Review of D.E.B.S. (2003) by Lorena B — 08 Apr 2017

This is a movie that seems like people either love it or hate it. The positive reviews I've seen, seem to either like it in a nostalgic way (they were the right demographic when it came out) or appreciated the lesbian aspect, since not a lot of movies, especially around 2004, had lesbian romances in the forefront.

However, I guess I don't see the appeal. Sometimes movies get away with more when they are promoted as "spoof" or "camp". Perhaps the target audience (teen girls) is part of the problem, but I didn't think the story or characters were strong.

The main character is too boring. She is the straight A all American type, but has no personality. She seems like she could be talked into anything, including the romance she ends up wrapped up in. She wants to go to art school, but it comes across as a lazy attempt to give the character more dimension (falls flat.).

The villain is confusing. As much as people rave about the actress, she still doesn't make up for the story. For someone who is supposed to be this "super villain" ... she shows nothing to suggest that at all. If they didn't tell the audience how bad she was in the beginning, there'd be no way to figure out what makes her the "bad guy".

The movie has no direction as far as feeling. It doesn't know what it wants to be. In one part, we might have girls running around in ridiculous spy gear, but then there's a whole "teen" cutesy romance angle in the next scene. That's what makes it difficult to critique... the outfits and the way they have these girls act could be criticized for lack of imagination & character, but if it's a spy spoof, then it would be ok. The romance has some problematic factors, but nothing more than usual teen movies (especially from that era) & if it's supposed to be taken "light hearted & fun" then... same issue... no clear focus.