Touchstone Pictures | 2010 | 105 mins. | PG
Kristen Bell made her name playing a high school outcast as the title character on televisions Veronica Mars. From there, in the movie Fanboys, she slipped comfortably into a Princess Leia bikini as a Star Wars obsessive. Given her more recent choices, you have to wonder if she is trying to slowly kill her career. That’s the only explanation for her appearance in such dreck as You Again, the actress’ second comedy to be released under the Touchstone banner this year, and one that might even be more disastrous than When in Rome. While industry veterans (and co-stars) Jamie Lee Curtis, Sigourney Weaver and Betty White can afford these missteps, a young actress like Bell generally isn’t as fortunate.
As a teen, Marni (Bell) was a social pariah, an outcast among high school outcasts. Now, eight long years later, Marni is a different person, a confident and successful PR executive quickly making a name for herself in New York. No longer donning glasses, braces and severe acne, she’s becoming a successful, beautiful woman. However, when Marni returns home for her brother’s wedding and learns his fiancé is none other than Joanna (Odette Yustman), the cheerleader who bullied her through high school. Meanwhile, Marni’s mother Gail (Jamie Lee Curtis) finds herself in a similar situation. Joanna’s wealthy aunt (Sigourney Weaver) tormented Gail over thirty years ago when the two were in high school. Predictably, wacky Grandma Bunny (Betty White) is forced to contend with her own ancient nemesis by the end the end of the story. It should be noted that Bunny’s nemesis is played by the perfect actress, in a brief, unbilled cameo.
No matter, a group of great talents are essentially wasted here. First-time feature film screenwriter Moe Jelline’s work is a muddled mess. As a result, director Andy Flickman seemed to let the actors improvise, with varying degrees of success. Unfortunately for Bell, it reveals her inability to carry a joke; she’s strictly a straight man. Both Curtis and Weaver are offered little to do, Yustman is offered far too much to do, Betty White does what she can with the D-list material, and Kyle Bornheimer bombs as Joanna’s old flame, arriving to spoil the wedding.
Save yourself time and money, by simply avoiding You Again. If you must see it, rent with caution.
The 1080p transfer is fairly solid. Color quality is topnotch – the transfer showcases deep blues and reds while keeping more delicate skin tones in check – and black levels are inky throughout. Detail consistency is a bit more uneven: Some sequences really shine while others are marred by smear. Grain is handled well, offering the movie a film-like look.
The DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track feels like a stereo mix that kicks into surrounds when music cues get thrown into the mix. Dialogue is clear – it gets bogged down with the movie’s rampant loud music – and when surround channels get active, their presence is firm and pleasing.
The Blu-ray package comes with a DVD as well as the high definition disc. There are eleven deleted scenes on the Blu-ray, and it also contains a gag reel you won’t find on the DVD. There is a very short ask-the-cast feature, and a making-of featurette that focuses on following the director as he films the project.
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