Hi everyone!
Welcome back to Streaming Saturday, where we begin breaking down the latest avalanche of Netflix Originals that debuted yesterday. I have two more on the docket for next week, but today we’re going to look at another high school coming of age film, a favorite genre for Netflix Originals. If you want other films in the same lane, check out “Dude” (Episode #111), “Candy Jar” (Episode #118), “The Kissing Booth” (Episode #132), “Alex Strangelove” (Episode #160), and most recently, “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” (Episode #230). And if you have any favorites, past or present, let me know at onemoviepunch.com.
And now...
Today’s movie is “Sierra Burgess is a Loser” (2018), the high school dramedy directed by Ian Samuels and written for the screen by Lindsey Beer. The film follows Sierra Burgess (Shannon Purser), who doesn’t meet the shallow beauty standards at her high school. But when she is mistaken for someone else at another school, she teams up with Veronica (Kristine Froseth), to help one another land their crushes and get to know each other in the process.
Spoilers ahead.
So, let me start by talking a little bit about Cyrano de Bergerac, both the man and the play, but mostly the play. The original play was based loosely on the man’s actual life, with the central premise of Cyrano de Bergerac being hired Christian de Neuvillette to help woo a beautiful woman named Roxanne, because he lacks wit and charm. The play is actually quite morbid, and has often been transformed into more palatable comedies, most famous being “Roxanne” (1987) starring Steve Martin, Daryl Hannah, and Rick Rossovich. It was also the inspiration, in part, for the song “Roxanne” by The Police, via a poster for the play hanging on a wall. Each version plays with the story in various ways, in the same way that Edmond Rostand’s original play was fast and loose with the man’s actual life, and today’s film is another take on the premise, with its own twists and definitely for the modern age.
“Sierra Burgess is a Loser” follows Sierra, whose number is given to the football quarterback from a different high school named Jamey (Noah Centineo), by Veronica, in fact. She develops a text relationship, that slowly evolves into a speaking relationship, but when it finally comes time to reveal herself, she instead opts for Veronica to go in her place, because Sierra suffers from bouts of low self-esteem. The price for this assistance is helping Veronica try to get her college boyfriend back, who dumped her, and then everything goes very wrong. It’s almost a double Cyrano, as Sierra and Veronica use each other, and Jamey in the process. Lots of high school intrigue on top of struggles against conformity and social beauty standards, and you have a pretty great setup. It’s kind of neat to think of Cyrano’s story as the original catfish story, although without the malicious intent.
Unfortunately, there are some noticeable flaws in the film, most notably the near inability to read any of the phone screens, which for a film that uses texting this much should have figured out. I know my eyesight is pretty bad, but if I can’t see it on a 37” television screen, good luck enjoying this on a smaller screen. I also thought the multiple literary references felt shoehorned in, an attempt to make sure the viewers know the inspiration for this film. These flaws, though, don’t overshadow a strong performance by Shannon Purser, who has had a great career after her excellent roles in “Stranger Things” and “Riverdale”. I sincerely hope she is offered more roles, because she is a natural talent.
“Sierra Burgess is a Loser” (2018) is a modern high school retelling of the story of Cyrano de Bergerac, featuring a very strong lead in Shannon Purser. While there are some noticeable flaws that can detract from the overall film, the rest is still well crafted and quite enjoyable. Fans of coming of age films, or Cyrano films, or Shannon Purser should definitely check out this film.
Rotten Tomatoes: 64%
Metacritic: 63
One Movie Punch: 7.2/10
“Sierra Burgess is a Loser” (2018) is rated PG-13 and is currently streaming on Netflix and in select theaters.
