Think of Jane Austen’s Emma, transported to a 1990s Beverly Hills High School, and you get Clueless. Alicia Silverstone is Cher, a spoiled teenager, whose life revolves around clothes, shopping and being one of the most popular girls in school. She and her friend Dionne (Stacey Dash) take new girl Tai (Brittany Murphy) under their wing and give her a makeover, in the hope of pairing her up with good looking Elton (Jeremy Sisto). However, nothing goes to plan, and Cher starts wondering if she’s really as good at this matchmaking business as she thinks she is – or is she really just clueless?
As a big fan of Emma, I was intrigued to see how this modern day version worked, and – although I suspect I’m a bit older than the audience at which this film was aimed – I did enjoy it a lot. Alicia Silverstone was just the right combination of loveable and infuriating, and Brittany Murphy was lovely as Tai. Paul Rudd was adorable as Josh, and Breckin Meyer and Jeremy Sisto both provided good support.
You don’t need to have any knowledge of Emma to enjoy Clueless – it can either be viewed as a retelling of the story, or as a sweet film in its own right. A likeable cast and some funny moments make it well worth seeing.
Year of release: 1995
Director: Amy Heckerling
Producers: Twink Caplan, Barry M. Berg, Robert Lawrence, Scott Rudin, Adam Schroeder
Writers: Jane Austen (based on novel ‘Emma’), Amy Heckerling
Main cast: Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy, Donald Faison, Breckin Meyer, Jeremy Sisto, Dan Hedaya
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Click here for my review of the novel ‘Emma’ by Jane Austen.
Click here for my review of the 1972 mini series adaptation of Emma, starring Doran Godwin.
Click here for my review of the 1996 film Emma, starring Gwyneth Paltrow.
Click here for my review of the 1996 television film Emma, starring Kate Beckinsale.
Click here for my review of the 2009 mini series adaptation of Emma, starring Romola Garai.
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Between the Pages 