“Clueless” Reveals the Innocence of Teens Hidden Behind a Façade of Designer Clothes and Cell Phones

Alicia Silverstone in a scene from Clueless

By Christopher Cole

1995’s Clueless is definitely a comedy of manners if there ever was one where what you say and how you act makes or breaks you. Although director Amy Heckerling (Fast Times at Ridgemont High) loosely based Clueless on Jane Austen’s 1815 novel, Emma about a spoiled rich girl who is naively snobbish, but watching Alicia Silverstone star as the film’s heroine, Audrey Hepburn’s portrayal of Breakfast at Tiffany’s heroine Holly Golightly comes to mind because both heroines are “real phonies” who have to realize the errors of their superficial ways in order to find true happiness.

I didn’t watch Clueless until 1996, a year after its release. At this time, I was a fifth grader who enjoyed watching the MTV Video Music Awards on a Thursday night and then talking about it with my classmates the day after at school. I was a pop culture junkie at 10 years old. It was also in fifth grade when I rented Clueless accompanied by pizza and I was enraptured by Clueless. The crayon box colors of the film and the instantly catchy vernacular was all I needed to be rendered “clueless.”

Clueless is the story of a high school teen queen named Cher Horowitz who has sun-kissed hair and a sun-kissed view of life. The type of sun doing the kissing is of the California variety in Beverly Hills: the land of rich teenagers who carry themselves with an air of self-importance. The film first introduces Cher as a bubbly clotheshorse who good-naturedly manipulates her way through life. She shops religiously and plays the role of matchmaker for fun. The second act is when her matchmaking stops working and starts backfiring on her. This is when Cher’s way-of-life starts to crack. Quickly, all the cards of her House of Cher start to collapse leaving Cher without her happy-go-lucky persona. Her wide-eyed look of naiveté transforms into a squinting, frowning on-the-verge of tears look. The third act is when Cher decides to stop letting her image-ruled life be empty and start realizing that in order to fill up her life, she has to grow up and not let her life be ruled by society’s haves and have-nots. Clueless is a teen comedy and naturally it appeals to teens (and apparently 10-year-old boys), but unlike its angsty teen movie counterparts, Clueless is a film that a family could watch together, albeit some teen drug use and sexual references, the drug use and occasional sexual references seem to only exist in Clueless because it’s requisite for a teen film. Clueless is rated PG-13, so it can’t be that racy.

The teens of Clueless aren’t wincingly mean the way most teens are depicted in films, which is some sugar coating to match the candy colors of the film. Even when insults are distributed, they’re only meant for comedic value and aren’t taken too personally by any of the characters. Clueless follows in the footsteps of cult classic teen comedies, Heathers (1989 which spawned countless imitators) and Valley Girl (1983 which Clueless seems the most similar in terms of subject, tone, dialogue and visuals) by having teens speak their own language. The famous phrase from Clueless, “As if!” is still used today—that’s a testament to the film’s impact.

Clueless is by no means a dramatic film full of plot twists or particularly interesting characters, but it’s a fun film that works as a humorous slice of Southern California life. Of course, there is a plot, but it’s a plot that is as “carefree” as the SoCal (Southern California) lifestyle. The plot consists of Cher’s coming-of-age that unfolds in a series of scenes that lampoon the 1990s rich kid: skaters, fashionistas and playas, with the bottom-line being that all these rich kids are poseurs who all are just kids underneath their facades. Like any adolescent with money, these Beverly Hills teens try their hardest to act like adults.

One of the interesting things about Clueless is that it shows Cher as more of an observer and not a do’er. Her former stepbrother Josh (Paul Rudd) was correct when he told Cher that the only direction she has in life is “towards the mall.” Cher claims she wants to be “5’10 like [supermodel] Cindy Crawford,” but she doesn’t do anything to move towards becoming a model. Cher lives in the land of models and actresses, which is Los Angeles. To be fair, Cher is just like most teens because despite her confident exterior and designer clothes, she is still searching for an identity. Cher’s life is essentially empty, so she searches for things to fill her life and keep her occupied. The mistaking of image for identity is one of the main concerns of Clueless, which is how Cher identifies herself as a pretty and stylish person, but she doesn’t have an identity besides that. Her self-image and identity is limited. There are constant examples of Cher’s obsession with the way she looks or the face she presents to the world in Clueless. One instance is when first arriving at a party, Cher tells her new creation Tai (Brittany Murphy) that in order to attract the guy she wants she should act really “popular” like she knows everybody. Another instance is when preparing for her driver’s test Cher is upset that she can’t find her “most responsible-looking ensemble.” In the world of Cher, there is an outfit to match every situation in life.

Like most films set in Beverly Hills, Clueless is shot so beautifully that it’s one of the best travel ads for Southern California that’s not a travel ad. As expected, there are the trademark palm trees everywhere. The houses are basically McMansions that have a sweeping presence on the screen. Cher’s best friend Dionne (Stacey Dash) lives in a majestic Tudor home that looks as if royalty should live there.

To keep with the theme of being hip, the soundtrack of Clueless is a youthful collection of rock, pop, indie and rap/hip-hop. Although using a contemporary soundtrack, Clueless features covers of classic songs like The Muffs’ grungy cover of Kim Wilde’s 80s hit “Kids in America,” a cover of David Bowie’s “All the Young Dudes,” as well as an actual song performed by David Bowie called “Fashion,” which is at the beginning of Clueless.

At the time of Clueless’ release, Silverstone was known for her racy performances in a couple of Aerosmith music videos. She also was known for playing a murderous Lolita-type vixen in the film, The Crush (1993). Clueless was a light-hearted departure for Silverstone and comic relief for her career. As Cher, Silverstone comes across to the audience as a close friend, a sister or a girlfriend. Silverstone’s distinctive voice endears her to the audience because there’s a tone in her voice that conveys her good intentions. As far as starlets go, Silverstone’s performance as Cher is less vixen and more a loveable sweetheart along the lines of Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly or Sally Field than anything else.

Clueless is a concise film at only 97 minutes. The scenes fly by as the viewer watches with familiarity and enjoyment. There are numerous memorable scenes and that’s why Clueless has stood the test of time: it’s original, it’s a crowd-pleaser and it’s a genuinely funny, light-hearted take on the often angst-ridden topic of the teenage experience.