| Jawbreaker | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Darren Stein |
| Written by | Darren Stein |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Amy Vincent |
| Edited by | Troy T. Takaki |
| Music by | Stephen Endelman |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | TriStar Pictures[1] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3.5 million |
| Box office | $3.1 million[2] |
Jawbreaker is a 1999 Americanblack comedycrime film written and directed byDarren Stein, and starringRose McGowan,Rebecca Gayheart,Julie Benz, andJudy Greer. It follows a group of teenage girls in an exclusiveclique in their high school who attempt to cover up the murder of their best friend in a prank seemingly gone awry.Carol Kane,Pam Grier, andCharlotte Ayanna appear in supporting roles.
Initially conceived by Stein as ahorror film, the final screenplay forJawbreaker instead adopted prominent elements of dark comedy andteen films, with Stein drawing inspiration fromHeathers (1988), as well as elements ofCarrie (1976) and the films ofJohn Hughes. Stein explained his concept for the film as, "The jawbreaker just came to represent the duality of the poppy sweetness of the girls, of high school and of youth, versus the whole idea that this thing could break your jaw."[3]
Jawbreaker was shot in Los Angeles, and premiered at the 1999Sundance Film Festival before it was theatrically released in the United States on February 19, 1999 byTriStar Pictures. While it was a critical and commercial failure at the time of its release, it has come to gain acult following.
The "Flawless Four" are the most popular girls in Reagan High School, consisting of Courtney Shayne, Marcie Fox "Foxy", Julie Freeman, and Elizabeth "Liz" Purr. Of the four, only Liz is genuinely kind-hearted and loved by the entire school. Julie is popular because of her looks and being best friends with Liz, whilequeen bee Courtney and her airhead follower, Marcie, demand respect through terror.
On the morning of Liz's 17th birthday, Courtney, Marcie, and Julie bind her with ropes, gag her with ajawbreaker, and seal her mouth with duct tape. The girls lock Liz in the trunk of a car and drive off, planning to take her to a restaurant for a pancake breakfast. Upon opening the trunk, they discover Liz has choked to death on the jawbreaker.
Julie wants to report the situation to the police, but Courtney instead calls the school posing as Liz's mom, Mrs. Purr, to tell them Liz is ill and cannot attend; the three later go to school. After the school day, Courtney wants Julie and Marcie to go along with a story that Liz was killed by a rapist, which explains being gagged with a jawbreaker. Courtney plots to spread false rumors around school that Liz was actually a rebellious and promiscuous girl. After school, the three go to plant Liz's cold body from the trunk of Courtney's car into Liz's bed.
Because Liz was absent at school, Assistant Principal E. Sherwood sends outcast Fern Mayo to deliver Liz's homework to her after school. Before entering Liz's house, it is apparent that Fern has a huge crush on Liz because she is blushing and practicing what she will say to her. After entering the house, Fern encounters the three girls planting Liz's dead body in her bed and is petrified at the sight.
Having admired Liz to the point of worship, Fern flees in horror. The girls catch her and buy her silence by accepting her into the clique. They wish her popularity, beauty, and to take Liz's place in the Flawless Four. Fern is given a dramatic makeover to a beautiful exchange student named "Vylette."
Overwhelmed by guilt at her part in Liz's death, Julie distances herself from the clique, but is tormented by her former friends and becomes a new target for bullying throughout the school. Her only real friend during this time is her crush, Zach Tartack, the drama lead in The Reagan High School Play. As Vylette's popularity soars, Julie silently watches as Courtney tries covering up the murder and maintaining her popularity. Julie speculates that, after they returned Liz to her house, Courtney seduced a stranger at a bar to have sex with in Liz's bed, making it seem as though he had raped Liz, but she needs to find proof of her theory.
Vylette becomes intoxicated with her new-found popularity, which has eclipsed Courtney's own. Courtney and Marcie get angry at Vylette outshining Courtney, so they post enlarged yearbook photos of Fern Mayo(Vylette pre-makeover) all over the school, revealing Vylette's true identity, leaving her humiliated. Julie sympathizes with Fern and forgives her for falling under Courtney's influence.
While Courtney attends the senior prom withjock Dane Sanders, Julie is at home going through a bag of Liz's belongings that were given to her by Liz's mother. Julie found the voice recordable birthday card, which Courtney was holding after putting Liz's body in her bed. Julie discovers the birthday card recorded Courtney admitting to killing Liz. With the evidence she needed, Julie, Fern, and Zach travel to the prom to expose evil Courtney.
