The Duff
Director: Ari Sandel
Starring: Mae Whitman, Bella Thorne, Robbie Amell
101 mins; Class 12;
KRS Releasing Ltd
While adult comedies continue to be as uninspiring as the plethora of lame ones we have been subjected to of late, we can truly enjoy this clever, funny and heart-warming teen romcom driven by a spunky, smart, and on-the-nose performance by Mae Whitman.
Whitman stars as Bianca Piper, a bright, fun-loving and successful high school student whose best friends include the popular, glamorous, and outgoing Casey (Bianca Santos) and Jess (Skyler Samuels).
When her obnoxious long-time neighbour and frenemy Wes (Robbie Amell) casually observes to Bianca that she is the DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) of the group, she is horrified… and, determined to set things straight, enlists his help to change her image.
The always ruthless and often traumatic social hierarchy that exists in high schools is an issue which generation after generation never seems to change.
This is attested by Bianca’s voiceover as she introduces herself, high school life and the labels students have to live with.
“Let’s talk about labels,” she says. “The classics still exist: Jock, Geek, Rocker. Mean Girl…” This is of course a throwback of course to the iconic The Breakfast Club, which 30 long years ago featured a group of schoolkids saddled with their own labels (the Athlete, the Criminal, the Brain, the Princess and of course the Basket Case… oh the nostalgia).
The Duff teaches us that nothing has changed: if anything the advance of social media has made life a threat just as much as an opportunity for the thousands of students for whom high school is a constant challenge and the sobering subject of bullying it is tackled with sensitive honesty and also dollops of heart and humour.
You don’t need a degree in rocket science to know how this is going to end or what the film’s message is – the 21st century equivalent of ‘to thine own self be true’ – yet what makes this a cut above any singular comedy of late is its ability to get to that point with humour and unexpected character depth, the protagonists being so much more than their designated roles of duff or jock.
Whitman is a revelation
Whitman is a revelation, playing Bianca as a young woman trying to improve herself on her own terms not those dictated by others.
It is a performance that is articulate, self-deprecating and unaffected, making the character totally relatable to anyone who has ever felt less attractive, popular, clever or funny, than their friends.
Amell’s Wesley makes the most of his Tom Cruise looks and charm.
Y et, even he makes more of his character than a mere stereotype, displaying equal parts genuine affection for Bianca and while being painfully blunt to her about her shortcomings.
Unexpected wisdom comes from Ken Jeong as Bianca’s favourite high school teacher, a far cry from the annoying man-child characters he often plays.
Allison Janney is her usual delightful self as Bianca’s self-help obsessed mother with a penchant for talking in ‘self-improvement sound bites’.
The film offers as many laugh-out-loud moments as warm and fuzzy ones the script by Josh A. Cagan effortlessly juggling the comedy with its more serious undertones without every making it preachy.
What is interesting is that the film is based on the novel of the same name by Kody Keplinger, who was 17 when she wrote it which explains the accurate depictions of the characters and the situation at hand.