Tara Reid, Rachel Leigh Cook and Rosario Dawson in "Josie and the Pussycats."

MOVIE INFORMATION

With 10 as a must-see, David gives this film a: Stars: Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid and Rosario Dawson Directors: Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan Rated: PG-13, with sensuality and some rough language Length: 96 minutes

ROCHESTERCRITIQUE

Having seen this film, how would you rate it? 10 5 9 4 8 3 7 2 6 1

By David Lee
Democrat and Chronicle

(April 11, 2000) -- All the signs point to disaster.

A predictable plot. In-your-face product placements. One-dimensional characters from old Archie comics.

But those signs mislead. Despite some limitations -- or perhaps because of them -- Josie and the Pussycats resurrects itself as a spunky, ironic take on pop culture.

As big-time music manager Wyatt Frame (Alan Cumming) looks for the next big act, he literally runs into Josie (Rachael Leigh Cook) and her bandmates, Baby and Scary Spice -- oops, make that Melody (Tara Reid) and Valerie (Rosario Dawson).

They sign with Frame's MegaRecords, but soon learn that the label uses music to brainwash teens into becoming spendthrift trendoids. It puts a whole new spin on the notion that the medium is the message.

If it's odd that a big studio movie should preach anticorporate sensibilities, credit Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan for masking the hypocrisy.

The writer-director team that made the underrated Can't Hardly Wait has brewed a postmodern blend of sight gags, self-consciousness and inside jokes. Rather than hiding the movie's potential pitfalls, the two embrace them in a self-mocking fashion.

When someone asks why a character named Alexandra (Missi Pyle) even exists, she replies, "I appear because I was in the comic book!" Cameos by Carson Daly and the MovieFone voice are part of the same fun.

The problem with this self-awareness is that it doesn't always draw a line. Are the over-the-top Target spots a reference to Cook's early modeling gigs? Are jokes about a certain British girl band meant to recall Cummings' role in Spice World? Sometimes the inside jokes and self-mockery seem like excuses for sloppy workmanship.

The movie scores when it shoots for parody and satire instead of subversion. A spoof of Fight Club and a performance by the fictional quartet DuJour (whose Back Door Lover mocks the dubious sexuality of some boy-band members) are irresistibly engaging.

But the greatest bit of irony comes from outside the movie. Says the flick's promotional kit:

"Universal Pictures' Josie and the Pussycats, an irreverent live-action comedy based on the popular Archie comic book, skewers our consumer-obsessed pop culture while featuring an all new power pop music soundtrack from some of the music industry's hottest names."

Eschew consumerism, but buy the soundtrack. We couldn't have said it any better.