Clueless Film Analysis

Clueless was an iconic release, written and directed by Amy Heckerling that dramatized the life and struggles of Cher Horowitz; your typical, American rich girl. Cher comes from an wealthy home, her story is set in Beverly Hills, CA where she lives and attends high school. Her mother passed away early in her life and so she lives with her father who is a lawyer. Cher is privileged by her affluence and social status, which also makes her popular amongst her peers. Her main concerns are mostly superficial and egocentric, yet there is a gradual shift in her mindset from start to finish. By retelling Jane Austen’s Emma as the experience of a sheltered, popular teen living in this posh allows viewers to better grasp the humor and irony embedded in the narrative; And by embodying the egotistic
As well as how race/personality/wealth influenced one’s high school experience in America circa 1990. Though its first appearance was as early as the 1930s, around the time of the Great Depression. The genre of teen films has been a part of American cinematic works since the 1980s according to the Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film. Clueless being among many teen movies released in the 1980s-1999, to name a few that came before its time Breakfast Club (1985) and Pretty in Pink (1986) as listed by the Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film. All these were produced with the goal of showcasing contemporaneous works that convey to the viewers the adolescent experience, whether you were one or not. Much like in Emma, Clueless is a story that highlights the stratification and roles that social class and gender play into an individual’s standing. The protagonist is a wealthy, young, American