Mandy Moore is back. After a forgetful performance in “A Walk to Remember,” her improved acting seems to be the only redeeming factor in her second starring role, the teen-angst-filled “How to Deal.”
Picture this scenario: every terrible thing that happens at every high school – a tragic and unexpected death, a drunken car crash, a friend who gets pregnant, crazy parents, a wayward sibling and a first love – all happening to the same person.
Sounds like a teen-movie plot to me.
Yes, all of those cliche moments occur within the 101 minutes of “How to Deal,” laced together as a fast-paced look into the life of Moore’s character, Halley Martin.
Halley, a victim of her parent’s recent divorce, finds her mother in agony over her immature, radio broadcaster father’s affair with his station’s weathergirl.
The high school junior also discovers her materialistic, illegally blonde older sister plans to marry the dorky, Southern gentleman of a boyfriend Halley dislikes. To make matters worse on a patriarchal front, mere days after his divorce becomes final, Halley’s father announces he will marry his blonde-bimbo adulteress on the air.
As the real plot begins, Halley’s best friend, the auburn-haired Scarlett Smith falls “in love” with a handsome young soccer player who we later find impregnates her.
Halley is your typical captain of the bitter squad, shunning the idea of love on all fronts, pointing to her parents’ failed marriage and her sister’s rocky engagement as proof.
But in classic ironic fashion, Halley soon falls for Macon Forrester (Trent Ford), an Ashton Kutcher lookalike who simply reads the lines and does not actually do any acting.
However, Forrester’s obsession with the Luke Skywalker-inspired “Jedi mind trick,” is a nice diversion from his otherwise terrible persona.
Forrester’s new influence leads Halley to a different stage of her life, causing her to sneak out and even be caught with her shirt off as her mother walks in on the two “exploring.”
Pretty typical, huh?
Set in an ever-changing scene of your generic American mid-sized town, “How to Deal’s” fast pace yet sappy atmosphere makes one wonder if you are in the melodramatic setting of Dawson’s Creek or a self-absorbed scene from “90210.”
Surprisingly enough, Moore gets a little risque on this trip to the big screen, showing just enough skin to excite your seventh grade kid brother.
Moore looks sexy and different with jet-black hair, but her acting has improved dramatically since we last saw her, and she carries the flick all the way to the bank with ease.
The only comedic moment in this sappy melodrama is when Halley’s marijuana-addicted grandmother comes to visit, employing such classic lines as “I’ve got the munchies.” Grandma has the amazing power to turn from born-again stoner to wise old woman, providing Halley with an unbiased view of her teenage life.
“How to Deal,” is your classic teenage love flick, the plot is clichÄ, the characters are beautiful and there’s marijuana.
Its cheesiness makes one wonder if “10 Things I Hate About You,” and “She’s All That,” were this cheesy to an older generation when they hit the big screen during my early teens.
I think not. After all, “She’s All That,” had a great, scripted dance scene to Fat Boy Slim’s “Funk Soul Brother” (remember that bit?).
Overall, any reviewer could argue “How to Deal” is not a good movie. As a 19-year-old college student though, I must concede that it might not be a bad movie either.