She's All That (1999) **

Directed by Robert Iscove. With Freddie Prinze Jr, Rachael Leigh Cook and Anna Paquin. The most popular guy in school, Zach (Prinze), dumped by his bitchy girlfriend, bets that he can turn an ugly-duckling wallflower Laney (Cook) into a prom queen. It's a perfect misogynist fantasy: a woman as a passive sex object to be dominated and guided by a man, who ultimately transforms her into a glithering trophy. Quite sophisticated and very hip, but guaranteed to boil the blood of any self-respecting feminist. The prom dance sequence, superbly choreographed and edited, is a genuine showstopper. But the misogyny is palpable. Consider the following: Zach tells Laney that he's smarter than her, when Zach is in her world, he triumphs, but Laney fails at everything: volleyball, party, prom queen competition, all women hate each other in this film, the only scene with Laney fighting against a man is off-screen, Zach's sister actively helps him in his romantic conquests. Constrasts that with the fact that Laney is completely surrounded by men (her father, her brother, her fat friend from school, even actors on stage), with everybody encouraging her to give in to Zach; even her father actively helps Zach seduce his own daughter. Even Laney's female teacher suggests her entire success is only due to Zach. And to top it all, in the final scene, Laney smiles looking at Zach's penis, the instrument of his domination over her.