“Moxie” Review
Moxie, noun, defined as a force of character, determination, or nerve. The new movie “Moxie” is just that.
A high school girl creates a secret persona to help combat sexism and other injustices at her school. While this is a more serious, dramatic movie, comedy is sprinkled in throughout.
This film is an adaptation of Jennifer Mathieu’s fictional novel “Moxie.” Amy Poehler picked it up and created it into a movie and she directed and starred.
Other notable actors and actresses in this are Patrick Schwarzenegger, Josephine Langford, and Hadley Robinson.
A quiet girl, Vivian, goes to a high school that allows anything slide by the male species. She knows that being an introvert makes it difficult to speak up about the problem, not just in society, but in her own school.
So, what does she do? She creates an alter ego, ‘Moxie.’
Moxie prints out mini newspapers with feminist beliefs and ideas to push women closer to the equality line. Viewers watch how a discreet girl becomes more comfortable with speaking out, while making new friends, dealing with family problems and of course some romance.
Many feminist movies are starting to come out, and it all depends on how one feels about the feminism movement. If you are all for men and women being equal, this is a great watch.
Many argue that women are not equal to men and that something needs to be done, and it does.
It is great to see more movies like this released. Some things said are more controversial than others, however, everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
The values behind the movie are fantastic. The production, the acting and the plot are the opposite of that.
Some viewers are sick of seeing cheesy high school scenes, like a panorama of kids chatting outside the school doors before the bell rings. That is not realistic.
Now, some of the acting was genuine and it might be moving for some. Nonetheless, the acting could have been better.
Lastly, there are many open holes introduced in the movie that were never filled.
For example, what is Vivian going to do about her college essay? Or does Vivian ever reconnect with her dad? Does she try to form a relationship with her mom’s new boyfriend?
Does Claudia ever confront her mom? There are so many questions that need to be answered.
It is uncertain whether or not these questions are imperfections of the book or of the movie - only someone who has both read the book and seen the movie would know.
The point is that these basic fantasies make it seem like that women are not being treated poorly and that they are not equal to men. A glorified movie like this somewhat makes the problem worse.
Overall, "Moxie” was okay. The message behind the film is great and an astonishing conversation starter. It is unfortunate that it was romanticized.
Hopefully, more movies like this will be made in the future.
Rating: 3/5
Emily McGlynn is a freshman majoring in Broadcast Journalism. To contact her, email at esm5378@psu.edu.
