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When my housemate suggested Netflix’s new teen dramedy, “Do Revenge,” for our house movie night, I wasn’t too thrilled. I assumed that it would be just another formulaic, popular-girl-befriends-geek-and-they-invoke-chaos-and-then-get-their-guys teen comedy. But then we pressed play.
“Do Revenge” is brilliant when you take it for what it is: a sharp, masterful piece of Gen Z satire. It subverts the canonical, repetitious tale of teenage drama with unexpected twists and turns, while somehow keeping the feel-good, cathartic spirit of teen movies at heart.
The two main characters, Drea (Camila Mendez) and Eleanor (Maya Hawke), team up to enact revenge on each other’s enemies. Eleanor’s mission is to expose Drea’s ex, who leaked her sex tape to the whole school. Drea’s is to punish the girl who outed Eleanor as gay. But things aren’t quite what they seem, and the girls’ schemes quickly unravel into something much larger—and more maniacal—than intended. The duo’s sheer deviousness absolutely delights. Throughout the movie, their behavior teeters between playfully mischievous and downright sociopathic. As an audience member, it’s fun to see them walk the line, and to see them blow it up.
Poking fun at the overdone teen dramedy canon, Netflix intentionally chose a cast who are well-versed in the Hollywood hellscape of high school. It includes the stars of binge-cringe TV: Mendez has starred on “Riverdale” for years, and Hawke is a lead in “Stranger Things.” Other Gen Z giants on screen include Talia Ryder (the music video for Olivia Rodrigo’s “deja vu”), Austin Abrams (“Euphoria”), Ava Capri (“Love Victor), Rish Shah (“To All The Boys”), Alisha Bo (“13 Reasons Why”), and the list goes on. They’re icons of the streaming-service-centric world of high school. They’ve suffered through the infamous writing of some of the worst shows (ahem, “Riverdale”) to ever grace the internet. In all its self-aware glory, the writing of “Do Revenge” is more “Jennifer’s Body” than your usual Netflix-brand clickbait melodrama.
In many ways, “Do Revenge” is an homage to its teen movie predecessors, most notably nodding to “Clueless” with its costuming. If Cher were in high school today, she’d definitely be wearing the pastel-plaid flare skirts which the girls at Rosehill Country Day flaunt in “Do Revenge.” The writers also nod to “Mean Girls” in their dialogue. On Eleanor’s first day of senior year (she’s the newbie at Rosehill), Ryder’s character gives her a tour and characterizes the cliques of her classmates. In place of “the plastics” and “sexually active band geeks” are the “Instagram girlies” and the “zodiac thots” club. As our culture evolves, so must our cult teen dramedies.
Whether you love or loathe “Do Revenge,” it’s notable that the hot movie of the moment is not actual patriarchal trash. The ultimate antagonist in the movie isn’t Regina George—it’s a male manipulator: Drea’s ex, Max. If “Do Revenge” teaches us anything, it’s that high-school-villain-misogynists don’t always wear letter jackets and baseball caps; they might sport pink suspenders and a silky pink low-cut shirt (à la Harry Styles) and lead the “Cis Hetero Men Championing Female Identifying Students League” instead of captaining the football team. Not all villains wear the same capes.
Most importantly, though, the movie places platonic relationships at its center, a move reminiscent of the central friendship in “Booksmart.” It’s not about getting the love interest. It’s about the intimacy unique to close, genuine friendships.
“Do Revenge” isn’t a Scorsese film, but it’s a fun, provocative, and witty watch that will absolutely make your movie night. You just have to buy into the campy experience and tap into your inner high schooler—and your inner mischief-maker.
Halle Newman can be reached at hnewman@wesleyan.edu.