Spunky Whip It a Divine Comedy
Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page) isn’t a fan of Bodeen, Texas, dreams of escaping her tiny hometown littering her every moment. But she isn’t as good a student as her best friend and fellow truck stop waitress Pash (Alia Shawkat), and her primary extracurricular activity isn’t one she excels at, her maniacal mother Brooke (Marcia Gay Harden) coercing her to compete in a seemingly never-ending series of beauty pageants.
Drew Barrymore, Ellen Page and Kristen Wiig in Fox Searchlight's Whip It
A new world opens up to Bliss when she and Pash escape to Austin for an evening, the pair discovering the wild and crazy female-driven world of roller derby. It’s like nothing else she’s experienced, and after making quick friends with Maggie Mayhem (Kristen Wiig), one of the leaders of perpetual underdogs the Hurl Scouts, the teen decides to throw caution to the wind and try out for a spot in the league.
There are a couple of problems, not the least of which is how Bliss is going to fool her parents into thinking she’s heading into the city for an SAT preparatory class and not to take part in a bone-crunching contact sport. Then there is the little fact that she’s only 17, the league’s minimum age requirement a beer-guzzling 21. These secrets aside, Bliss is driven to succeed, finally waking up to the fact a life lived trying to make other people’s dreams come true and not your own isn’t a happy one.
Based on Shauna Cross’ popular novel, the new coming of age dramatic sports comedy Whip It is the directorial debut of former child star and successful adult actress Drew Barrymore. Working from a screenplay written by the author the movie is a surprising smash, the newbie filmmaker showing a steady hand behind the scenes as well as a deft comedic touch I wasn’t expecting.
While unsurprising and more than a tad familiar, this is nonetheless one of the more exuberantly entertaining pictures I’ve seen this Fall. It hits virtually all the right notes, each of its primary characters three dimensional creations that consistently amaze. While the outcome isn’t new, the dramatic fireworks getting to that point are, everyone painted in intriguing shades of grey and not your typical black or white.
I love the emphasis Barrymore and Cross place on the parents. Brooke could very easily have been a caricature of a smothering mother. Instead, not only does Harden play her with subtle imperfections intact, the filmmakers give her enough variance that she seldom reacts in ways you typically find is a story such as this one. Daniel Stearn is also quite wonderful, effortlessly slipping into the role of Bliss’ caring if slightly detached father Earl. Thanks to his work in a string of horrific comedies, you tend to forget just how good an actor the former Diner star can be, his performance here easily his best in over two decades.
As for Ellen Page, the Juno Oscar-nominee continues to impress. Unlike her costar in that breakout hit Michael Cera, the youngster refuses to duplicate herself, and even if the movies she appears in are theoretically similar she always seems to find away to give a totally unique performance. Bliss isn’t sure of herself, she doesn’t like to talk and unleashing a quick verbal witticism is as anathema to her as mayonnaise and Spam sandwiches are to me. Watching her blossom to life through roller derby and romance brought an almost continual smile to my face, Page stealing my heart bit by bit with every spin around the track.
I will say that I know no more about roller derby after watching this movie than I did going into it, Barrymore not really caring if the mechanics of the sport make a whole lot of sense. I also think, as many nice character moments as there are, there came a point where I did kind of feel she was leaving her talented supporting cast or irregular regulars (Juliette Lewis, Jimmy Fallon, Zoe Bell, Eve and Barrymore herself) a little bit out to dry. Finally, the love story between Bliss and a wannabe rock star (singer/songwriter Landon Pigg) isn’t very interesting, and other than a truly awesome vignette in an empty High School pool I didn’t care if the pair found romance or not.
Be all that as it may, the longer I think about the film the more I realize just how much I adore it. Fast, funny, filled with strong performances and ultimately moving, Whip It is a total blast from start to finish. Barrymore has crafted a sensational debut, the final product so good I can’t wait to see what she’s got up her sleeve (or hidden inside her skates) next.
Film Rating: êêê (out of 4)
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