This film’s title is an acronym meaning both ‘lots of love’ and ‘laughing out loud’ but doubles as lead character Lola’s (Miley Cyrus) nickname. It tells the story of a somewhat rebellious teen navigating through life in an age when teens want to be adults and adults want to be teens. Although somewhat exaggerated, the infidelity, sexuality, promiscuity and experimentation with drugs and alcohol are all quite reflective of what teen life is really like nowadays. Peer pressure to meet societal norms is overwhelming, and the fact that it doesn’t end in the school hallways simply amplifies the stress being put on teens in the digital age. The truest insight this movie gave into the mind of a teenage girl was when Lola’s mom (Demi Moore) was lecturing her about her grades. When asked what she was thinking, a voice-over responded,
“I’m not thinking anything mom, because I don’t care about the population of China, or the division of cells. The only thing I care about, the only thing that hurts is Kyle, and the Post-it, and how I wanna hurt them as much as they hurt me.” [referring to her thinking that her boyfriend, Kyle, cheated on her with Ashley, who they call Post-it because she sticks to every guy she meets.]
The betrayal of a relationship, whether it be romantic or platonic, is the be-all/end-all of teenage life. Getting an F might bother you for a second, but the pain felt from knowing that someone you invested so much emotion in could hurt you that easily will crush you for days, even weeks.
The relationship between mother and daughter in this film was very realistic. With divorce rates climbing, single parent homes are becoming the norm. The chemistry between Demi and Miley seemed very natural. Demi played the role of the recently divorced mother perfectly, displaying a struggle between her role as a parent and her role as a single woman looking for love, while Miley also shone in her role as Lola, pushing her boundaries and proving that she truly ‘can’t be tamed.’
Overall, this movie was entertaining, relatively realistic and managed to cover somewhat controversial topics without being overly offensive by using a large amount of nudity or curse words. Perfect for a girls night in, this movie provides exactly what it promises while mixing in some humor and relationships that you can’t help but root for! ~Morgan Bates
Also releasing on DVD this week: My Way, Detention, Servitude, Misfits: Season One, The Inbetweeners: Series One, I’m Yours, Hijacked, Le Havre, Beyond, Flamenco, Flamenco and 4.3.2.1.