snogging

one of the lazy nights last week, i chanced upon a nickelodeon movie called Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. with virtually nothing to watch (2010 wimbledon done and tired of sappy teleseryes), i stationed my control on hbo. upon seeing that it's a nick movie, i was a bit hesitant to watch the movie in its entirety. but when i saw that it's actually a british film, i thought that this should offer an off-tangent take on usual hollywood teen (something told me that this is a teen movie) flicks. out of curiosity on how the word snogging is actually used in elizabeth II's island, i watched the film while munching on cashew nuts.

as imdb puts it, the movie is about georgia, a 14-year-old girl who keeps a diary about the ups and downs of being a teenager, including the things she learns about kissing. her family has a dog named angus; the boy of her dreams, robbie, is going out with a teenage girl who wears thongs; and georgia's gang is bent on finding that one true perfect snogging (making out in american english).

while i won't really say the movie's a good natured fun coz of the girls' quest for perfect snogging, the movie's quite fun. while i think i'm open-minded enough, i grew up in a society where 14-year old girls are expected to be busy not with making out or being pressured to have an early relationship by their peers, so i can't really imagine my nieces having to deal with these issues at that early age. it's an altogether different setting where georgia and her gang live, so you just have to hold back cringing at the snogging idea. what i like about the movie is its overall appeal. of course, it was mainly aimed at young audience, but as john puccio of dvdtown said, "it's got enough warmth and charisma to attract a wider audience." georgia groome shines in this film, owning the role and essaying it as if she's really an ordinary girl in eastbourne. the witty lines and the usual british flair of playing with words make the movie worth watching. i guess i'm still engrossed on how the original speakers and owners of the language we call english use it and how this differ from what i'm used to hearing, american english. the movie puts forth the perpetual message of teenage angst, dealing with family matters and the quest of almost all normal teenagers - grow up fast to become adults. even seemingly trivial things like how an oblique nose can eternally ruin your chances of actually leading a happy adult life were gleefully presented. nice and enjoyable as a whole, i wish we can come up with such films, a long departure from formulaic pinoy take on teenage love affair.

Robbie: I wrote a song about you.
Georgia Nicolson: Really?
Robbie: Yeah. It's called "Bitch in Uniform".