I loved "Juno." The acting and the direction rocked. But most of all, you gotta love Diablo Cody's witty writing which was filled with savvy girl-speak and references to classic films. Those films would include such horror flicks as Herschell Gordon Lewis's cult favorite "The Wizard of Gore" and Dario Argento's masterpiece "Suspiria." So, when my good friend Dan showed me a preview of a Diablo Cody-scripted horror film with a pissed off Megan Fox, I was surprised but very excited. I never expected Cody to be such a fan of the genre, and this was a wonderful chance to see her try her hand at it. Simply put, "Jennifer's Body" rocks!
In the style of "Mean Girls" meets "Ginger Snaps" meets "Carrie," "Jennifer's Body" is about two best friends, nerdy Anita "Needy" Lesnicky and high school hottie Jennifer Check, in their high school in the town of Devil's Kettle. One night, Needy ditches her boyfriend Chip to go with Jen to see a performance by Low Shoulder, the ultimate emo band, whose lead singer, Nikolai Wolf, according to Jennifer, is extra "salty." After the bar burns down, Needy and Jen survive, but Nikolai and his band lure Jen away. Later that night, Jen comes back to Needy's house, only covered in blood and super-hungry. And not hungry for food, but for human flesh. Needy discovers that Jen has turned into a flesh-hungry demon who feeds on the blood of teenage boys. Looks like Devil's Kettle has one hell of a problem.
Out of all the films of 2009, "Jennifer's Body" is without a doubt the most underrated horror film of the year. Hopes were dashed when teenage guys got to see Megan Fox tear people to shreds, but didn't get their chance to see the "Transformers" star naked. And many people felt that the comedy drowned out the horror. Not to be a prude, but so what if Ms. Fox didn't get in the buff? As long as the movie is gory and fun, I'm OK.
Let's start off with the main component here: Diablo Cody's script is the real star of the movie. In such a horrific world where human beings are being eaten alive, Cody brings a superb macabre sense of humor to it all. And her writing is, believe it or not, very honest. The film accurately portrays the current generation of sexed-up, drug-addicted high school, and the character of Needy is very sympathetic.
On to the acting. Even though Megan Fox is the huge icon that she is, this is her first leading role. She's not the most talented actress, but it almost feels like she doesn't need to act for this film. Fox is Jennifer, through and through. For a slutty, evil cheerleader, Ms. Fox really pulls through in this performance. I truly believe that she is getting more talented in each film she makes. And Needy is played by Amanda Seyfried, who went from the smokin' hot dummy in "Mean Girls" to the sweet and concerned geek in this film. Seyfried is terrific in the role as she goes from Ms. Goody Two Shoes to Ultimate Bad-Ass. This is Seyfried's best performance since "Mean Girls." The rest of the cast is very good, including Johnny Simmons as Needy's boyfriend Chip, Adam Brody(?!) as Nikolai, and cameos from J.K. Simmons as a handicapped teacher and Amy Sedaris as Needy's drunk mother.
Overall, unlike other people, I personally love this film and I embrace it for what it is, a full-blown horror-comedy written by a female version of Sam Raimi. The movie isn't scary, but it is very gory, the comedy is hilarious, the script is nifty and the performances are quite good. Just because Megan Fox doesn't get nude doesn't mean there's nothing to like about "Jennifer's Body."
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