Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Jennifer’s Body (2009)

I remember being young and going to the DVD store with my father and younger sister almost every weekend. It was our ritual. Each of us picked out a few movies we would have wanted to watch for the following week. Obviously, I was only allowed to take home films that were age- appropriate, but that never stopped me from venturing into different sections of the store and browsing through more risqué options. I remember coming across Jennifer’s Body (2009). It must have blown a fuse in my yet-to-be fully formed brain, because after that first encounter, I became obsessed with this movie, despite knowing nothing about it. Every time we went to that store after that, I would make sure to pick out my films quickly so that I had time to stare at the cover of Jennifer’s Body before leaving. I coveted it so much that I needed to have a moment with it in which I could pretend that it was mine. I used to fantasize about owning this movie, and what it meant to be able to watch it. It’s silly, but this is just what children do I think. We all have these memories of being weirdly hyper-fixated on something nonsensical. Interestingly, after all that fascination, my compulsion had subsided at some point, and I never thought about it again until recently.

I have just watched the movie for the first time in my life, and I have to say that I would highly recommend Jennifer’s Body. Set in the rural town known as Devil’s Kettle, the film begins with a narrated opening that’s told from the perspective of a Needy Lesnicki (Amanda Seyfried), of whom is recounting these events to explain how she has ended up in the asylum that she currently presides in.  As it goes, Needy and Jennifer (Megan Fox) are an unlikely pair of childhood best friends. Jennifer (our titular main character) is a stereotypical high-school hot girl; she represents the epitome of beauty and popularity within the local high school ecosystem. She is desired by all the boys at school and all the girls at school desire to be her. In contrast to Needy who is a typical “nerd” character, who is quite smart and has a boyfriend; Chip (John Simmons), who genuinely cares for her. Even though the girls describe each other as “besties”, it is very clear from the get-go that their friendship is not as amicable as they believe it is. In fact, to the casual viewer their friendship will be perceived as unhealthy and unsustainable.

Shortly after we are introduced to the girls, Jennifer and Needy go to Melody Lane to watch Low Shoulder, an unknown indie band. Being the more dominant of the two, Jennifer insists on going, whereas Needy does not seem to keen. At the bar, Needy is clearly uneasy, and tells Jennifer that it would be better if they left. However, Jennifer won’t leave until she sees the band. Before the show starts, the lead singer spots Jennifer and starts to flirt with her before discussing her with his bandmates. Shortly after, a fire erupts that leads to the destruction of the bar and the death of multiple people. As the fire grows, the band takes a hold of Jennifer and lead her to their van. Needy passionately objects, but Jennifer ignores what she has to say and goes with them anyways.

Later that night, Jennifer visits Needy at home. She looks bloody, disheveled and proceeds to vomit ectoplasm (I think). She leaves as swiftly as she appeared and is seen to be fine the next morning at school. Needy starts to grow suspicious of her and what had gone on last night after the band had taken her. The film continues to unfold with multiple boys from the school are eaten and disemboweled. Predictably, the local authorities blame it on an animal, but we know it has something to do with Jennifer. As the story progresses, Jennifer and Needy’s relationship begins fray, and slowly we do discover what had happened in the woods with the band that night. All that I can say is that her nature was fundamentally altered, and that her new self had to be destroyed by Needy.

One of this movie’s strength’s is that it is able to successfully combine comedy and horror in order to subvert tropes typical to a both high school dramas and classic horror films. It takes the mean girl trope to its natural extreme and turns that girl into a monster. Funnily enough, she becomes a monster because of a failed virgin sacrifice. I find the twisting of these particular elements to be effective.

The movie can, also, be seen as a legitimate reflection of our society’s compulsive need to reward abusers. Low Shoulder kidnap a young girl and sacrifice her to the devil. After they have done this, they start to become commercially successful and the town, Devil’s Kettle, starts to hold them in high regard. The band is rewarded for their abuse, and the only person who has suffered is Jennifer. She is the victim in this situation, and her demon transformation only exacerbates the situation. Jennifer does lure unsuspecting boys and murder them, but she has to or else she will wither away. She expresses no remorse whatsoever, so she is not innocent. However, there is no alternative in her situation. She does target the young men in her class, but this can be viewed as Jennifer trying to regain a hold of her sexual autonomy.

This movie has plenty of merits that deserve to be recognized, but I do have a huge gripe with Needy and Jennifer’s sexualized relationship. There is no romantic subtext to this relationship, and this movie is not concerned with the issue of teenage self-discovery either. It simply exists as sexual fodder for the audience. It exists to fuel a fantasy, and I don’t tend to appreciate sexual fantasies that center minors and trivialize the friendships that young women share with one another. The relationships that young girls share with one another, especially as teenagers, merit inspection and reflection, but unfortunately, the film did not take that route.

Although I never watched the movie as a pre-teen, it is still very nostalgic to me, because it recaptures late 2000s and early 2010s culture. From the clothes to the music, the whole thing is a time capsule. Not to mention that the Jennifer has plenty of cool fashion moments. I will forever dream of her pink heart hoodie. I did cringe a little at certain points though, especially when Jennifer and the rest of the cast use that weird slang. It comes out as unnatural, and unconvincing. I am not sure if the writers were poking fun at how teens spoke or if they were trying to be genuine with its utilization. Either way, it does not work.

All in all, I do think Jennifer’s Body is worth your time. Its popularity has recently grown again, and it seems like everyone is re-watching it. If you are interested in it, or just wanting to watch something fun, then I would say go for it.

Recommended.