-boyfriend — expands to two with the arrival of Randa, a new student from the Middle East, whom Kimberly takes under her wing and to whom she imparts her own unique views on US culture and mores. The three 15-year-olds bond as they watch selections from Hank’s extensive porno collection, and they come to plot against the drama teacher (Livingston) who has upset all three. They file sexual harassment charges against him, and the ensuing media frenzy takes no prisoners. When the storyline loses focus and threatens to succumb to the hackneyed and derivative, the film is sustained by affecting performances and well-articulated characterizations. Pretty Persuasion examines the unexpected manipulative capabilities of miffed teenagers and the profound truth that every war has its casualties.