Never Been Kissed (1999)
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An insecure copy editor goes undercover as a high school student to report on the lives of teenagers.
The story
Josie Geller, an insecure 25-year-old copy editor for the Chicago Sun-Times who has never had a real relationship, is assigned by her editor-in-chief to report undercover at a high school. To help parents understand their children's lives, she enrolls at South Glen South High School. However, her first day is miserable as she reverts to her old geek persona and faces off against the popular students. She eventually finds a friend in a kind-hearted nerd named Aldys, who invites her to join a group of intelligent students, while Josie simultaneously begins to fall for her English teacher, Sam Coulson.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Josie Geller, a 25-year-old copy editor who has never been kissed, goes undercover as a high school student at South Glen South High School. While struggling with her 'geek' persona and facing off against the popular Guy Perkins, she befriends Aldys Martin and joins the 'Denominators.' Josie falls for her English teacher, Sam Coulson, but faces a painful reminder of her past when she recalls being humiliated by her high school crush. Her editor, Gus, eventually orders her to befriend the popular kids to scoop a story on a local hangout called 'The Court.' To do this, Josie's brother Rob—who was popular in high school—enrolls as a student to help her infiltrate the cool crowd. As Josie and Sam grow closer, Sam struggles with his feelings because he believes she is a student. At the prom, Josie is voted queen but reveals her true identity to the school, warning them that high school personas are meaningless. After Sam and Rob are hurt by her lies, Josie writes a public account of her experience, admitting she has never been kissed and declaring her love for Sam. The film ends with Sam appearing at a baseball field to give her a romantic kiss.
- First release year
- 1999
- Runtime (minutes)
- 107
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Raja Gosnell
- Writers
- Abby Kohn · writer; Marc Silverstein · writer
- Cast and characters
- Drew Barrymore · Josie Geller; David Arquette · Rob Geller; Michael Vartan · Sam Coulson; Leelee Sobieski · Aldys Martin; Jeremy Jordan · Guy Perkins; Molly Shannon · Anita Olefsky; Garry Marshall · James Rigfort; John C. Reilly · Augustus "Gus" Strauss
- Genres
- romantic comedy; teen comedy; teen romance
- Themes
- Identity; First Love; Social Hierarchy; Journalism
- Tone and mood
- Romantic; Comedy; Sentimental
- Premise and plot tags
- Undercover; High School; Romance; Comedy
- Source material / true-story basis
- A series of real life investigatory news articles written by Shann Jones (née Nix) on her experience as an undercover senior student in San Francisco's George Washington High School in 1992.
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics but was a box-office success, grossing $84 million against a budget of $25 million. It has since garnered a cult following.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 56% · scale: percentage · review count: 91; Metacritic · score: 60 · scale: 100 · review count: 26
- Production trivia
- The film was inspired by real-life news articles about an undercover student in San Francisco.; Jackie Robinson Stadium was the location for the climactic scene.; The film has a cult following.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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