2.5 out of 4 stars
Directed by Ari Sandel
Starring: Mae Whitman, Robbie Amell, Bella Thorne, Bianca A. Santos, Skyler Samuels, Nick Eversman, Allison Janney, Chris Wylde, Ken Jeong, Romany Malco
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual material throughout, some language and teen partying.
101 minutes
Verdict: It's corny and saturated with cliches, but THE DUFF has a terrific lead in Mae Whitman, and enough affability and inspired moments to make it watchable, if unremarkable fare, and teens particularly are likely to appreciate it.
YOU MAY ENJOY THE DUFF IF YOU LIKED:
EASY A (2010)
THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER (2012)
MEAN GIRLS (2004)
10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU (1999)
PITCH PERFECT (2012)
THE DUFF is nothing special. It's far from subtle, usually corny and never feels particularly authentic. It's another teen movie set in a Hollywood high school with social pecking order upheavals and unlikely love stories, but surprisingly, THE DUFF also has an affable quality, the occasional inspired moment and a thoroughly charming star performance. It's not enough to stand out as one of the great high school movies, or even one of the really good ones, but it's worth a look, especially for the teenage audience that it will undoubtedly most resonate with.
Bianca "B." Piper (Mae Whitman, of TV's Parenthood and THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER) is a content high school senior who has her whole outlook on school life pulled out from under her when she learns that she is a "DUFF", a Designated Ugly Fat Friend, the approachable, exploitable one in her group of more attractive, popular friends. In other words, she's the one that guys talk to in order to find out about and then hook up with her "datable" friends. Devastated by this revelation, Bianca decides that the only way to get what she wants, i.e. the guy, the social stature, is to stop being a DUFF, so she enlists her crass next-door neighbor and school jock Wes (Robbie Amell) to advise her on how to shake her label and score with her long-time crush Toby (Nick Eversman).
The feature film debut of director Ari Sandel, THE DUFF blends a very polished portrayal of high school life reminiscent of '90s media with a contemporary zaniness including over-the-top fantasy-based gags. Even by Hollywood standards, it feels artificial, and boy, is it corny. Whitman can pull off looking the part of a high school student, which is more than can be said for some of her co-stars, but she feels too old for the role. Regardless, she makes the role work for her in a way that few other actors could. It's heavily self-deprecating, sometimes heavy-handed and cliched, but her comedic timing is perfect, giving a crucial hand up to a movie that otherwise gets by on charming mediocrity.
The cliches run thick, and the only surprises are that the movie is a watchable as it is, but even that is something. It's unabashedly a teen movie however, and that's what counts, because while most viewers older than 16 will watch it and think little of it, those 16 and under will likely find it a comforting albeit highly stylized kindred spirit. I probably would have back then, anyway.
On a side note however, I would like to point out that in my high school experience, a DUFF was a "Dumb Ugly Fat Friend". It rolls off the tongue more easily.
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