D is for Drive Me Crazy (1999), Film #232
Okay, I don’t know any way to say this except to just come out and say it. I thought Drive Me Crazy was a really good movie.
It is a romantic comedy. A *teen* romantic comedy. And I still thought it was great.
I put this down to one thing: the cast. Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier are able to instill their characters with a realism that is usually missing from these kinds of films. It certainly helps that this film doesn’t descend to the typical over-the-top sex and gross-out jokes that have plagued the genre since American Pie.
Of course, it’s one of the most formulaic movies you could ask for. It’s a romantic comedy, remember. A teen romantic comedy. Hart plays the popular girl who needs a date, Grenier is the outsider she tries to transform to impress the others. Not exactly groundbreaking. I can’t stress enough that this film is exactly what you expect it to be. You will not be surprised by anything that you see.
This formula carries over to the supporting characters; geeky best friends, backstabbing girls, absentee fathers, etc., etc. etc. Seen it all before. Yet another gathering of standard issue formula characters sprinkled about to populate the film.
But as I’ve said before, just because it’s a formula, doesn’t mean it’s crap. This is teen romantic comedy done flawlessly. Of course, your ability to enjoy it will depend entirely on whether it is possible for you to enjoy romantic comedies. If you can, you’ll find it a high quality example of the genre. On the other hand, if you don’t, this one isn’t going to sell you on the genre.
This entry was posted on Friday, September 4th, 2009 at 10:12 pm and is filed under 1999, Based on Book, Comedy, Romance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.