A while back, the editor of this very site put out a query: “Give me a Top 10 list of your favorite High School Movies.” I told her I wanted in – after all, who doesn’t love to indulge in a little HS drama? So I sat down and started listing. Only I discovered that including just 10 was more impossible than winning 8 medals in one Olympic games. And I am no Michael Phelps.

So, I listed 10. The first list of what would soon become many. After posting, many of you seemed quite angry with my decisions. Your comments were full of ALL CAPS and lots of exclamation points!!!! You were upset that I had left some classics off the list. Perhaps you didn’t notice the “Part 1″ in the title, or perhaps you just needed everyone to know of your love of The Breakfast Club.

Not that it mattered; I was clearly coming back for round 2. So here it is – another 10 gloriously angsty high school flicks. Get that Smart Pop ready, ladies; these high school dramas are gonna rock your lockers!

11. She’s the Man
In a take on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Amanda Bynes is Viola Hastings. In the many twists and turns of the movie, she enters her twin brother’s private school, tries to make the soccer team to beat her school’s team and make her sexist ex cry, get rid of her brother’s obnoxious girlfriend, fall for her… er… her brother’s roommate, and much more. Whew! Amanda is such a power girl in this movie. It’s nothing like my high school experience (I never did the drag thing), but totally entertaining all the same.

12. 10 Things I Hate About You
Are you kidding? Seriously? This movie is on the top of every list. Another Shakespeare twist done right.
Kat rocks!! The tough, sensitive chick lands the hot, caring, bad boy; the college of her dreams; and the Fender Strat! I want to scream in pure bliss. You can laugh at me, but I know you’re squealing on the inside. 10 Things I Hate About You is just too good to be true. (See what I did there? Get it? No?)

13. Jawbreaker
High school, like life, is a hierarchy. Some are at the top of the list, some at the bottom of the barrel. So it makes sense that Fern Mayo wanted to be like Liz Purr. It’s completely tweaked that Liz’s BFFLs accidentally killed her, made her death look like a sick sexual perversion, and turned poor Fern Mayo into Vylette, the newest member of the clique. Be careful what you wish for.

14. The New Guy
Umm. Eliza Dushku’s wardrobe montage was kinda whack, but if I could snap my neck like Dizzy and make people scared I’d totes do it! It’s the ultimate makeover; why go from Geek to Chic, when you can go from Geek to The New Guy??

15. Say Anything…
Dear John Cusack,
I’m gonna keep on loving you, ’cause it’s the only thing I wanna do.
Love Always,
Donnette
Here’s the deal: when someone asks what’s the greatest thing you ever did for love what will you say? Lloyd Dobler can say anything (almost). The infamous boom box scene where Lloyd stands outside Diane Court’s window and plays In Your Eyes is a top rated classic, but who can forget the date where he’s shivering because he’s happy. And yes, Diane was so deeply touched by his vulnerability that she “spent the night with him” and told her dad about too. If you’ve forgotten, go watch this movie again! Now!

16. Can’t Hardly Wait
I’m LOLing just thinking about this! Typical-guy-misfit-is-enamored-with-teen-queen-and-waits-until-graduation-to-tell-her-after-her-jock-boyfriend-dumps-her-then-she-finds-herself-and-gets-letter-from-misfit-and-tries-to-find-him-but-he-finds-her-and-she-thinks-he’s-a-drunk-creep-and-people-get-abducted-by-aliens-and-Seth-Green-loses-virginity. Whew! Like I said typical. Ethan Embry paves the way for Seth Cohen, Rusty Cartwright, and Paulie Bleeker. Yum.

17. Strike! (Aka Strike! Aka The Hairy Bird)
On one hand, this movie has way too many names. On the other, it’s a Kirsten Dunst flick. Love her or hate her, the girl’s good. At an all-girl prep school in the early 1960s, the girls are flung to the trough of puberty. Ha. So here’s want goes down: Kirsten Dunst and her clique hold meetings and eat stolen ravioli, they have ISSUES: they discuss boys, school, family, the girls who hate them and all of their seemingly massive pubescent drama. I’m already reminiscing…

Anyway, the school decides to go co-ed and Verena (Dunst) became a one-girl revolution. The girls decide to play some games and do some damage when the boys come to visit. This involves bra-stuffing, drink spiking, sex having, cat fighting – your basic no-holds barred war. And don’t you think for a moment that it ends there. The best is yet to come.

