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'All That' and More

Girls Who Wear Glasses: Rachael Leigh Cook and Freddie Prinze Jr. revisit John Hughes territory in 'She's All That.' A wallflower blooms in teen romance By Sarah Quelland SHE'S ALL THAT is one of the better romantic teen comedies released recently, largely because the film takes its cues from John Hughes classics like Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles. Directed by Robert Iscove, the film stars Rachael Leigh Cook as Laney Boggs, a reclusive high school student who spends most of her time isolated in her basement painting. When Zack Siler (Freddie Prinze Jr.), the most powerful senior in school, gets dumped by his girlfriend (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) for an MTV The Real World celebrity (Matthew Lillard, exuding all the distasteful obnoxiousness of the notorious Puck) he bets his friend (Paul Walker) that he can turn any girl into a prom queen. This film does well not to exploit its premise and it doesn't judge its characters unfairly by their social status. Each character presented seems based in a believable high school reality. Nicely balancing humor and heart, this film pays homage to classic '80s teen films with its beach party scenes, lavish prom activities, hot cars and even a choreographed dance number led by Usher Raymond--but in a '90s twist, in this case, the geek gets the guy. She's All That (PG-13, 97 min.), directed by Robert Iscove, written by R. Lee Fleming, Jr., photographed by Francis Kenny and starring Freddie Prinze Jr., Rachael Leigh Cook, Matthew Lillard and Kevin Pollak. [ San Jose | Metroactive Central | Archives ]