Netflix’s He’s All That – An Exercise in Obnoxious Superficiality

Was a gender-swapped reboot of 1999’s classic teen comedy She’s All That really necessary? Regardless of what the majority of viewers may think, here it is anyway with the logically titled He’s All That. Now what does this film bring to the table? The answer to that question is absolutely nothing considering the tidal wave of teen comedies that have come in the decades following the original film. That being said, the film does have some redeemable qualities as those who watch this film don’t have to watch the original or vice versa while the latter boasts a young, up-and-coming cast that is sure to connect with the younger teen viewers of today. However for the most part, one can easily summarize this film as exactly the same as the original, besides the gender swap, but this time telling the story through the lens of current references. Suffice it to say that the film will ultimately do best with younger teen viewers who will be more receptive to the film’s subject matter and references. Older viewers will be in for a chore full of mostly unlikable characters tied together by clichés and derivative story beats.

As mentioned, He’s All That is essentially the same film as She’s All That as following a viral breakup, teen influencer Padgett (Rae) has to fight to rebuild her reputation. To try and save herself, she decided to make a bet where she swore that she could turn a scruffy outcast named Cameron (Buchanan) into the next prom king. One of the biggest problems with this film was its predictability as nothing will remotely come as a surprise to anyone who has ever seen any film ever. Padgett’s undertaking was not going to be easy as the contrast between she and the seemingly polar opposite Cameron could not be more clear with the film going out of its way to show how different they were but despite this, she made it work as Cameron became relegated to a mere prop for her to strut around for her hundreds of thousands of followers who connected to the persona she had created for herself. However, feelings would get in the way of Padgett’s ambition and threatened to destroy all the work she had done. That inner conflict plagued her though in the end, all she needed was some perspective.

Meanwhile, Cameron was a deeper character than just a mere prop but not by much. Though he very much was a principled character with thoughts and ideas, he more or less was used as a plot device to illustrate the contrast in status between he and Padgett and the superficial, self-obsessed influencer subculture which went much further than her as others had a vested interest in her success or failure. He wasn’t just an oblivious passenger as his growing feelings for Padgett also got in the way of his better judgement. When it came to Padgett and Cameron, something had to give as their time together, little did they know, did each of them some good by affording them that perspective. By the end however, after all the lessons, their final outcome was never in question. At the end of the day, the best part of He’s All That pretty much by default was its performances. In spite of some mediocre material, Rae and Buchanan brought plenty of charm and energy as their decent chemistry made Padgett and Cameron at least somewhat compelling to watch. They shined and rose above the silly writing and dialog and overwhelming obnoxiousness that surrounded them.

Ultimately, He’s All That knows its audience and doesn’t try to be anything more than that. Younger audiences will flock to this and older audiences will more than likely stay away. Life goes on.

still courtesy of Netflix

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.