18. Carrie
This movie is the reason why I was nice to everyone in high school. Seriously. Okay no not seriously, but it definitely made me fear anyone with that name. Regardless, it’s a fun one to watch (with people that, you know, like you).

19. The Breakfast Club
GREATEST MOVIE EVER!!! Great cast, great costumes, great plot, great, great, great! Since I have no words I’ll let Brian’s (Anthony Michael Hall) letter speak for me.

Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong. What we did was wrong, but we think you’re crazy to make us write an essay, telling you who we think we are. What do you care? You see us as you want to see us, in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. You see us as: a brain, an athlete, a basket case, princess, and a criminal. Correct? That’s the way we saw each other at 7 o’clock this morning. We were brainwashed.

I am forever devoted to The Brat Pack.

20. Mean Girls

In junior high and high school, I’m sure you’ve encountered these *insert derogatory word here*, but they’ve got nothing on Regina George. She’s sweet and sour, impeccably dressed, and knows how to rock the school. Until Lindsay Lohan comes along. Tina Fey totally hit the mark with this movie and it will forever be a classic. It’s just so…fetch!

1. The Dark Knight.

It’s a sad irony that Heath Ledger steals the show, after the film got so much publicity following the young actor’s death. Heath Ledger’s death made millions of people flock to the movie, but the truth is, it’s actually effing good. Ledger looks like a lock for a posthumous Oscar as well. Only time will tell.

2. Wall-E

Tell me you weren’t rooting for Wall-E and Eve, and I’ll tell you you have no soul. This cute, witty, futuristic animated tale was a favorite among audiences of all ages.

3. Cloverfield

With an innovative marketing strategy – remember those bizarre commercials guised as pleading cable interruptions? Cloverfield kept us on the edge of our seats and brought the “monster movie” genre to another level with its documentary-style cinematic techniques. Think Godzilla meets Blair Witch.

4. Gone Baby Gone

Ben Affleck’s latest screenplay, starring brother Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris has all the makings of a blockbuster: A-list author, lustworthy lead, and two powerhouse Hollywood phenoms. Did I mention the suspense and the action?

5. Milk

2008 was truly a time for change. Though we elected our first black president, we also lost a few steps of progress when California retracted the rights of gays to marry. What better time to release a film about Cali’s first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk? This powerful piece, starring Sean Penn, depicts the tragic assassination of San Fran’s first gay mayor by none other than a former city supervisor.

6. Sweeney Todd

Maybe I’m biased, because Johnny Depp could do a film version of Blake Fielder-Civil’s time in jail, and I’d still pay to see it. But the musical Sweeney was a ground-breaking effort by Stephen Sondheim, and a great excuse to put the equally eccentric Depp and Helena Bonham Carter together to recreate the story of “The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.”

7. High School Musical 3

All good things come in threes. And you know you wanted another chance to see Zach Effron, Vanessa Hudgens, and “The Tiz” on the silver screen one last time. Who cares if we’re in college? High school musical is the stuff that girl’s nights out are made of. Extra butter on the popcorn, please.

8. Quantum of Solace

The highly anticipated, newest installment of the James Bond chronicles features hottie Daniel Craig and takes off only days after the shocking ending of Casino Royale, in which notorious ladies’ man Bond lost his lover. No time for tears, though, as this film immediately thrusts our hero into another jampacked ride to fight consipiracy.

9. Sex and the City

Well it took ten years, but Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha finally made it to the big screen. And it only took 300 pieces of H Stern jewelry for us to find out Big’s full name, and to see Carrie finally get her glass slipper (or, rather, blue Manolo) and live happily ever after.

