The cold hard truth is I knew walking into this film that I was going to come out smiling having seen a movie that I really liked that most people will not and will continually make fun of it. So I'll do something I rarely do and right this from just my own personal experience and how I felt about it. I'm a smack in the face sucker for teen flicks, especially remakes of classics redone with the modern High School/College Twist...ie: Ten Things I Hate About You, Get Over it, and now this one. Sydney White was just cute...it had some real tongue in cheek humor and didn't try to be anything but what it was...a genre inducing, demographically aimed film that hits the nail on the head. Granted you have to let go of reality and accept the nearly insulting barrage of stereotypical clumping that the film provides but aren't all teeny flicks like that? I admit that while watching the seven 'dorks' I got a tinge of offensiveness creeping up because it is kind of harsh towards certain attributes even if they were made out to be the anti-heroes of the film. The attention to adding in little references to the Original Snow White Story was pretty well done including a hilarious (I thought it was hilarious) Hi-Hoe line delivered by a couple of the 'dorks.' Some of it might have been a little forced...the Poison Apple should have happened earlier on and the names "Witchburn" and "Prince" were almost a little much but even still the film is cute and funny and fluffy in all the right places.
Every time I see an Amanda Bynes film I tend to rave about her. Yes I have a small crush...but besides that I generally feel that Bynes is a terrific young comedian who is terrific at dead pan humor, physical comedy and has this real down to earth quality about her and she can still look terrific and movie star like. She's just damn likable which is why movies like this work for her. Sure I'd like to see her give some time to something maybe more serious but stick to what you're good at and this is good for her!! She's terrific as Sydney White, a down home girl that is rough around the edges more than frilly but is still a gal at heart and you really just like her and want to see her kick some witch butt. Now I had some nasty things to say about the movie reviewers who commented on her appearance in this film saying she looked awful and fake tanned and Orange because what a stupid and shallow thing to go on about but I admit...there was definitely some issues with her appearance. She does look orange throughout nearly the whole film and it looks like a bad spray tan. Sara Paxton is a terrific villain for Bynes' Sydney White. She's pretty stereotypical as far as teen flick villains go but she does it well. I know she can do a spectrum of characters because this is a far cry from her performance as the naive and cute mermaid in Aquamarine but similar to her bad girl in Sleepover. Honestly I would have liked to have seen her got more of an appropriate ending in Sydney White. Keep your eyes on young actor Matt Long who made an impression on short lived TV Series Jack and Bobby and I think could have made a better Ghost Rider than Nicholas Cage. He's mostly a show piece as Tyler Prince and the object of Bynes' and Paxton's affections. Bynes' and him have good chemistry and he does a great job in the role for what he's given. I honestly wish I had the space to run down ALL the supporting actors including the 7 dorks because they did a truly terrific job in their respective dorky roles and they all had a certain chemistry with Bynes that was important. There were also supporting characters like Crystal Hunt, who did a great job, and the amazing John Schneider as Bynes' Dad.
Truth be told no one is walking away from filming Sydney White a better or worse actor for having been on set and they won't ever see any awards quite likely. The thing was they were picked to put forth a certain appearance and performance and they all did it spot on and there is nothing wrong with that I don't think. Sydney White is just an example of know what you're good at and go with it. Bynes knows she's adorable and likable and can play this role, same with Sara Paxton, and even director Joe Nussbaum. This is his third movie of this type and they've all been exactly what you would expect from the genre and there is nothing wrong with that. I actually REALLY enjoyed Sleepover (see my review), because it shows what it is and it doesn't try to be anything else. And I like cute little teeny films...is that wrong?? I don't slap a 9/10 on this because it's a must see movie that will live forever and teach you something about life. I'm just going with my gut and how much I enjoyed it. If you like this type of movie and want something cute, and fluffy...you'll love it!!! 9/10
Every time I see an Amanda Bynes film I tend to rave about her. Yes I have a small crush...but besides that I generally feel that Bynes is a terrific young comedian who is terrific at dead pan humor, physical comedy and has this real down to earth quality about her and she can still look terrific and movie star like. She's just damn likable which is why movies like this work for her. Sure I'd like to see her give some time to something maybe more serious but stick to what you're good at and this is good for her!! She's terrific as Sydney White, a down home girl that is rough around the edges more than frilly but is still a gal at heart and you really just like her and want to see her kick some witch butt. Now I had some nasty things to say about the movie reviewers who commented on her appearance in this film saying she looked awful and fake tanned and Orange because what a stupid and shallow thing to go on about but I admit...there was definitely some issues with her appearance. She does look orange throughout nearly the whole film and it looks like a bad spray tan. Sara Paxton is a terrific villain for Bynes' Sydney White. She's pretty stereotypical as far as teen flick villains go but she does it well. I know she can do a spectrum of characters because this is a far cry from her performance as the naive and cute mermaid in Aquamarine but similar to her bad girl in Sleepover. Honestly I would have liked to have seen her got more of an appropriate ending in Sydney White. Keep your eyes on young actor Matt Long who made an impression on short lived TV Series Jack and Bobby and I think could have made a better Ghost Rider than Nicholas Cage. He's mostly a show piece as Tyler Prince and the object of Bynes' and Paxton's affections. Bynes' and him have good chemistry and he does a great job in the role for what he's given. I honestly wish I had the space to run down ALL the supporting actors including the 7 dorks because they did a truly terrific job in their respective dorky roles and they all had a certain chemistry with Bynes that was important. There were also supporting characters like Crystal Hunt, who did a great job, and the amazing John Schneider as Bynes' Dad.
Truth be told no one is walking away from filming Sydney White a better or worse actor for having been on set and they won't ever see any awards quite likely. The thing was they were picked to put forth a certain appearance and performance and they all did it spot on and there is nothing wrong with that I don't think. Sydney White is just an example of know what you're good at and go with it. Bynes knows she's adorable and likable and can play this role, same with Sara Paxton, and even director Joe Nussbaum. This is his third movie of this type and they've all been exactly what you would expect from the genre and there is nothing wrong with that. I actually REALLY enjoyed Sleepover (see my review), because it shows what it is and it doesn't try to be anything else. And I like cute little teeny films...is that wrong?? I don't slap a 9/10 on this because it's a must see movie that will live forever and teach you something about life. I'm just going with my gut and how much I enjoyed it. If you like this type of movie and want something cute, and fluffy...you'll love it!!! 9/10