Being 21-years-old, I am in the exact age group to know that Freddie Prinze, Jr., is this generation's Corey Haim or Corey Feldman. He's the teen heartthrob that will probably disappear from the face of the Earth once his string of romantic teen comedies come to an end (which, by looking at his recent films' box-office totals seems to be any day now unless "Scooby Doo" can save him). Similarly, Jennifer Love Hewitt is like Molly Ringwald, an actress who surprisingly makes her reemergence into Hollywood in the film that makes fun off all teen movies the way "Scary Movie" made fun of horror films, "Not Another Teen Movie."
"Not Another Teen Movie" takes the basic story structure of the romantic teen comedy "She's All That" and uses every chance it can to branch off and poke fun of the very films that gave Kirsten Dunst, Shannon Elizabeth and Selma Blair their careers. Everything from "Never Been Kissed," "Cruel Intentions," "Bring It On," "Can't Hardly Wait," "Varsity Blues," "American Pie" and-- of course-- "She's All That" is made fun of in the film, while paying omage to the John Hughes teen films of the '80s (you know, the ones that were good like "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Pretty in Pink" and "Sixteen Candles").
Whether you know the teen films of today or yesterday, the jokes in "Not Another Teen Movie" are pretty much geared towards a generic audience. In other words, so long as you know the gist of these films and saw their trailers, you will get the jokes. Sure you won't laugh as hard as the girl who knows that Lacey Chabert from "Party of Five" fame is playing Amanda Becker, former "Party of Five" co-star Jennifer Love Hewitt's character in "Can't Hardly Wait," but the stereotypes "Not Another Teen Movie" focuses on making fun of come across loud in clear in the films' commercials its spoofing (For example, continuously calling the "ugly" girl the girl who "has a ponytail, wears glasses and has overalls with paint on them!").
While the cast is composed of pretty much no-namers-- model-turned-actress Jaime Pressly ("Joe Dirt," "Tomcats") is basically the biggest star people may actually recognize-- it should be interesting to see where they all will be in a year or two. For Chyler Leigh, the lead actress who spoofs Rachael Leigh Cook's role in "She's All That," has a role on the new Fox sitcom "That '80s Show" and Eric Jungmann, the guy who plays her best friend in the movie, will next be seen in George Clooney's directorial debut, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind."
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