10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

A freaky-deaky plot involving a baby who was born as an old man, ages in reverse, and finds love somewhere in the middle is at least a creative diversion from the cliche’d spectacle we usually see in the cinemas. Plus, it’s Brad Pitt. Think of this film as a fantasy version of The Notebook, and go see it. NOW.

Last night’s GG episode was pretty freaking juicy. Within the first 30-seconds, we knew what party (the Senior Snowball) would be the scene of all of the cut-throat drama, and the snowball just kept rolling from there.Here’s the rundown (of the first 5 minutes):

Blair doesn’t know who to bring the Snowball, Serena meets Aaron’s ex-slash-Dan’s-instant-Snowball-date (who wants to bang Dan… go figure), and Vanessa is acting shady… could it be because after stealing Nate’s letter to Jenny, she’s been creeping with Sexkitten Archibald? After that spiel to Jenny about friendship coming first? Oh, snap. You know Gossip Girl is going to spill that news.

In other news, one of Blair’s cliquesters, Penelope, gets a lot of screen time in this ep, as she commissions the out-of-work Jenny to make her dress for the Snowball. Penelope, I know you and Jenny aren’t friends, but you should take the stick out of your a** before asking someone to do you a last minute favor. Just saying. (Editor’s Note: And didn’t Jenny get back at Penelope by designing the ugliest dress of all time? Seriously? That sh*t was nasty.)

After GG publicizes a smooch between V and Nate, Penelope serves as a driving force behind J’s revenge scheme…because, after all, “Vanessa shouldn’t be fishing in ‘her’ pond.” Apparently Penelope didn’t get the message that Nate is over the Rich Clique, after being on Blair’s tight leash since pre-school. Also, she kinda sucks.

Though Jenny and Vanessa deserve credit for their brief catfight, Blair and Chuck steal the show (yet again) when they make a bet and agree to find each other dates to Snowball. If Blair wins, she gets access to Chuck’s limo for a month. If Chuck wins, he gets Blair’s maid. Wasn’t slavery abolished a few hundred years ago? Not in Waldorf world? Okay, just checking.

The Snowball finally arrives, and Blair and Chuck have set each other up with the most Chuck- and Blair-esque kids in school, respectively. How ironic when their pawns end up falling for each other? Vanessa dons a see-through dress to the ball, courtesy of Jenny Humphrey’s bitchy side. And, just as planned, the whole school sees right through it. And the world ends.

Seriously? I don’t think that’s that bad– I mean, for one, it’s not like Vanessa decided to skip the skivvies, and she happens to have a hot bod. How is barely a semi-flash to the school comparable to a Janet Jackson experience? Was there a nipple slip that I missed while spooning the last of my ice cream out of the carton?

So, Vanessa cries, and Nate is disappointed in Jenny. Vanessa and Nate get a couple of heartfelt monologues, fueled by plenty of tears, and sealed with an almost sexy smooch (there was dripping snot/tears, which sorta ruined things for me).

Meanwhile, Chuck asks Blair to dance:

“What’s the point, Chuck? We’re never going to be them.”

“I don’t want to lose what we have.”

“What do we have, Chuck? Tell me.”

“Tonight.”

Now that is the shizz GG is made of. Where were the Chucks of the world when I was in high school?

Also getting their moment of sap, Dan and Serena have a sex talk about moving on from their long-dissolved relationship. Just in case anyone out there actually cares about Dan’s pathetic sex life. Yawn.

Can we get back to Chuck? After Lily confesses to Rufus that she’s going to divorce Bart, Chuck has yet another moment when he tells Lily that she was good for the family, and that he always liked her, no matter how she acted.

Speaking of Bart: just as someone was rumored to die tonight, Lily gets a phone call. Mr. Bass has been in an accident. And we won’t find out what happens for another whole week. But when we do, it’s gonna be even juicier.

My best friend even has a Top 10 Melissa Tramp Outfits, and there are easily three Halloween costumes on there. (Editor’s Note: So 70% of those outfits were a normal day? Awesome.)

