Tuesday, July 17, 2018

I Watched Josie And The Pussycats Again Last Night, Because...

It's because on Sunday, I got to meet Rachael Leigh Cook in person! I still don't believe it myself. Read the new review below and hear some details about this climatic meeting: 

Before last night I hadn't watched any of her movies in ages but personally, Rachael Leigh Cook makes my heart a-flutter and there's a reason why I created a list of her movies that I've seen. Film fans may not even know much about her filmography after her theatrical days way back when. Well, she appeared in a variety of independent films, some of them pretty good or better, some fine and a few that ended up being pretty lousy. I mention all this as Sunday I attended a particular comic-con for the first time; the reason why was that I went SWOON when I looked at their website & saw Ms. Cook would be there as one of the guests. She rarely does cons so her being at one within driving distance was a must-attend for me.

I'd like to say I am just as jovial and loquacious in person as I am doing reviews here on Letterboxd; for various reasons, I am not. My social skills aren't the greatest and boy did I ever have anxiety as I had a professional photo op with her (that can be viewed on my Twitter linked on my profile page if you so desire; on Facebook the photo received a few dozen likes. I know many were shocked that out of nowhere, a picture of an odd eccentric like me appeared and I was posing with the girl from She's All That) and later chatted with her at her autograph table. I was hoping I could actually act normal and not let the nerves or my subpar social skills get in the way. Regrettably, things weren't as smooth as I had hoped for. Thankfully she is as nice and pleasant as I've always heard she was. To me that is more appealing than her physical appearance-which I say is still great in 2018-considering how we've found out in the past year there are more scummy people in Hollywood than any of us would like to admit. The whole thing did not go exactly as I expected it to but that is OK as it was me, not her. It was a day I'll never forget.

Thus, I figured it would be appropriate to see this movie again last night. I am not surprised that even film fans don't agree on it so ratings are all over the place; it is rather loud and unsubtle and yet I enjoy it, and no it has nothing to do with the good looks of the titular Pussycats. I love the satire and how it skewers such topics as pop music, subliminal music and commercialization; the last bit seems especially prescient in 2018 considering you have commercials that advertise both a product and a movie at the same time. The feeling of annoyance that I am sure some will get from the movie: I get. I just don't feel the same way. I was also amused by the potshots at boy bands; things were pretty insane in the late 90's on that front with The Backstreet Boys & *NSYNC... some women I know or knew took that incredibly seriously.

Cook, Tara Reid and Rosario Dawson all do well with their roles as three different personalities. Alan Cumming and Parker Posey also are fine as the over the top villains. The film is definitely never boring as a lot happens with the band and their sudden rise... and the ulterior motives of the heels. For me there are plenty of amusing moments & one-liners and the songs you hear are catchy fun, although Cook is dubbed there by Kay Hanley, the lead of the band Letters to Cleo.

I understand the movie is not like the comics or the cartoon, and someone I know on a messageboard expressed his disappointment there; fair, but I have haven't read those comics or seen the cartoon so I can dig this for what it is. The movie flopping at the time is unfortunate but maybe it would have done better if it had come out if things then were like they are now. This movie is jerkin'... if you've seen and remember this, you'll know I suddenly did not get all disgusting here...

No comments:

Post a Comment