Review: Valley Girl

PLOT: This is the story of a nice Valley Girl who falls in love with a punk from Hollywood. Except this time, they sing and dance their way through all the romance. This ain’t your parents VALLEY GIRL.

REVIEW: In 1983, director Martha Coolidge presented audiences with a charmingly sweet and funny flick called VALLEY GIRL. While it may have had a huge heart and a hot leading couple courtesy of Deborah Foreman and Nicolas Cage, it was also an R-rated comedy with sex, drugs and rock and roll. Times have changed. Not surprisingly, all things old are new again and today, Orion Classics brings us a brand new take on this Romeo and Juliet inspired love story. However, this time the music is a little less rock and roll and the PG-13 rating keeps it totally clean. Oh yeah, it’s also like, a musical. I mean, like, fer sher a musical.

Jessica Rothe (HAPPY DEATH DAY) is Julie. She’s a cool teenager who has cool friends and she resides in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. Her perfect teen life is thrown into a bit of a frenzy when she meets Randy (Josh Whitehouse). You see, Randy likes his music a little louder. He has a “punk rock” band and he resides on the other side of the hill, in Hollywood. It’s the early Eighties, and the difference between these two locations is a big deal fer sher. Yet Julie and Randy just like, you know, connect, even if their friends and relations think they are making a massive mistake. Will these two crazy kids sing their way to happiness? If you’re willing to take a trip to the Valley, you’ll find out that love is in the air and music fills the ears.

VALLEY GIRL opens with a young girl depressed about her boyfriend being a jerk. Chloe Bennet is the girl, and Alicia Silverstone is her mom, Julie. The mother and daughter discussion leads to a trip down memory lane, and Julie tells her daughter about her wild and crazy romance with a punk rocker – the irony is that the lovely Ms. Silverstone would have only been about seven years old in 1983 when most of the film occurs. The most honest description of this modern take happens during the early scenes after mom tells her daughter about dancing and singing “We’ve Got the Beat” (originally by The Go-Go’s) at the mall. Her daughter questions her about the musical element, and older Julie claims that that’s how she remembers it. Perhaps if you haven’t seen the original film in a bit, you may recall it being a bit more safe than it actually was. Keep in mind, VALLEY GIRL (1983) had more in common with something like THE LAST AMERICAN VIRGIN and FAST TIMES AT RIDGMONT HIGH than the more modern teen flicks.

As a fan of the original film, it’s a bit of a shock to see this story as a fun and fluffy musical – honestly not an insult. This version, directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg, is a lighthearted romance with a ton of break out into song moments. The tunes are familiar if you were around in the Eighties, or just happen to dig the music from that decade. Frankly, it wasn’t quite working for this viewer for the first ten minutes or so. However, once the character introductions are over and we get to the core of this story, Julie and Randy, things begin to feel a bit more engaging While they remove a couple of the more racy sub-plots from the first film, there’s enough here to put a smile on the face of anybody who has a love for The Plimsouls, Modern English and Men at Work.

Much like the original film, it’s the two leads that give the film its heart. The first time that Jessica Rothe stunned me was in HAPPY DEATH DAY. And she’s just as delightful here. As well, Josh Whitehouse happens to be a pretty decent leading man. While the entire punks versus Valley folk didn’t quite work, the two have terrific chemistry and can carry a tune. In fact, a few of the other cast members stand out vocally speaking, especially Ashleigh Murray and Mae Whitman. Credit should be given to Judy Greer and Rob Huebel as Julie’s parents, as well as Peyton List as Randy’s bandmate. It’s just a shame the “bad guys” are so boring and one-note. Don’t expect a great performance from YouTuber Logan Paul. While he’s not necessarily terrible, he’s just bland and plays a dull and stereotypical version of the a-hole character. Michael Bowen was a much more enjoyable jerk in the 1983 version.

If you don’t mind a frenzied and fun poppy musical and can put up with a PG-13 version of an R-rated cult classic, there’s much here to enjoy. Aside from the solid casting of both Rothe and Whitehouse, there are a couple of satisfying cameos that will hit all the right notes with fans of the first. The music grew on me as the story progressed – unfortunatley some of the earlier numbers were a bit reminiscent of those silly live musicals they’ve been showing on network television. Finally, this modern take on VALLEY GIRL really began to work when Randy and Julie started their little adventure. Aside from the songs, the story and dialogue is very similar to the 1983 film, but that’s when the enjoyment set in. This modern take ultimately feels like an unabashedly charm filled love letter to the first. It’s a fun and energetic reminder of the crazy Eighties, and might be just the thing for those looking for sheer, unadulterated bitchin' musical entertainment. I mean, like, yeah, it’s certainly not grody to the max like it could’ve been.