Perfect Body (1997)

Very Cool!!!

Don't listen to the negative reviews

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

"Perfect body" suffers from being a made-for-TV movie principally in the quality of the cinematography and in the realism of the gymnastics--these girls were nowhere near Olympic level, I'm told, though I am not really one to judge. Yet what "Perfect Body" lacks in this luster it more than makes up for in the quality of the writing and acting, and considering the primitivity of the shooting equipment, the cameraman captured the essence of each scene and character emotion very well. Amy Jo Johnson is more than convincing as a perfectionist suffering from anorexia nervosa (contrary to the description, the film does not once claim that she is bulimic and in fact she is more of a gorge-and- purge type anorectic than a true bulimic). The film's portrayal of the debilitating effects of nervous anxieties--and of the extreme difficulty that sufferers tend to have in getting or accepting help even when they know they need it and even want it, and of the resulting sense of isolation and fright of the sufferer and sense of helplessness of her entourage-- strikes a powerful chord. Definitely worth a couple of hours.

Well to start off i must applaud Amy Jo Johnson for her portrayal of teenage gymnast Andie, considering her awful performances in other films i have seen her in (which i won't name due to how incredibly bad they are). If anything Perfect Body may be a tad cliché, but most movies tend to be and people forget it is a TV movie, most of our lives are cliché and we can relate to Andie's suffering as it is the human condition. Andie's parents plod along well through the film, whilst flat, 2 dimensional performances from Tara Boger and Ron Melendez do keep it from being 10/10 for me. But what this film does have is a happy ending with a character who is almost killed by gymnastics, but still goes back to it because it is her passion, not completely forget it which isn't realistic. The chemistry between Andie and her boyfriend is not always evident but they do have a sweet spark in some scenes. Thinking that Amy Jo Johnson was once the Pink Ranger and this film is solely centered around gymnastics and bulimia, it offers a genuine story that captures immense verve, courage and the devout strength of a girl wanting to achieve. This film isn't trying to be something it isn't,which some blockbuster turkeys like the god awful Pearl Harbour try to be.

Perfect Body is a thoughtful drama with a strong story line about a young gymnast, Andie Bradley (Amy Jo Johnson) who develops several eating disorders while trying to achieve the perfect body.This is a movie filled with gymnastics, drama and tissue alerts and is DEFINITELY worth seeing.Perfect plot, perfect actors, perfect script, perfect!

I almost passed this movie as some fluff from a Power Ranger. What a mistake that would have been. Amy Jo Johnson turned in a powerful performance as a young woman so caught up in chasing perfection that she will sacrifice anything to get it. This film was a powerful statement about the pressure that is put on young athletes by themselves and others. This isn't a fluff piece and it will make you think but it's still entertaining. It's worth catching on TV.