Ellen Page plays Bliss Cavender. The name alone should put her parents' sanity into question. It's a name suited either for pole dancers or cover models for auto magazines. Marcia Gay Harden plays her world weary mother(does she play anything else??), who drags her daughter from beauty pageant to beauty pageant, reliving her own life through her kid. But Bliss, a strong willed rebellious teen, isn't comfortable as a made up princess. She longs for something that she can do for herself, not just for her mother. Life is pretty boring in the eyeblink of a Texas town she resides in. Only so much can happen in between shifts at the Oink Joint, alongside her friend, Pash(Alia Shawkat).
Out of the sheer blue, she comes across a flyer for a female roller derby league. Intrigued by these women, from towns much like her own living lives very much like hers, Bliss becomes determined to join their squad. With names like Smashlee Simpson(Drew Barrymore), Maggie Mayhem(Kristen Wiig), and Iron Maven(Juliette Lewis), you'd think someone with a name like Bliss Cavender would fit right in. But Bliss's mother would never approve, so she begins sneaking away under the guise of studying for the SAT. Bliss, who could barely skate in the beginning, becomes something of a roller derby sensation. She's even got her own poster. Ellen Page looks cute when she's scowling.
I'm sure you can predict every single turn Whip It takes. There are no surprises in terms of the plot here. The true surprise for me was the steadiness of Barrymore's direction. She uses an amped up color palette, which gives the film a bouncier, more joyous tone. Then again that could just be the neon colors the girls are sporting as they whip around the track. The term "Whip It" stems from a move employed during a match, where one girl swings the scorer forward giving her a burst of speed.
Some genuine and funny performances by Jimmy Fallon(Drew Barrymore's Fever Pitch counterpart) as the over-sexed PA Announcer; Daniel Stern as Bliss's sports loving father; round out a solid cast that must've had a blast on set. I've been a little down on Ellen Page ever since Juno. She's done a couple films that she's been less than impressive at(Smart People, for instance). But here she shows she's still got the goods. She is the driving force and the heart of this film, and the reason why it's worth checkin' out.
And I'm gonna go start looking up roller derby leagues again.
6/10
