Whip It

Be your own hero! Go Babe Ruthless! Whip It is directed by Drew Barrymore and adapted for the screen by Shauna Cross from her own novel, Derby Girl. Barrymore also co-stars alongside Ellen Page, Alia Shawkat, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig, Juliette Lewis, Jimmy Fallon, Daniel Stern and Landon Pigg. Bliss Cavendar (Page) is a bored teenage girl stuck in a rut in Bodeen, Texas. Her life consists of working at the "Oink Joint" restaurant and entering beauty contests to please her mother (Harden). Along with her friend Pash (Shawkat), she dreams of escaping to a better life. Then one day during a trip out to Austin, the girls get wind of Roller Derby, a sport for girls played on roller-skates. Intrigued they go and take in a match and Bliss is hooked straight away, it's tough, competitive and even edgy. Telling a lie about her age, Bliss decides to try out for the "Hurl Scouts" and gets a place on the team as "Babe Ruthless". Thanks to her ability the "Scouts" start to turn around their season, however, with a new boyfriend on the scene and her parents unaware of her secret life, Bliss' new found happiness could come crashing down around her. In spite of some favourable critical assessments, Drew Barrymore's directing debut barely made a dent at the box office. Just about making its money back on World gross, the figures would lend you to believe that the film simply isn't very good. Plot synopsis doesn't suggest anything out of the ordinary - yet another coming-of-age teenager picture, and one that is sports based, and even more formulaic than that, the sports team at the centre of proceedings is an underdog too! Throw into the equation that it's a female based movie and it's not really a film crying out for all demographics - or is it? Barrymore herself was very disappointed with the marketing for her movie, the general feeling being that it was sold as a girls sports love story type picture. She's absolutely right, it was marketed badly, and it barely had a run on the big screen in most countries. Which is a shame because Whip It is a smashing film, a picture that's vibrant, funny and not without dramatic worth - and yes! it's accessible for any age, sex or gender persuasion. Cross' script is fresh and free of filler and the cast all turn in jolly good shows, ranging from the excellent (Page/Gay Harden) to the engaging (Shawkat/Lewis/Wiig) and the funny (Stern/Fallon). OK, so it's not perfect, Barrymore is no Tony Scott when it comes to shooting action (some of the actual derby matches are confusing and not flowing), and maybe a bit more back story flesh for the other "Hurl Scouts" wouldn't have gone amiss? But these are minor itches at the beginning of what is hoped to be a long career in directing for Madame Barrymore. With names like Jabba the Slut, Smashley Simpson and Iron Maven, it's evidently a film full of fun vim and vigour. But as great as that is (girls in skirts on skates belting each other around a track), the coming-of-age drama at its core should not be understated either. 8/10

_**Coming of age with the roller derby girls**_ Released in 2009, "Whip It" was Drew Barrymore's first and (so far) only full-length film in the director's chair. Drew also co-stars, but her character is decidedly peripheral. The story revolves around 17 year-old Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page), her parents (Daniel Stern & Marcia Gay Harden) and her best friend, Pash (Alia Shawkat). Bliss is involved in the world of beauty pageants due to her mother's obsession, but becomes fascinated by a group of roller derby girls while visiting nearby Austin, TX. She decides to try-out for the the Hurl Scouts. "Whip It" starts out slow and only mildly interesting but it ultimately won me over. This is basically a coming-of-age drama using the roller derby as a backdrop and stage. Since Ellen Page takes center focus "Whip It" should appeal to fans of Page. I'm not a fan; I can take her or leave her. Thankfully, there's enough good here to draw in other folks. I especially like the roller derby girls and their camaraderie & competition. The girls include Juliette Lewis, Kristen Wiig, Eve, Zoe Bell, Ari Graynor, Eli Bleiler and Sydney Bennett. What I love about these women is that they have womanly curves and aren't walking sticks with big breasts. Take, for instance, the so-called Manson Sisters, played by Kristen Adolfi & Rachel Piplica; both are just gorgeous throughout the film and worth the price of admission -- stunning examples of womanhood. There's a subplot about Bliss falling for a guy in a rock band (Landon Pigg) and there are other characters, like the coach, the derby announcer and the Hispanic manager of the restaurant Bliss & Pash work at (Andrew Wilson, Jimmy Fallon and Carlo Alban respectively), but this is mainly about Bliss, her family, Pash and the derby team. FINAL SAY: The drama in this coming-of-age flick is a mixed bag; I found the love story kind of tedious but enjoyed Pash and the family dynamics of the Cavendar household. The best part, of course, is the derby action and the ravishing derby babes in all their glory. The film runs 111 minutes and was mostly filmed in Michigan (Detroit, Saline, Ypsilanti, Michigan, Birch Run and Hamtramck) with some shots of Austin, TX. GRADE: B-/B

Great watch, would watch again, and can recommend. I've actually been to some of the Austin locations and seen that roller rink: it's a pretty cool place with a powerful vibe to the room. I've really had enough of pagentry, it just feels very boring, so maybe it was the perfect way to start this movie. It's a very cliche "I don't want your life" beginning, but grounding the establishing act in that foundation really takes us on a journey of growth in this "finding of self" (possibly a "coming of age", but no really) story. When something grabs our interests, even on a weird flyer, or a pair of skates, we should pay attention, and the smaller the thing is that calls out to you, the more you should pay attention. Roller derby is a bad ass little sport, and maybe "no one gets famous" or "successful" from it, but it looks fun and I'm sure the people that do it love it. While the roller derby aspect is great, and the romantic plot lines are good, and the best friend angle is really good (just realizing how multi-threaded this movie actually is), it is the self discovery, the character growth of Bliss (thanks to Ellen Page's powerful delivery) of being a person that we can barely hear, to being someone how is able to yell for what she wants, delivery a hit, and be a literal poster child. The movie honestly makes me envious: while I'd like to be an attractive tough girl, sure, to find a passion while you still have time to enough to enjoy it, to find people to guide and support that passion, and then compete and find adversity from people twice your age is an amazing thing all to itself. I'll never be a "roller derby girl", but I know I can always come live vicariously through this movie.