High school -- some of our best and worst times took place there. Being popular was everything and most of that was tied to what clique you ran with and who you were dating. “John Tucker Must Die” shows the ups and downs of the teenage lifestyle.
Used to moving around and being invisible, Kate (Brittany Snow) takes to her new school by sticking to a routine. She tries to fit in, but doesn’t make too much of an effort. John Tucker (Jesse Metcalfe) takes a different approach: He is the star of the school. He’s the captain of the basketball team, the most popular guy in school and dates whomever he pleases.
That is, until he dates three girls at once -- head cheerleader Heather (Ashanti), overachiever Carrie (Arielle Kebbel) and vegan activist Beth (Sophia Bush) -- and then breaks up with them. They decide to take things into their own hands and teach him a lesson. Kate gets dragged into the scheme to play the temptress, seductress who will break John’s heart so he stops hurting others.
As the plan goes on, Kate starts having second thoughts, especially when she starts having feelings for her lab partner who also happens to be the Other Tucker (Penn Badgley), Scott. So does she step off or continuing playing teacher?
There hasn’t been a teen movie like “John Tucker Must Die” since “10 Things I Hate About You” and “She’s All That,” both circa 1999. But therein lies a slight problem. “Tucker” borrows from its preceding teen sensation movies a bit.
“10 Things” prominently featured the Cheap Trick song “I Want You to Want Me,” and even had Letters to Cleo singing the song on a rooftop as the ending credits ran. “Tucker” frequently mentions the song, even has the Other Tucker sing a few bars. The Other Tucker and Kate even resemble Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles a bit.
“She’s All That” had an unknown outsider transform into a prom queen for ulterior motives. “Tucker” has the invisible Kate become the most popular girl in school as she steals away John Tucker’s heart.
But “Tucker” takes these reinventions and borrowed themes and moves past them. It seems more of an homage to past teen flicks, and it's hardly noticeable unless you’re up on the teen movie scene.
The one true travesty of “Tucker” is the casting of Jenny McCarthy as Kate's mother Lori. There’s no way that McCarthy has aged enough to play a mother of an almost legal daughter.
The cast of relatively unknowns -- relative since half the cast is known for roles in primetime television dramas -- has fun with their roles, but it's hard to picture what future roles will come for them in the wake of "Tucker." For some, like Snow, whose recurring role on "Nip/Tuck" took her from sweet girl to troubled teen, it's a step backward in the acting world.
It’s the movie that young girls and boys will head off to watch in droves and anyone older will get a few laughs and nothing more. It’s an entertaining, fluff movie with a happy ending. A few people may feel offended by the obvious misogynistic undertones, but it’s a high school movie -- what guy isn’t trying to show how manly he is when puberty hits? It shouldn’t be condoned, but it’s high school. Enough said.
Originally from Des Plaines, Ill., Heather moved to Milwaukee to earn a B.A. in journalism from Marquette University. With a tongue-twisting last name like Leszczewicz, it's best to go into a career where people don't need to say your name often.
However, she's still sticking to some of her Illinoisan ways (she won't reform when it comes to things like pop, water fountain or ATM), though she's grown to enjoy her time in the Brew City.
Although her journalism career is still budding, Heather has had the chance for some once-in-a-lifetime interviews with celebrities like actor Vince Vaughn and actress Charlize Theron, director Cameron Crowe and singers Ben Kweller and Isaac Hanson of '90s brother boy band Hanson.
Heather's a self-proclaimed workaholic but loves her entertainment. She's a real television and movie fanatic, book nerd, music junkie, coffee addict and pop culture aficionado.
