my rating: F

A while back I picked up the latest issue of People Magazine to learn all about the movie stars we so envy. “Oh, Russell broke up with Meg for his sheep in Australia.” “Wow, Jennifer Love Hewitt has real breast.” As I was amazed with this newfound information, I came upon an article on Josie and the Pussycats. “Josie and the Pussycats is a satire on the commercialism of America. In this movie, we took what America was all about. You see we live in an MTV world of trend-conscious teens and boy bands. Our teens are spoon fed with filth everyday - walking zombies not able to speak their mind. It is an embarrassment for the so-called land of the free!! By the way, the movie opens April 11th.” The director team of Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan continued to speak out their vision of making a satire on our teen society. The result is Josie and the Pussycats, a satire of corporate America and a young band amidst of it.

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Now back to the movie review of Josie and the Pussycats.

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Josie and the Pussycats is loosely based on the Archie Comics and the cartoon series. Originally called The Pussycats, these three girls were busy playing in bowling alleys and working hard in writing punk rock. As Mega Records literally killed off their boy band, Du Jour, they signed The Pussycats. This is when the directors’ vision of “a satire of teen culture” came into realization. They exploit our consumer-obsessed pop culture while featuring an all-new pop music soundtrack from some of the music industry's hottest names. Now that is a satire of pure brilliance. Just remember to bring your family and friends to your nearest movie theater.

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That is more like it. I hate commercials and I did not want to pay 5.75 to see more of them. The little I watch TV, I am bombarded by “Smoke This” “Clear skin makes you look hot” Ads. This so-called satire is just an excuse for more commercials, marketing tools, and product placements. With the constant product placement by such favorites as Target and Starbucks Coffee, Josie and the Pussycats’ message seems rather hypocritical.

The amount of commercialism involved in Josie and the Pussycats disgusted me. I loathe commercials to begin with and I don’t need to see a full-length movie to tell me what’s important in life, and what I consequently cannot possibly live without. I do this funny little thing called "thinking for myself". It’s quite interesting, and I recommend everyone who doesn’t already practice it to give it a try. You just might enjoy it.

You just can’t get away from those damned name brands and icons plastered all over this movie like corporate graffiti. Everywhere you look is a sign telling you to "Enjoy Coke" or "Crunch all you want' or some other stupidity. Well, screw that.

Oh yeah, I forgot, Josie and the Pussycats is a satire. Silly me.

Furthermore, lacking any character development, these Pussycats are as two-dimensional and dull as a barbie doll. Cook, even being hot as hell, is very shallow in her role as Josie, and Dawson is given nothing to do but pout like a baby. Reid gets the most laughs, but you simply get the stereotypical blonde jokes. But, you can’t blame these young actresses for their character development. The script offers terrible one-liners, over-the-top villains, and more embarrassments.

With no intrigue to draw people in, and no compelling humor, characters or situations to keep them there, how can the film succeed? Only via marketing, quite ironic isn’t it. The MTV crowd is being targeted directly, and that network's lead hottie Carson Daly has an amusing cameo. So, even with all its’ admirable intentions, Josie and the Pussycats should have been left in toon town.


Recommended:
No