Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Jennifer's Body is movie about a girl who gets sacrificed to the devil by an indie rock band who wants to make it big, but because she is not a virgin, instead of dying she comes back as a daemon and begins feasting on the boys in her high school. The main character of this movie is Jennifer's best friend, Needy (Anita), who is the complete opposite of Jennifer. Jennifer is the stereotypical popular girl in high school. She's a cheerleader, she's hot/ borderline slutty, and has slept with several of the popular boys. Needy on the other hand is a stereotypical nerd, complete with glasses and a less than conscious fashion sense. She also has a cute boyfriend who is completely devoted to her. The story is told from the perspective of the friend Needy as she watches Jennifer change.

The story was a decent one... but was suspiciously like the film Ginger Snaps, a werewolf horror with the exact same plot. The difference was that ginger snaps was done better, the plot ran a bit smoother and the character relationships were done a bit better as well. The character of Jennifer was portrayed in regards to her sexuality most of the time. Even before she was turned into a daemon she talks casually about sleeping with various boys in their high school and uses her body to get what she wants. After she gets changed into a soul-sucking monster, we don't really see her change, just emphasize what was already there. In Ginger Snaps however, Ginger morphs from a social outcast into an animal, riding on her instincts. of course, if I'd never seen Ginger Snaps I wouldn't be overly critical of Jennifer, but I have and I prefer the growth displayed by Ginger to the cardboard sexpot Jennifer represents. But I would like to say that at the end of the movie when Needy 'broke up' with Jennifer, I felt that Jennifer was really struggling with the fact that she was no longer human and no longer had control over her actions, that was the only time I was interested in Jennifer's character on an intellectual level. The character Needy's struggle was more evident as she was the story teller and the audience had to witness the change through her eyes. We get to see how she changes because of her relationship to Jennifer and having to deal with what happened. But again.... Brigette from Ginger Snaps did it better. She was less a victim and more a proactive... fighter of the paranormal. Needy on the other hand was... well, needy. She obeyed Jennifer before the change, and after the change sniffles and goes emo for a bit. She researching possible explanations for Jennifer's behaviour and tries to fight her at the end but I didn't really buy it. Needy was a much more dynamic character than Jennifer was though. and her boyfriend was sweet.

Overall I'd say it was a decent movie. I thought that the actors did a good job of playing out their roles and I don't have any issues with the plot despite a few inconsistencies. I would watch it again and would probably enjoy it, but it's not the best movie in the genre, and is not even an original in the genre. I like the genre though, so it's ok. For people who haven't seen Ginger Snaps though... I recommend that you see it, as it is what this wanted to be.