Amy Heckerling makes sharp, affectionate comedy from the things young people take seriously: clothes, language and their place among friends. We value her willingness to let a sheltered teenager be foolish without demanding that we dislike her.
Fi1m perspective
In Clueless (1995), Cher takes clothes and popularity as seriously as other people take their livelihoods. Amy Heckerling gives those worries enough attention for us to understand them before showing how little Cher understands herself. That is what we value in her direction: she can find a teenager ridiculous and still take an interest in her. We recommend the film for that kindness as much as for the jokes.
Her feature debut, Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), written by Cameron Crowe, established her in teen comedy and helped launch its young actors. It also narrowed the work she was offered, as she became labelled a director of youth material. With Look Who’s Talking (1989), which she wrote and directed, she moved into family comedy. The return to high school in Clueless brought Jane Austen’s Emma to Beverly Hills, where clothes and a restricted social circle make status clear without lengthy explanations.
Heckerling’s ear matters as much as her choice of setting. In Clueless, she writes a shared slang without making the teenagers sound interchangeable, and Alicia Silverstone speaks it with enough conviction to keep the cleverness from becoming irritating. We laughed at Cher’s certainty because Silverstone makes her limited understanding seem perfectly sufficient to Cher. Stacey Dash’s composed Dionne and Brittany Murphy’s eager Tai give Silverstone different temperaments to play against, so the friendships never feel like an excuse to give everyone the same jokes.
The weakness is that the story cannot always keep these people occupied. Clueless loses momentum, and affection does not stop us noticing how little is happening. Heckerling still keeps the comedy enjoyable by declining to make Cher a target. She knows how sheltered this girl is, but does not insist that she must be humiliated for our benefit.
Loser (2000) moved into college-age relationships, while Vamps (2012) used a vampire premise to explore female friendship and ageing. Heckerling’s post-Clueless features received a cooler critical response, but those subjects suggest more curiosity than the teen-comedy label allows. We would welcome another film built around her ear for people who are confident they know how life works. Start with Clueless, preferably with someone who remembers taking popularity that seriously.
Biography
Amy Heckerling is an American film director, writer and producer. She was born on 7 May 1954 in The Bronx, New York, and studied at New York University and the American Film Institute Conservatory.
Heckerling made her feature debut with Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982). She went on to direct and write Look Who's Talking (1989) and its sequel, and achieved wider recognition with Clueless (1995), which she also wrote. Her other credits include National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985), Loser (2000) and I Could Never Be Your Woman (2007), as well as episodes of The Office (2005) and Gossip Girl (2007).
