Marni (Kristen Bell), like many of the rest of us, had a tough time in high school. Among her chief tormentors was JJ (Odette Yustman), the captain of the cheerleading squad and all around snob. But Marni bucks up and uses the bullying she experienced as a goad toward achievement after graduation. Whatever her motivations, Marni's achievements can't be questioned: She's named a vice president of her public relations firm just before she heads home for her older brother's wedding.
Marni and her brother Will (Jimmy Wolk) have always been close, and she's both devastated and furious when she discovers the bride-to-be is none other than her high school nemesis who now answers to the name Joanna. Marni's mother (Jamie Lee Curtis) is sympathetic, but tells Marni that high school is in the past and she needs to move on. That advice comes easily to Gail until she discovers Joanna's Aunt Ramona (Sigourney Weaver) is her own high school nemesis.
Despite the happy occasion that has gathered the family together, Marni is less than thrilled. After all, JJ wasn't the best of persons in high school, and Marni can't imagine she's changed much! After an awkward reunion and family dinner, Marni and her younger brother Ben decide to do what they can to derail the nuptials.
Kristen Bell is a very pretty girl, and it couldn't have been easy to transform her into the unattractive high school geek that Marni was supposed to have been. Yet make-up artists and Bell's adoption of some less than pretty tics make you believe in the earlier version of Marni. Odette Yustman also does a good job as the pretty, popular girl whose mission in life is to make Marni miserable. Some of the movie's best moments come, though, as the result of the past and present rivalry between Jamie Lee Curtis and Sigourney Weaver. I'd be very surprised if the two of them had less than a ball doing their scenes together because it certainly shows on screen that way.
The story itself is relatively predictable, and the direction, while competent, is nothing special. The script is marred by moments of melodrama that undermine the otherwise marginal believability of the story, and though the actors handle their lines well, even genuine talent isn't enough to overcome some of the things they must say and do. In particular, poor Kristen Chenoweth in a role as the wedding planner—an actress I consider a truly brilliant talent—is stuck in a role where the caricature overwhelms even her formidable abilities. While Betty White (who portrays Marni's Grandma Bunny) is also silly, she, at least, gets away with it.
BOTTOM LINE: You Again is often diverting, and has enough elements of realism in it to make you recall your own high school days (for good or for ill), but it doesn't overcome the limitations imposed on it by its script, or a story that we've all frankly heard before. I was moderately entertained and mildly amused in the theatre, but when the movie was played out, I was less than fulfilled. ADDENDUM: Stay for the credits. Trust me.
POLITICAL NOTES: None.
FAMILY SUITABILITY: You Again is rated PG for "brief mild language and rude behavior." Produced by Touchstone (a Disney-owned company), the largely family-friendly fare is no real surprise. While I wouldn't recommend You Again for really young children (it's not going to hold their interest nor will they understand some of the complications that ensue from various and sundry misunderstandings or manipulations), most parents should have no problem with their tweens or teens buying a ticket.
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