Clueless Review

 

Clueless Review:

In my opinion Clueless offers a strong sense of nostalgia for older audiences in a variety of ways such as the 90's fashion and pop culture references acting as a time capsule of that era. For younger teenage audiences the movie creates a sense of surveillance as they can learn about what life was like in the 90's. Since the movie is based around teenage characters it is relatable to a very wide audience as everybody has been or is currently a teenager and therefore they are able to resonate with the way the characters are portrayed. Cher embodies the 'dumb blonde' archetype which could be seen as mirroring reality at the time. Furthermore the movie reinforces stereotypes around what it means to be feminine and a 'typical' teenage girl however since the movie is narrated entirely by Cher from her point of view the audience is positioned to empathise with her and the use of dramatic irony encourages the audience to root for her growth and character development throughout the movie. Even though the movie reinforces stereotypes like these, it appeals to a very wide audience as it critiques this way of thinking and makes it humorous rather than serious. The movie presents life as a teenage girl as something that is culturally constructed and although the movie clearly dramatizes and exaggerates some aspects of girlhood it encourages the audience to reflect on harmful stereotypes rather than accepts them and further ground them into reality.