Josie and the Pussycats

Three hot chicks in tight tight clothes with cute little kitty ears, how could a film like this NOT make money? Maybe America is finally tired of handing over their hard earned cash to be raped in the movie theater by empty headed teenie bopper films... or maybe its just a fluke.

Josie and the Pussycats stars Tera Reid, Rosia Dawson and Rachael Leigh Cook as Josie and the Pussycats, a fictitious band fist introduced in Archie comic books, and later with its own cartoon series, for a short time in the 70's, Josie was inexplicably popular. Sadly, this is no longer the 70's, and any fan base this one time cartoon powerhouse may have had are all grown up, and no longer interested.

Like most fictitious band films, Josie tries to say something important about the music industry. But unlike other films, Josie only ends up committing the very sins for which it condemns others.

Sickeningly sweet and strangely attractive, Josie and the Pussycats is rife with hypocrisy and double standard in some sort of weird misguided attempt to preach about the evils of pop culture mass media advertising while at the same time profiting from it. Scene after scene, FILLED with corporate logos, media billboards, big money catch phrases.... even an aquarium filled with manatees sports an Evian logo floating in the water next to giants of the sea. Not an inch of empty space in the ENTIRE film. Strangely the entire focus of the film is the condemnation of big marketing. Perhaps someone thought it ironic and funny that a film espousing freedom from pop culture marketing should be so filled with its filth, but at what point does it cease to be ironic social commentary, and become instead big money marketing?

But even without totally selling out, Pussycats is a symbol of Pop culture ineptitude. Lacking any REAL characters, perhaps Pussycats could have succeeded as some sort of pop band parody movie... but for that to work the film would have to actually be funny, which it is not. Are we supposed to take this seriously, or is it all some big joke? Give us a friggin clue people!

In the end, the girls are hot, the music is almost smokin, and the air is thick with the stench of evil corporate empires. Josie represents everything that is totally bad, heinous, and destructive about pop culture and modern America. It is also a helluva lot of fun. The songs are catchy and the girls are fun to watch. I feel dirty for saying so, but I'm still humming that damn song.

In the end perhaps you're better off ignoring the evil soulless nature of the film and giving in to it's bubblegum sweetnes. But is it worth sacrificing your soul just to let this movie put a smile on your face? Maybe so.

Buy Josie on DVD