Clueless in Eastbourne

By CROOT, James

ANGUS, THONGS AND PERFECT SNOGGING (PG) Directed by Gurinder Chadha * * * * Reviewed by James Croot.

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‘Why don’t you just enjoy being 14?” But Georgia Nicholson (Georgia Groome) has plenty of reasons to ignore her parents’ advice.

For a start, her mum and dad (Karen Taylor and Alan Davies) are “from the Stone Age and hate me having a life”. Younger sister Libby (Eva Drew) is “bonkers”, always either trying to put Georgia’s beloved cat, part-scottish-wildcat Angus, in the fridge or dress him up in dolls’ clothes.

Living in Eastbourne isn’t much fun either – it isn’t called “God’s waiting room” for nothing. And then there’s the fact she’s never had a boyfriend.

But things are looking up as the new school year starts. Two new, older “fitties” have arrived in town. Brothers Robbie (Aaron Johnson) and Tom (Sean Bourke) are from London (“so they are well cosmopolitan”) and have moved to Eastbourne so their mother can open an organics shop. “Dishy, and nutritious,” enthuses Georgia. Even better, Robbie loves cats.

He seems like perfect boyfriend material. All Georgia has to do is wrest him away from “slaggy” Lindsay (Kimberley Nixon) and her enhanced assets.

Like director Chadha’s earlier smash-hit Bend It Like Beckham, Angus is a charismatic crowd-pleaser that will appeal to a far wider audience than just teens and tweens.

Based on the first two books (Angus, Thongs and Full- Frontal Snogging and It’s Okay, I’m Wearing Really Big Knickers) in Louise Rennison’s nine-part series, the film will bring back many fond, or otherwise, memories of being a young teen, and it will scare the pants off parents of budding tweens.

Fans of the books might quibble about a number of changes, including making the school co-ed rather than single- sex, but there’s no doubt its style and voice has been retained.

Chadha says she was inspired by John Hughes films like Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink, and the ’80s-influenced soundtrack certainly reflects this, but Angus probably has most in common with Amy Heckerling’s 1995 Jane Austen adaptation Clueless. Both have fully realised but flawed central heroines and both possess unique language that is likely to be quickly absorbed into the cultural zeitgeist.

Expect to hear talk of nervy bs, bazoomas and people being from vulgaria, at a mall near you.

The script contains an added bonus for New Zealand audiences, who may find themselves amused and offended in equal measure.

Bend It Like Beckham helped launch the careers of Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley, and Chadha has unearthed another impressive talent in Groome. Possessing extremely expressive eyebrows, she manages to keep her complex, complicated character just the right side of whiny, and her comic timing is terrific.

TV veteran Davies (Jonathan Creek) seems to struggle a little with playing a proper grown-up, but as well as an engaging teenage supporting cast there’s also the delight of seeing one of the best feline performances ever committed to celluloid.

Benny and Jim, take a bow and an extra saucer of milk.

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(c) 2008 Press, The; Christchurch, New Zealand. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.