But I’m a Cheerleader

4/5 stars

I looked into this movie, because a friend from New Mexico had a picture of it in his weblog. Now, some of the movies he likes are funny, and some are just plain scary. Fortunately, this one was funny. The basic premise is that Megan, a cheerleader, is sent to a lesbian “rehab.” Rehab is very pink (for the girls) and very blue (for the boys), and give everyone an opportunity to rediscover their “proper” gender roles. The girls bone up on housekeeping and primping, while the boys attempt to do manly things like chopping wood and tossing around a football. Quite funny.

Several of the actors were vaguely familiar, which bugged me throughout the film. The lead actress, Natasha Lyonne, was in Slums of Beverly Hills. One of the lesbians, Melanie Lynskey, had played a stepsister in Ever After. Another of the lesbians, Clea DuVall, had been in Girl, Interrupted and had made a couple guest appearances on ER. For some reason, I recognized Dante Basco immediately as playing the new “Pan” in Hook. Weird.