'Clueless: One Last Summer' is the sequel to 'Clueless: Senior Year', and it is more or less the same as that, except with a Nancy Drew-spoof mystery angle to it. It arguably contains more substance and emotional stakes than 'Senior Year' does, too. It is funny and charming, and the female friendship theme is stronger than ever. I adore Tai and her story with Travis and her late great-aunt's lover Edwina. Each character is well developed, and each arc is well done. Empathy is also a key theme in all 'Clueless' media.
See my review of 'Clueless: Senior Year' here.See also my review of the children's picture book here.
Finally, here is an excerpt from an old list on my blog, on why I love 'Clueless':
One of the earliest, smarter and funnier chick flicks to have gotten so popular as to receive spinoff material, a stage musical, and a planned remake (heaven help us all, just leave cultural milestones be, Hollywood), to this very day. Very loosely based upon Jane Austen's 'Emma', the legacy of 'Clueless' must mean it's done something right. Even though it is materialistic, meandering, a little dated, partly responsible for the valley girl culture and lingo, and full of rich white people problems, 'Clueless' has an undeniable charm to it. A lot of that is due to the star, Alicia Silverstone as Cher, who imbues the spoiled sweet trope brilliantly - she was born to play this part. When Cher is being selfish and self-serving, there is still the sense that she genuinely wants to help people and make them happy. She just might be going about it the wrong way.
Look past the fashion trends, the makeover montages, and the celebration of how great it is to be rich and pretty: 'Clueless' is a teenage girl's coming-of-age story, peppered with her honest and entertaining inner monologue. There is a sweetness, warmth and innocence to the whole thing, and humour that isn't aggressively mean-spirited (except for the "You're a virgin who can't drive!" line, that's shaming and sexist, but at least the person who says it apologises). You've got to see the funny side of a girl who's so superficial that the only traumatic thing about being robbed at gunpoint for her is getting her jacket dirty. It is also one of the first film roles of the utterly gorgeous Paul Rudd, so it has that going for it too.
Another thing to add: Amazingly, there are no mean girls in 'Clueless'! And its LBGTQ representation is surprisingly tasteful and decent for 1995.
Who knew that a chick flick written and directed by a woman would produce worthwhile quality? I know, right!
Final Score: 3.5/5
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