Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
Directed by Sara Sugarman
By Scott MacDonald

Teenage girls in movies are scary these days. It’s not that they’re too mature or too sexually precocious (that’s a given now), it’s that they’re such freakish go-getters.

In today’s teen movies, girls are loath to stand around mooning over boys; now it’s all about "empowerment," which would be fine except that the empowerment never seems to go any further than winning the big cheerleading contest or scoring a record deal or something. It’s the Britney-isation of young America, where "girl-power" means turning yourself into a product to be marketed. And here’s exhibit A: Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen.

Lindsay Lohan (Freaky Friday) stars as an aspiring young actress named Lola who moves to a new school and finds she’s got competition for top dog in the drama department. The reigning queen, Carla (Megan Fox), is the typical rich bitch, and the two rivals duke it out not only for the lead in the school play but also for status as most popular girl around. The movie errs, however, in assuming we’ll care about the outcome. What’s disturbing here is that with a few small exceptions, Lohan’s good-girl heroine is just as combative and spoiled as the villain, yet we’re supposed to find her adorable.

As for Lohan herself, she’s a hard-working performer, but it’s difficult to summon much enthusiasm for her. Like her character, she’s all too clearly aiming for the brass ring of superstardom and her smooth, confident delivery is more unnerving than charming. Still, I’d take her over Hilary Duff any day. (Disney/Buena Vista)
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