Rating: R
Genre:
Comedy
Theatrical Release: 08/12/2005(USA
Release Date: 12/13/2005
SubTitles: English/French
Dubbed: English
Sound: DD5.1
Run Time: 110 Minutes
Flags: Strong Sexual Content
Distributor/Studio: Columbia TriStar
One of the "popular girls" decides to put her mean streak to work in this
black comedy.
Kimberly Joyce (
Evan Rachel Wood) is an outwardly friendly but inwardly cold and manipulative teenager who attends an exclusive private school in Beverly Hills when she's not making fun of her twentysomething stepmother (
Jaime King) or listening to her business mogul father (
James Woods) rant about the many people he hates.
Kimberly's best friend is
Brittany (
Elisabeth Harnois), who doesn't seem to notice that
Kimberly holds a bit of a grudge over the fact
Brittany is now dating
Troy (
Stark Sands),
Kimberly's former boyfriend. When
Randa (
Adi Schnall), an exchange student from the Middle East, arrives at school,
Kimberly is asked to show her around, and soon she's giving her the inside scoop on the school's social hierarchy.
Kimberly,
Brittany, and
Randa, like most of the girls at school, don't much care for
Mr. Anderson (
Ron Livingston), a teacher who doesn't make much of a secret of his lust for the female student body, though he doesn't do much besides look.
Kimberly decides to do something about
Mr. Anderson by fabricating a story that he has had inappropriate contact with her,
Brittany, and
Randa, and it doesn't take long for the matter to become a local scandal, though it does end up backfiring on
Kimberly in time.
Pretty Persuasion also features supporting performances from
Selma Blair,
Jane Krakowski, and
Michael Hitchcock.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide