“AS IF”… Pop Culture Totally Effects Teenagers.

As Greenfield states, “teens are greatly influenced by the television and films they watch, the magazines they read and the music they listen to. The 1995 film Clueless was an influential film for many teens and preteens during that period of time. The film is based upon the lives of high school students from Beverly Hills. Cher, the most popular girl in school, is the main character. Although Cher and her friends are barely 16 years old, they live more lavished lives than middle aged millionaires (That’s because they are the children of those millionaires.) “If anyone in Beverly Hills is clued in, it's Cher. She's almost 16, she's rich, she's way popular, and she loves letting the world benefit by her expertise in all of life's important issues--like dating, fashions and looking good.” (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/info) Clueless was one of the most popular films in 1995, grossing more that 56 million dollars in the box office.

What messages are popular teen films, such as Clueless sending to young adults?
“My whole self image has been formed mostly by others or underneath my worries about what I look like are of being exposed to TV images of girls and their set roles given to them by TV and the media.” (Unlearning the Myths That Blind Us.) Cher influenced me as well as thousands of other young ladies. When I was younger I wanted to be Cher, I wanted to look like her, drive a car like hers, my favorite saying was “as if”, Cher’s signature motto.The characters of Clueless were digital natives of their time, with cell phones and pagers. OMG! Did you see Cher’s closet? I even had a Clueless hands free telephone.

Like the students in LA showed Greenfield, the characters from Clueless showed the viewer “the powerful allure of the Hollywood dream.” The movie created the allure of the Hollywood for many viewers. High school students around the country were made to believe that they to could have all of the luxuries that Cher and her friends possess. This notation plays into the idea that teens have become “preoccupied with become other than who they are.”

The film also deals with the “importance of image, celebrity, and popularity.” When Tai, the new girl, arrives at Beverly Hills High Cher and her best friend Dion (the two most popular girls in school) give her a makeover. With a new image Tai becomes just as popular as Cher and her friends. Tai went from being the new kid in school who no one wanted to be associated with, and by changing the cloths she wears, the way she speaks, and who she hung out with, she became popular.