When Dane and Courtney are announced as prom king and queen, Zach secretly broadcasts the card's message over the sound system, revealing the truth behind Liz's death. Dane quickly abandons Courtney while Marcie hides under a table. With her crimes now exposed, Courtney flees as the rest of the angered students pelt her with corsages and call her a murderer while blocking any paths of escape. Julie snaps a picture of her former friend's anguished face to immortalize the occasion.
Writer-directorDarren Stein initially conceived the screenplay forJawbreaker as ahorror film about a prank gone awry.[4] "I went to an all-boys school. I only got to apprehend co-educational teenage culture through movies likeCarrie orHeathers or theJohn Hughes movies," said Stein. "So I was like, “Oh, that’s so cool. Michelle got kidnapped; that would be a really great idea for a horror movie.” What if the girls who kidnapped her are likeHeathers-type girls, you know? This trio of really bitchy girls and she accidentally dies? That’s the horror of it."[4]
Stein brought his script to executives atColumbia TriStar, who agreed to finance the film if he could castNatalie Portman,Kate Winslet, orRose McGowan.[5]The role of Julie originally went toRachael Leigh Cook, who was eventually replaced with Rebecca Gayheart because the producers felt she did not have the right chemistry with the two other actresses.[5] Gayheart had auditioned for the roles of Fern and Marcie before she was selected for Julie.Marilyn Manson, who was then dating McGowan, agreed to appear in a non-speaking cameo role.
On a small budget of $3.5 million,Jawbreaker was filmed at locations in and around the Los Angeles area. 'Reagan High School' was actuallyUniversity High School inWest Los Angeles, with the cafeteria scenes filmed atNotre Dame High School inSherman Oaks.[5] The diner that the girls drive up to at the beginning of the film isJohnie's Broiler inDowney, California, the filming site for many film and television productions. McGowan based her performance on that ofGene Tierney's sociopathic character inLeave Her to Heaven (1945).[5]
The distinctive costumes were designed by Vikki Barrett, who drew on1980s and1950s-era fashion trends blended with fetishistic elements likelycra skirts, all in bright candy colors to evoke the jawbreaker.[5]
Before the film could be released, theMPAA objected to a graphic sex scene between McGowan's and Marilyn Manson's characters, which had to be cut down to give the film anR rating instead of an NC-17.[5] To accompany the release of the film,Imperial Teen's music video for the song "Yoo Hoo" featured McGowan as Courtney Shayne harassing the band members with jawbreakers.[6]
Jawbreaker premiered at on January 30, 1999 at theSundance Film Festival[7] before being released theatrically in the United States on February 19, 1999.
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment releasedJawbreaker onVHS andDVD on June 22, 1999.[8] On April 5, 2011, it was released onBlu-ray for the first time.[9] Sony Pictures Home Entertainment issued a 20th anniversary Blu-ray on November 19, 2019, featuring a newaudio commentary with cast and crew members.[10]
During its opening weekend,Jawbreaker earned $1,603,425 at the United Statesbox office, ranking number 13.[2] It remained in exhibition for 45 weeks, grossing a total of $3,117,085 domestically.[2]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 15% of 65 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 3.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "This throwaway comedy falls victim to its hip sensibilities."[11]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 22 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[12] Audiences surveyed byCinemaScore gaveJawbreaker a grade D+.[13]
A number of film critics noted the film's similarities toHeathers (1988), deeming it derivative as a result.[14][15][16][17] Desson Howe ofThe Washington Post compared the film negatively againstHeathers, concluding: "Unfortunately,Jawbreaker fails to answer the unspoken question it raises: Why sit through a lesser imitation?"[14]Mary Elizabeth Williams ofSalon also commented on the film's parallels toHeathers, writing that it "fancies itself a wicked satire on youth, death and the disposability of image... Jawbreaker may promise a series of gleefully cheap thrills, but in the end all it delivers is a whole lot of bad taste."[15]
Lisa Alspector of theChicago Reader also deemed the film as "derivative," adding: "Lame shock scenes, crucial plot points inserted without setups, and an unsuccessful attempt to exploit the camp value of some actors cast in minor parts are the least of the problems in this black comedy."[18] Paul Tatara, writing forCNN, was unimpressed by the film's exaggerated visual elements and lambasted McGowan's performance in the film, though he wrote favorably of Gayheart's performance, noting: "There's something invitingly earthy and open about her, even as she's caught up in the director's empty, film-school shenanigans."[19]Roger Ebert gave the film one and a half out of four stars, stating, "The movie is a slick production of a lame script ... If anyone in the plot had the slightest intelligence, the story would implode."[20]
