Easy A

Director: Will Gluck Will Gluck

Overview

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is re-imagined as a contemporary high school comedy in this tale of a scheming student who plots to give her popularity a boost by painting herself the easiest lay in school. Like most high school kids, Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) just wants to be popular. So much so than when her best friend, Rhiannon (Aly Michalka), asks Olive how her weekend went, the bored teen decides to whip up a spicy white lie just to make things interesting. But that minor exaggeration begins to take on a life of its own when it reaches the ears of motor-mouth gossip Jesus freak Marianne (Amanda Bynes), and in no time the entire student body is abuzz over unassuming Olive's unrepentant weekend of debauchery. Of course not a word of it is true, but that doesn't stop everyone in school from talking, and an amused Olive from deciding to go with the flow. Playing the role of the hussy to the hilt, the girl who used to be invisible begins dressing provocatively and turning heads in the hallways. The students aren't the only ones taking notice, either; Olive's English teacher, Mr. Griffith (Thomas Haden Church), is concerned that the kind of attention she's receiving isn't healthy for a developing girl, and his wife (Lisa Kudrow), the school guidance counselor, is in full agreement. The only people who seem remotely interested in the truth are Olive's trusting and open-minded parents (Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson). As Olive takes note of the parallels between her own situation and the plight of the Scarlet Letter heroine Hester Prynne, she realizes that she may be able to manipulate her newfound notoriety to give fellow classmate Brandon's (Dan Byrd) popularity a much-needed shot in the arm. Olive never thought her little game could possibly have any negative effect on anyone but herself, but when loose lips start sinking ships all around her, she realizes that it's high time for the truth to come out.

Product Details

Release Date:	12/21/2010
UPC:	0043396362796
Original Release:	2010
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	SONY PICTURES
Region Code:	1
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:32:00

Special Features

Gag Reel; Emma Stone's Audition Footage; Commentary with Director Will Gluck and Emma Stone

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Emma Stone	Olive Penderghast
Penn Badgley	Woodchuck Todd
Amanda Bynes	Marianne
Dan Byrd	Brandon
Thomas Haden Church	Mr. Griffith
Patricia Clarkson	Rosemary
Cam Gigandet	Micah
Lisa Kudrow	Mrs. Griffith
Malcolm McDowell	Principal Gibbons
Aly Michalka	Actor,Actor
Stanley Tucci	Dill
Jake Sandvig	Anson
Fred Armisen	Pastor
Juliette Goglia	Eighth Grade Olive
Morgan Rusler	Mr. Abernathy
Nikki Tyler-Flynn	Mrs. Abernathy
Braeden Lemasters	Eighth Grade Kid
Jameson Moss	Evan
Blake Hood	Kennedy Peters-Booth
Bryce Clyde Jenkins	Chip
Neil Soni	Zia
Stacey Travis	Marianne's Mom
Bonnie Burroughs	Micah's Mom
Eddie Applegate	Micah's Grandfather
Norma Michaels	Micah's Grandmother
Yolanda Snowball	Receptionist
Andrew Fleming	Actor
Johanna Braddy	Melody Bostic
David Gore	Pre-Teen Kid
Lalaine	Gossipy Girl
D'Anthony Wayne Palms	Josh Wisniewski
Ryan Parker	Kurt
Rawson Thurber	Actor
Chris De Lorenzo	Spectator in the Gym
Jillian Johnston	Server
Nancy Karr	Singing Server
Clay Black	Singing Server
Brad Etheridge	Singing Server
Veerta Motiani	Actor
Michael Strauss	Singing Server
Lance Kerfuffle	Clerk
Drew Koles	Boy
Max Crumm	Pontius
Jeremiah Hu	Judas
Jessica Jann	Jezebel
Danni Katz	Harlot
Jason Kropik	Mortimer
Yoshi Sudarso	Actor
Kristin Quick	Actor
Bobby C. King	Actor
Zack Kennedy	Actor
Mahaley Patel	Nina
Dan Bryd	Actor
Nicki Ttyler Flynn	Actor
Brad Segal	Composer

Technical Credits

Bert V. Royal

Will Gluck	Director,Producer
Bert V. Royal	Screenwriter
Zanne Devine	Producer
Lisa Miller Katz	Casting
Bobby C. King	Stunts
Tyler Matson	Special Effects
Mark Benton Johnson	Producer
Deb Adair	Sound Effects
Vincent Guisetti	Sound Effects
Scott G.G. Haller	Sound Effects
Aubrey Husar	Key Grip
Herwig Maurer	Sound Editor
Mark Larry	Sound Editor

Editorial Reviews

There are a lot of films these days exploring teen life in the digital age, and Easy A is no different -- utilizing iPhones, webcasting, and YouTube to tell the story of Olive's (Emma Stone) social experiment as a modern-day Hester Prynne, which manifests itself into a not-so-innocent reputation that spirals out of control. Stone has been good in supporting roles (Zombieland, Superbad), but in this lead role she really embraces her character, spouting out snappy pop-culture references and dissecting the absurdity of her peers. This kind of character can easily move too far into pretentious territory, but screenwriter Bert V. Royal manages to keep things light and fun. Easy A is loosely based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlett Letter, with Olive sashaying around school wearing naughty negligees and donning a crimson "A" on her chest to prove a point. Despite the fact that the film veers away from making a statement about the hypocrisy of teenage sexuality, what makes this teen comedy different from most is its refreshingly witty sensibility. The story starts when Olive lies to her best friend, Rhi (Alyson Michalka), and tells her that she lost the big V to a college student. The rumor spreads like wildfire, but instead of running from it, Olive embraces it and decides to use the opportunity as a social experiment. Taking things one step further, in exchange for money, she allows the boys in her school to tell people that she's slept with them. Olive sees it as a win-win situation, but what she didn't expect was that she'd get a rep as a "skanky slut" and be attacked by the chastity club, headed by zealot Marianne (Amanda Bynes). There's a lot going on story-wise, perhaps a little too much, and it seems like Royal had a lot of false starts. There's a subplot with Thomas Haden Church and Lisa Kudrow as married educators who experience infidelity involving one of the students, but this storyline never really goes anywhere and only serves as a comedic plot device and a waste of really good actors. Also, Olive's budding relationship with Todd (Penn Badgley), her almost first kiss and would-be boyfriend, shows up at the most inappropriate moments, and you sort of forget that he's the only boy in school who likes Olive for who she is and not for her reputation. Those sins aside, Easy A is clearly a winner, and with Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson co-starring as Olive's über-liberal parents in some of the most memorable scenes, this film is not to be missed.