Films

Never Been Kissed

Never Been Kissed is a fun and light-hearted film. Drew Barrymore stars as Josie Gellar, a copy-editor and wannabe reporter whose first reporting assignment is to write an undercover expose about the experience of attending high school. Thrilled by the opportunity, Josie temporarily forgets her own difficulty in fitting in as a high-school student; she soon realizes, however, that the high school social environment hasn't changed and that it will be a struggle for her to fit in and complete her assignment.

Drew Barrymore convincingly portrays three different versions of her core character, Josie Gellar. Geeky, copy-editor Josie is at home as an entry-level support staffer at her hometown newspaper, though she yearns to report news from the field; in flashbacks to her girlhood, Josie Grossie, an awkward outsider, wants desperately to fit in at high school and to simply be liked. As an undercover reporter, Josie strives to obtain her story while simultaneously seeking the acceptance she never found as a girl.

Michael Vartan plays Sam, Josie's teacher and love interest in the film; the chemistry between his character and Drew's is interesting to watch. Some critics say that an absence of chemistry between Michael and Drew weakened Never Been Kissed, but I disagree. Sam and Josie's relationship as teacher and student naturally interferes with the expression of their developing attractions; their respective professionalism, especially as Josie's bosses urge her to pursue a story about Sam, restrains their romantic impulses until, after completing her assignment, Josie steps away from her assumed role as a student. Although some viewers may regret the absence of romance in this romantic comedy, the sparking of a new relationship between Sam and Josie at the film's conclusion is believable.

Drew's amazing talent as an actress and her convincing portrayal of the many-layered Josie saved what could easily have been a mediocre movie. While not one of my favorite Drew Barrymore films, Never Been Kissed showcases Drew's ability to portray complex characters living under difficult circumstances.

Scream

Scream has become an often-parodied classic in the horror genre of films. Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox-Arquette, and David Arquette, the film focuses on a small town with a serial killer on the loose. The killer, “Ghost Face,: stalks and kills mainly high school students.

Originally offered the leading role of Sydney, Drew Barrymore opted to play his first victim, Casey Becker, because she thought it would be more fun. Casey's death scene is one of the most memorable in horror films.

I have to admit -- this movie scared the crap out of me when I first watched it in middle school!

Drew Barrymore's death scene is one of the scariest scenes in the entire movie; although she was in the movie for just over ten minutes, her performance strongly impacted the movie and contributed significantly to its success. Watching the movie again, years later, I still found the movie - and, particularly, Drew's performance in the introduction - incredibly scary. Casey's fear was believable and compelling: I felt her fear, and I was scared for her; I felt her hope when she believed she might get to live. I felt sad when she accepted her fate, and pride when, determined to identify her killer, she pulled off his mask.

Part of me wishes that Drew Barrymore had taken on Sydney's role so that I could see more of her in the film; however, Drew was perfect as Casey, and I don't know that I would have wanted anything changed.

Ever After

Ever After is a retelling of the classic "Cinderella" fairy tale. Drew Barrymore plays Danielle de Barbarac, a girl with conviction and spirit. Danielle is made a servant in her own home when her father dies, leaving her in the care of her jealous stepmother. The film focuses on Danielle, Danielle's relationship with her stepmother, and the love between Danielle and the Prince of France. Anjelica Houston and Dougray Scott costar as Danielle's stepmother, Rodmilla, and her love, Prince Henry.

Ever After is by far my favorite Drew Barrymore film. I love all of the movies she's in, but nothing will ever touch Ever After for me. It was the first Drew Barrymore movie I noticed her in, and I think her portrayal of Danielle is a large reason why I love Drew today. Within the frame of a compelling story, she made Danielle believable. Ever After made me feel -- which is a rare achievement for a film. I felt sad when Danielle was sad; I felt happy when she was happy. Not to give anything away to people who haven't yet seen the film, but I was literally smiling at the end of the movie.

Though my reaction says a lot for Drew's talent as an actress, she had a great screenplay and incredible costars to work with. The chemistry between her and Dougray Scott was incredibly believable to me, and I loved seeing her interactions with Anjelica Houston who, in her own right, is really a master of her craft. Since making Ever After, Drew's career and acting repertoire have grown and matured; however, speaking as a fan, I still consider Ever After to be Drew's best work.

This film began what I like to call Drew's "Ugly Duckling" films, in which she plays plain, socially-restrained girls who blossom in beauty and confidence, catching the eyes of all around them. Drew plays these characters well, as shown by the success of Ever After and Never Been Kissed.

I discuss Drew's character Danielle at length in Wings, a section of this site dedicated to her character.

Everybody's Fine

Everybody's Fine is a light, but serious film. Robert De Niro stars as a widower who makes an impulsive cross-country trip against the advice of his doctor to visit his four children after they each cancelled their plans to visit him. Drew Barrymore stars as Rosie, one of his daughters.

De Niro's character soon realizes that his children all made up excuses to not visit him, and that none of them are as he thought they were. Intimidated by their father's perfectionist view of them, and afraid of what he might think if he found out they didn't reach his dreams for them, they all hold secrets from their father and lie about their lives. Things they were able to tell their mother, they can't tell him, and as a result, they work together to keep up a charade around him, even keeping a huge secret about one his sons from him until the end of the film.

Barrymore's portrayal of Rosie is not only believable, but heartfelt. The flaws of her character can be seen in her, as can a quiet confidence and genuine sadness when she looks at her father and has to lie. I'm not used to seeing Drew Barrymore in such serious roles, but I have to say I enjoyed her in this. She convincingly portrayed a character just trying to get through everyday life, and she made that character interesting. Although Robert De Niro was the film's star, Barrymore succeeded in stealing a few scenes and making me smile. I was genuinely happy for Rosie when the film was over.

Although I think some of the storylines were a little cliché, Everybody's Fine was an interesting and entertaining film about real life, family, and the struggles we all face in life to make others think we're better off than we are. The film is somewhat slow-moving and not a lot happens, but the film kept me interested, and I think credit for that is owed to the film's amazing actors. Not many people can make a story about everyday life interesting. Robert De Niro in particular delivered an A-plus performance.