Whip It

Bliss Cavendar (Page) is a mild-mannered but dissatisfied youth, born and raised in the nowhere-town of Bodeen, Texas. While she submits to the smothering influence of her mother, a beauty pageant proponent and former participant, Bliss dreams of a high-octane existence with her closest friend and confidante Pash (Shawkat). Her prayers are answered when she discovers roller derby: a female dominated, full contact team sport, where the toughest women don DIY punk-chic costumes and rechristen themselves with hardcore skater names such as ‘Rosa Sparks’ and ‘Jabba the Slut’. Unbeknownst to her conservative mother, Page joins the ‘Hurl Scouts’, and under the new moniker ‘Babe Ruthless’ sets out to prove to everyone that she can take control of her own life and become her own hero.

Whip It is Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut and flaunts many of the thematic and stylist qualities found in other recent coming-of-age teen films (Superbad, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist), with an emphasis on the witty, satirical and often cynical teen against a backdrop of monotony. However, it would be unreasonably hasty to call the film ‘conventional’, as despite conforming to some established techniques, it flourishes with a large injection of heart and humanism. The characters are colourful and endearing, particularly Bliss’s maternal mentor Maggie Mayhem (Wiig) and Barrymore’s violently enthusiastic Smashley Simpson. The dialogue is superbly witty, interspersed with a healthy dose of visual comedy, and the derby scenes are, at times, breathtakingly exhilarating. While there are some archetypal subplots (an inevitable love interest and conflict within the family) the overlying moral message concerning the cost of individuality is well considered and surprisingly novel. Barrymore’s film will leave you feeling better about yourself and desperate to find those skates you haven’t used in years.

Daniel Hayden