So, in order to keep myself off any Tramp lists this year, I decided to seek out non-slutty alternatives to my typical Halloween looks. After all, I’d much rather be recognized for my creativity than my boobs on October 31st this year.

Shocking, I know.

Marilyn Monroe

This may be a questionable choice to some, but I don’t find this trampy in the least. The pink number from Gentleman Prefer Blondes is iconic and it’s almost like a two-in one deal because you can say that you’re the fabulous Marilyn or Madonna.

Carrie

Halloween isn’t Halloween without a little fright and gore (note: not boobs and legs), and if you’ve seen the movie Carrie then you’ll know what this is allll about.

The Goddess

This version is called ‘Atlantis Queen.’ I love it not only for the pretty blue, but because it proves that to be a goddess you don’t need tons of cleavage or a super short skirt.

Gangster Moll

This version is free of garters or inappropriately short anything where you have to worry about who might be looking at your hooha when you bend over to pick up that beer pong ball off of the floor. And even better: pants and jacket = warmth! If you want to make this more ‘girly’, you can opt for the pink version of it.

Get political.

With either the right pant or skirt suit, you can easily be Sarah Palin or Hilary Clinton.

The Classic Witch

Long sleeves, long skirt and a high neck and still totally classic. If the typical witch isn’t your thang feel free to switch it up; I always loved the witch from Sleeping Beauty.

Or, if you’d prefer to steer clear of the classics, my three favorites that I’ve found so far are:

If you do decide to go with Twister, though, don’t let anyone put any hand on yellow. Or blue. Or green.

[All photos from buycostumes.com]

But our 12-year-old sister might not understand that materialistic banter and wildly frequent sex is the making of entertainment. Our 12-year-old sister might think those are really things to aspire to. And we wouldn’t want that.

So why, may I ask, has HarperCollins asked Candace Bushnell to pen a new seires of Young Adult novels? Are The Carrie Diaries, reportedly about Carrie’s high school years, just an attempt to get a new, younger audience into SATC? Are tweens really ready for couture and an obsession with relationships that boarders on psychotic? I mean, maybe Bushnell will break the mold and write about something other than New York City, designer labels, and women chasing after men…but forgive us if we have our doubts on that one.

What do you think? If The Carrie Diaires come out, would you want the little girls you love to read it?

Obviously the fashion/hair/bags of the Sex and The City movie were more than noteworthy (I am still drooling over those royal blue Manolo’s). But more blogworthy?

The fashion (or lack thereof) of SATC moviegoers all weekend long.

From the metallic pumps to the teased out hair (yes apparently, some girls still do that) Girls, and a few boys, armed with their favorite girls and favorite bag were decked out in their Carrie Bradshaw best. Girls waited in line for four hours, in four inch stilletto’s (my feet hurt just thinking about it) for the long awaited glimpse of their favorite HBO gal pals.

Now don’t get me wrong, I too wish my closet was outfitted with Carrie’s Louboutins or Charlotte’s Chanel collection– but on a hot, humid Saturday afternoon- answer me this: Why are you wearing a black minidress, red lipstick and clip-in hair extensions to sit in a cold dark theater?

It seems like a waste of a perfectly good outfit to me (not to mention quite an uncomfortable ensemble for a popcorn stuffing feast). But to everyone else at the shows before and after me, throwing on their best SATC look alike outfit was the thing to do. In fact, the chick in front of me was reapplying her eyeliner as the lights were going down in the theater… I do not make this stuff up.

But even though I looked like a shlumpadinka compared to the girls all around me, I couldn’t deny my overwhelming feeling of excitement for the movie. I can’t remember the last time I saw a completely sold out show or the last time I clapped when a movie began and ended! Cheesy? Of course. But who says cheesy can’t be fun?

Here is a brilliant video showing just how crazed SATC fans were to get the first peak inside the lives of Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte five years later. Talk about the best place to pick up girls.

Maybe I should try that for the next Indiana Jones showing. Heeeeeeey fellas!

[Photo courtesy of LATimesblog]

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