Do Revenge (2022) is everything a teen movie wants to be, in an aesthetically-pleasing mint and lavender package. The film effectively revives and references the movies that have become mainstays in pop culture, while also telling a unique and relevant story.

The age of the teen movie seems to be a relic of the 90s and 2000s, with a few exceptions. Films like Heathers, Mean Girls, and Clueless created a subculture for millennials and Gen-Z, a web of pop culture references and esoteric fictional hierarchies that crafted the new millennium’s teen zeitgeist. Teen culture during this time became a separate entity, while the culture surrounding teens had been present in media for decades, never before had an exploration of teen society been portrayed so unabashedly irreverent. These films are supposedly “timeless,” but we should consider these films an encapsulation of teen culture at that given moment. 

Teen films of the 2010s continually disappointed audiences and alienated themselves from their genre. Movie-goers have pleaded that each new teen film would be like its predecessors, the films that created the teen movie genre. Comedic, creative, thought-provoking, and yet somewhat mundane. Instead, each teen movie seems worse than the last and flounders to spark the same enjoyment as the films they so wish to be.

Do Revenge, however, did not fall into any of the traps other films have. There is no feeble attempt to coin new slang, like in the movie The DUFF. The bullies are not obvious, and moronic overused tropes were avoided, making the film refreshing. It is quintessentially Gen-Z, delightfully self-aware, and manages to circumvent the second-hand embarrassment other movies elicit. The costumes and references subtly invoke modern teen culture, but the story would be interesting even if you change the time frame. 

The plot itself is timeless, revenge is evergreen. The film is noticeably inspired by dark comedies like Heathers, Jawbreaker, and Cruel Intentions, but also tonally reminiscent of movies like Clueless, with nods to iconic moments and quotes while not trying to be a copy. Do Revenge is a curation of an excellent plotline, lush and beautiful costuming, inspired pop culture elements, and a casting that makes the film a contender for the same level of praise as other incredible teen films. 

The film stars Camila Mendes (Riverdale) and Maya Hawke (Stranger Things, Fear Street), but the entire cast is dynamic, with scene stealers like Sarah Michelle Gellar and Sophie Turner. The chemistry between the main characters, Drea (Mendes) and Eleanor (Hawke), is magnetic, and their scenes are a testament to their abilities. Mendes’ performance is a masterclass in playing a calculated yet charismatic character. Even at Drea’s lowest moments, she remains engaging and keeps her audience invested. The film acts as an ode to the class of 2023, accurately portraying the average sick-of-17 senior, an angst-ridden bundle of contradictory ambition and burnout. 

Although the film succeeds as a teen comedy, there’s an epidemic of elements that take the viewer out of the film. While the campy and exaggerated plotline works to the benefit of the film, the ages of the actors create a dissonance in the overall enjoyment. It seems to be a re-occurring issue, as the same argument was levied against the latest season of Stranger Things and most teen media in recent memory. With the lead actress, Camila Mendes being 28, or nine years off from being a teenager, it makes it difficult to imagine her as a 17-year-old high school senior. Luckily, the writing of the movie doesn’t come off as grown adults writing teenagers, which could have been a make-or-break aspect, seeing as how that seemingly plagues other Netflix Originals like The Kissing Booth.

If Hollywood continues to craft films like Do Revenge, there may be hope for the dying genre. If this starts a new era of movies, ones that manage to not shoot themselves in the film trying to copy the blueprint, there may be a new generation of teen films that shape the next generation of teen culture.