Movie Review: ‘Not Another Teen Movie’ (2001)

Not Another Teen Movie (2001)

Written by:  Mike Bender, Adam Jay Epstein, Andrew Jacobson, Phil Beauman, and Buddy Johnson

Directed by: Joel Gallen

Starring: Chyler Leigh, Chris Evans, Jaime Pressly, Eric Christian Olsen, Eric Jungmann, Mia Kirshner, Deon Richmond, Cody McMains, Sam Huntington, Samm Levine, Cerina Vincent, Ron Lester, Randy Quaid, Lacey Chabert, Riley Smith and Samaire Armstrong

Not Another Teen Movie: A Satirical Time Capsule That Knows Exactly What It’s Mocking

Teen movies. They were the mixtapes of adolescence—equal parts angst, hormones, and hallway melodrama. Growing up in early ’80s America, I was steeped in the John Hughes era: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and the Molly Ringwald cinematic universe that made cafeteria seating charts feel like Shakespearean drama. Hughes gave us comedy-dramas with heart, where being misunderstood was practically a rite of passage. Ringwald even makes a cameo in Not Another Teen Movie, as if to bless this parody with her signature shade of wistful rebellion.

But this film isn’t just a nod—it’s a full-throttle roast. Not Another Teen Movie takes the entire genre, from Hughes’ heartfelt classics to the raunchier late-’90s wave (American Pie, She’s All That), and throws them into a blender set to “absurd.” Even if I missed some of the more risqué entries, the tropes were familiar enough to recognize: the Obsessed Best Friend, the Token Black Guy, the Desperate Virgin (perhaps the most tragically relatable archetype), the Perfect Girl, the Stupid Fat Guy, and the Popular Jock who’s somehow both adored and emotionally vacant.

The plot? A Frankenstein’s patchwork of Cruel Intentions and She’s All That, with a central bet to transform the “Pretty Ugly Girl” into Prom Queen. Around that, the film scatters vignettes like confetti—some hilarious, some crude, some surprisingly sharp. With five screenwriters behind it, the script has a hit-and-miss rhythm, but when it hits, it’s gloriously over-the-top. The Foreign Exchange Student, perpetually nude and seemingly immune to pneumonia, is a gag that walks the line between ridiculous and iconic.

The 2002 Columbia/TriStar DVD release sweetens the experience with extras that feel tailor-made for genre aficionados. The Teen Movie Factoids track and the “Test Your Teen Movie I.Q.” quiz are fun diversions—though I didn’t exactly ace the latter. Turns out, my Hughes-heavy education didn’t prepare me for the full spectrum of teen cinema absurdity.

Is it Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein? No. But it’s self-aware, gleefully vulgar, and oddly affectionate in its mockery. Director Joel Gallen knew exactly what he was doing: crafting a parody that could turn a quiet Saturday into a riot of recognition and ridiculousness.

And for fans of 24: Mia Kirshner, who plays “The Cruelest Girl” here, is none other than Mandy—the icy operative from Fox’s 24. Proof that even in parody, danger can wear lip gloss.