Foxfire (1996)

To me, this movie is perfection.

Powerful

A Masterpiece!

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Maddy Wirtz (Hedy Burress) can't wait to graduate and go to art school. She has no connection to anyone in school other than her boyfriend Ethan Bixby (Peter Facinelli). Then rebellious Legs Sadovsky (Angelina Jolie) shows up and turns her world upside down. Legs comes to the aid of beaten down Rita Faldes (Jenny Lewis). In the bathroom, Rita tells the girls that teacher Mr. Buttinger keeps her in detention where he gropes her. School slut Violet Kahn (Sarah Rosenberg) backs it up with a similar claim. The girls with spaced-out Goldie Goldman (Jenny Shimizu) confront the teacher. The girls are suspended. They find a gathering place in an abandoned home.This movie is adapted from a novel of a girl gang in the 50s. The movie starts out great. It builds up to the confrontation with Buttinger. It's terrific. While the movie diverges from the novel, I wish it diverge more by concentrating on the Buttinger situation. The girls aren't the same as the girls in the novel. It seems to me that these girls in the movie would narrow their focus on Buttinger. It's a question left hanging. The further away the movie goes, the less compelling it becomes. The movie tries to hit the big notes in the novel but it may be better off rewriting more of it.

"Foxfire" is about a group of high school girls who are empowered by a mysterious rebel (Angelina Jolie) who drifts into their lives. That itself is a great theme, and I love a good rebel story as much as the next guy or gal.But this isn't a straightforward "go girl power" flick. Early in the film, things start to get out of hand when the girls resort to violence and criminal activities, and as you can guess things get trickier as the film approaches its tense conclusion.To me, the beauty of this film is not the simple message about girls fighting back. It's the complex theme of how far is too far? Whether you're a male or female, when is violence justified? And is vigilante justice true justice, or just another form of aggression? These are ideas which the director certainly wants us to consider. Although Jolie's character is definitely glorified for her badass ways, there are enough seeds of doubt to make us wonder if she's really such a great role model.Excellent acting by a young Angelina Jolie make this a real treat to watch, even for people who aren't her fans. She plays a tough role: a person who is always in control, always cool, yet suppressing some vulnerabilities & volatile demons within.The directing style is very artistic without getting bogged down with itself. Great attention is paid to colors and composition of shots which, if you pay attention to that sort of thing, will really impress you. I had initially feared that this would have an "ABC afterschool special" vibe to it, but it's clearly in a serious league. As a tangent to that thought, there is some nudity (male posterior in the beginning, and a scene with several topless girls performing a sort of ritual, none of which is sexual).By the way, there's also a scene depicting a bunch of ill-fated frogs nailed to boards in biology class, but the disclaimer at the end says it was simulated and no animals were harmed."Foxfire" reminded me of two similar films that focus on young girls fighting back. These are: the iconic 1988 "Heathers" (a dark comedy about a few murder/suicides at a high school, starring a young Winona Ryder), and the relatively obscure but powerful 2000 "The Smokers" (another dark comedy about high school girls striking back at rapists... by raping them back!). Along with Foxfire (1994) all of these films, one for each decade, present the viewer with a very compelling look at feminism. But whether you're a guy or a girl (I'm a guy if you hadn't guessed), they present charming & chilling portrayals of vigilante justice. Oh, I'll add one more to the list, the most recent addition: "Super" (2010) a very funny--and very disturbing--look at what happens when the rebel gets too wrapped up in his/her idea of "justice". If this theme interests you, your time will not be wasted on any of this great movies.

Terrible film with Angelina Jolie starting off her career.She comes into a school and goes around unchallenged by a security guard. Walking into a biology class, she sees that the teacher is harassing a student for refusing to cut up a frog. It turns out that the teacher has been doing more than just that to his female students.Jolie, known as Legs, finally jumps the teacher with 4 other girls.They are suspended by Principal Parks. (Richard Beymer) Sad to see that Beymer's career has come to this playing a non-understanding principal. The part is gratefully brief.The girls are suspended and come back to the school with Legs since one of them has to retrieve papers. A lit match ignites a fire and the sprinkler system goes on. Even with the arrival of the police, the girls manage to flee to a hidden abandoned house where they dance and act like the brats they are.Of course, there is a stolen car episode and a gun going off and hitting one of the parents. Seems his daughter, Goldie, is on drugs.There is entirely too much going on here.Legs thankfully leaves and Matty is suddenly no longer afraid of heights. The writing is contrived. The ideas are out of inner sanctum. A very poor movie with no way out other than turning it off.

first of all to correct two previous commentators....Rita says, after getting her tattoo, "we're like those girls who run with foxes." she says this to mock the comment made by the HS principle when he suspended them. trust me, i've seen this movie a hundred times.anyway, i came across this movie quite by accident. i was supposed to go out partying, but I fell asleep waiting for my always late friend. I woke up right after they beat up the teacher. I think what made an impression was how deep the friendship was between the girls. that time of my life wasn't the best, and I didn't have close friends like that. i saw parts of myself in some of the girls, and characteristics I wished I had possessed in the others. I own the movie, I watch it on occasion. The only part I think everything falls apart is the kidnapping of Goldie's father. that was kinda dumb. i have not yet read the book, but i have heard for years that the book is far different and better than the movie. Usually I am one that has read the book prior too, and usually find the movies disappointing. I tried reading the book after seeing the movie "Where the Heart is" and the exact opposite happened, I HATED the book. but from the reviews, I don't think this is going to happen with this one. I will be going to the library tonight.all in all, I think it was a good movie. i didn't particularly care for Jolie at first, but now that I've seen other work of hers, I have changed my mind about her in this movie. I liked the Maddie character the most, but the first time I watched i was more like Rita, the awkward virgin, while I longed to be a little more like Violet, the slut. Goldie represented what I could've become, had I not been as strong as I was and let situations and circumstances lead me to embrace drug addiction. I wish they would've gone a little deeper into some of the girls's background. all you really got to see is goldies dad slapping her around, and maddie's parents, and a couple of small glimpses into Rita's family. but the friendship and the bond with the girls is central focus, I felt for the movie, and I think that came across very well in the movie. maybe i'll have a different opinion once i read the book. we'll see.