James Berardinelli gave the film a more favorable two and a half out of four stars, calling it "palatable, and occasionally even clever", but concluding, "while the film offers more than aHeathers rehash, it never fully develops its own identity".[21]Janet Maslin ofThe New York Times praised the film's style, noting that "Stein plays enthusiastically with every spinning circle and candylike prop he can find. The film's bright look and visual energy are much more liberating than the machinations of its teen queens."[22] TheMilwaukee Journal Sentinel's Nick Carter also gave the film a favorable assessment, praising it as "a low-level cult classic, good for future rewind moments."[23]Kevin Thomas of theLos Angeles Times praised the film's direction, assessing it as a "wickedly hilarious send-up of high school mores" with a "dark view of teenagers."[24]
McGowan was nominated for theMTV Movie Award forBest Villain, but lost toMatt Dillon for his role as Pat HealyThere's Something About Mary.[25]
Despite the negative critical feedback,Jawbreaker found success through home video release and subsequent television airings; it has developed acult following.Vice magazine called the film a "teen classic" when it published a retrospective in 2016 titled "Perverting the Youth of America: The Oral History of Teen ClassicJawbreaker".[5] Similarities have been drawn betweenJawbreaker,Heathers, and the 2004 filmMean Girls.[26]Dazed magazine published a similar feature, crediting the film with inspiring 2004'sMean Girls, and praising the dark tones and performances.[27]
McGowan's Courtney Shayne has become something of a pop culture icon on social media,[28] with TribecaFilm.com declaring of McGowan's performance that "...every single line-reading was a thing of Bette Davis-aspiring beauty, and with any justice, it's a performance that will only grow in esteem over time."
Jawbreaker's costumes have also been celebrated,[29] drawing praise from the likes ofVogue[30] andRookie magazines.[31] The scene where the actresses strut down the hallway inslow-motion toImperial Teen's "Yoo Hoo" has become a signature feature of the film, drawing homage in film and television, most notablyMean Girls, and being parodied in films likeNot Another Teen Movie (2001).[5][32]
In 2014, Judy Greer said in an interview: "I really didn't think it was anything special while we were shooting it, but when I saw the final product, I knew it was really good. I was so proud of it. I thought it looked beautiful. It had just the right amount of sexy, pop culture fun to it. I do think it's quite special."[33]
Connie Francis did not approve the use of her song "Lollipop Lips" in this film, which was used without her permission and was heard during a sex scene.[34][35] Francis filed two lawsuits over the unauthorized use of her song inJawbreaker.[34][35] In 2002, Francis sued her record companyUniversal Music Group (UMG) for allowing several of her songs to be synchronized to "sexually themed" movies.[34]Jawbreaker was specifically mentioned by name in the lawsuit.[34] Francis was unsuccessful and the judge threw the case out of court.[36] The second lawsuit involved Francis suing the producers ofJawbreaker for the unauthorized use of "Lollipop Lips" in the film.[35]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(June 2018) |
In 2010, efforts began to adaptJawbreaker into a musical. On July 29, 2010, aLos Angeles concert presentation occurred starringShoshana Bean,Lesli Margherita andJenna Leigh Green. Original film writer-directorDarren Stein returned to write the book while Jeff Thomson and Jordan Mann wrote original music and lyrics. Jen Bender directed the production with musical direction by Adam Gubman.[37]
On October 13, 2011, aManhattan reading occurred withDiana DeGarmo in the role of Fern Mayo.Gabriel Barre directed this reading.[38]
On September 26 and 27 in 2013, MadBromance Productions hosted a 29-hour reading ofJawbreaker: The Musical in Manhattan. StarringElizabeth Gillies as Courtney Shayne, Gillies was joined byJoJo as Julie, Diana DeGarmo as Fern Mayo, and Libby Servais as Foxy. Gabriel Barre directed once again while Shea Sullivan choreographed, and James Sampliner provided musical direction.[39]
The musical has been described as having a "propulsive pop score that ranges from Lady Gaga-style synth pop to lush melodic ballads, Jawbreaker feels both timeless and today, presenting a mythic high school story that speaks to the teenager in us all."[40]
It was announced in February 2017 that the film would be reimagined as a television series forE! Darren Stein, the writer and director of the original film, was said to write and produce the series,[41][42] but no further developments were made.
