Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging
Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging is a 2008 teen romantic comedy film co-written and directed by Gurinder Chadha, based on the young adult novels Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging and It's OK, I'm Wearing Really Big Knickers by Louise Rennison. The film stars Georgia Groome, Alan Davies, Karen Taylor, Aaron Johnson and Eleanor Tomlinson. The plot follows 14-year-old Georgia Nicholson as she tries to find a boyfriend while also organising her 15th-birthday party. This is the first Nickelodeon film to be rated PG-13.
Plot
Georgia Nicholson is a 14-year-old girl from Eastbourne who worries about her breasts, fears she will never have a boyfriend and is constantly embarrassed by her mother Connie, father Bob, and little sister Libby. One day, she attends a party in an oversized olive costume. She had agreed with her three friends to go to the party as hors d'oeuvres as a joke, but her friends decided to wear other costumes because "boys don't like them for being funny". This causes people to laugh at her, especially Lindsay, a popular schoolmate. Humiliated, Georgia leaves the party and runs home.On the first day of the new school term, Georgia and her friends—Jas, Ellen and Rosie, known as her "Ace Gang"—spot two fraternal twin brothers that have just moved to Eastbourne from London, Robbie and Tom. The girls follow the boys, who are exploring town with their friend Dave "the Laugh".
Georgia and Jas decide to approach the brothers in their mother's organic foodshop, where they work. Jas is quickly enamored with Tom and Georgia strikes up a conversation with Robbie, until her mother walks in and embarrasses her. Jas convinces her not to give up, before they discover Robbie is dating Lindsay. After learning that Robbie likes cats, Georgia pretends that her cat Angus has gone missing and asks Robbie to help her find him. Jas has Angus on a leash in the park, but he escapes and Tom rescues him just as Georgia and Robbie arrive. Robbie leaves to spend time with Lindsay and Tom asks Jas on a date, after which they become a couple.
Meanwhile, Bob has been offered a job in New Zealand, and he goes while his family stays behind. During his absence, Connie hires a handsome builder, Jem, to redo the living room, and begins to spend increasingly longer periods of time with him, even going to dance classes with him. Georgia worries about the state of her parents' marriage.
In an attempt to impress Robbie, Georgia takes "snogging lessons" with Peter Dyer. He becomes infatuated with her, and at a party the following night, he tries to kiss her, causing her to fall into a bush and expose her underwear to Robbie, Lindsay, Jas and Tom. In order to evade Peter, Georgia lies about being a lesbian. Tom invites Jas to go swimming with him and Robbie. Georgia plots to meet them at the pool and brings her sister along, as she is stuck babysitting her. While in the pool, Robbie and Georgia kiss. Robbie then leaves, but promises to phone Georgia later.
After not hearing from Robbie in a while, Georgia is heartbroken. She reads Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus and decides she has to make Robbie jealous so that he realises his feelings for her. She invites Dave to see Robbie's band, the Stiff Dylans, perform. Upon seeing Georgia and Dave dancing and laughing, Robbie tries to talk to her but is stopped by Lindsay.
At school, Dave confronts Georgia about using him to make Robbie jealous, and so stops talking to her. When Dave tells Robbie that Georgia was using him, he stops talking to her as well. Georgia discovers it was Jas that accidentally leaked this information. After the two have an argument and Georgia kicks Jas in the shin, they vow never to speak to each other again. Shortly afterwards, Robbie tells Georgia he wanted to break up with Lindsay before anything else happened between them, but now he is disappointed with her behaviour.
Feeling like there is no point in staying in England, Georgia decides that she would like to move to New Zealand. She goes to her father's workplace and breaks down with a woman who works with him, telling her she does not want her family to be apart from each other. Later on, she goes to the beach, knowing Robbie would be there, and apologises to him. Robbie reveals he dumped Lindsay and admits that he still likes her.
On the morning of her 15th birthday, Connie tells Georgia they are going to a club for the first time. When they arrive the place initially seems empty, but it turns out to be a surprise birthday party which Jas had secretly organised with Connie. She is greeted by all her friends and family, with Jas and Georgia making amends. As a surprise, Bob returns from New Zealand, deciding to stay in Eastbourne for a better job opportunity, after his boss told him about Georgia's breakdown. It is also revealed that Jem is gay, and that his boyfriend is the owner of the nightclub. The Stiff Dylans are performing the song "Ultraviolet" which Robbie had written about Georgia, when they are interrupted by Lindsay who comes from her own party and tells Robbie that he would either have to take her back or lose her forever. He tells her that Georgia is the one he wants, and he kisses Georgia onstage. Jas then stuffs her hands into Lindsay's breasts and pulls out her breast pads. She tosses them into the crowd, and Lindsay furiously storms off the stage.
In the final scene, Georgia is content with how she looks and with her crazy family. As she meets Robbie to walk to school together, she also comments that she found a boyfriend who thinks she is perfect.
Cast
- Georgia Groome as Georgia Nicolson: The main character, a 14-year-old girl who falls in love with Robbie and tries to get him to be her boyfriend throughout the film.
- Aaron Johnson as Robbie Jennings: Georgia's love interest, he is in a band called The Stiff Dylans, and is initially Lindsay's boyfriend at the beginning.
- Karen Taylor as Connie Nicolson: Georgia's mother, she is 'old-fashioned', and scares Georgia as it seems she gets very close to Jem, but also attempts to maintains a close relationship with her daughter.
- Alan Davies as Bob Nicolson: Georgia's loving father, who is a bit "old-fashioned" too, as he does not want Georgia to have a party in a club for her birthday. He travels to New Zealand for work which upsets Georgia and her family.
- Eleanor Tomlinson as Jas: Georgia's best friend, very girlish in understanding, and wants to get a boyfriend just as much as Georgia does. She worries about her lack of ample cleavage. She starts to date Tom, Robbie's fraternal twin brother.
- Manjeeven Grewal as Ellen: Georgia's friend, in 'The Ace gang' along with Georgia, Jas and Rosie. She is the vulnerable one of the group. In the end, she is introduced properly to Dave by Georgia, and they dance together and kiss.
- Georgia Henshaw as Rosie: Georgia's friend, fourth member of 'The Ace gang’. She is the experienced one of the group because she already has a boyfriend called Sven.
- Kimberley Nixon as Lindsay : Georgia's rival, is the main antagonist of the film. She is slim and very good looking but she is a complete bully to Georgia. She is seen as 'the slag of the century'.
- Sean Bourke as Tom Jennings: Robbie's brother, later Jas' boyfriend.
- Tommy Bastow as Dave "The Laugh": Georgia uses Dave to make Robbie jealous, which makes him feel very hurt. Dave is one of Robbie's best friends. He had feelings for Georgia until the party. He then dances with Ellen and they share a kiss.
- Liam Hess as Peter Dyer : A charismatic boy in Georgia's class. He gives girls lessons on how to snog, charging five 'quid' for a session. He likes Georgia a lot, though the feeling is not mutual.
- Matt Brinkler as Sven: Rosie's crazy boyfriend, an exchange student from Sweden.
- Eva Drew as Libby Nicolson: Georgia's eccentric 5-year-old sister. Likes to dress up her cat Angus.
- Steve Jones as Jem: He remodels/decorates a room in Georgia's house and Georgia thinks her mother is falling for him.
- Stiff Dylans as themselves.
- Ray Shirley as Woman with the Poodle
- Benny & Jimmy as Angus: The cat of titular distinction.
Production
Most of the scenes were filmed on location in Brighton and Eastbourne. Others, such as the gig scene and some interiors and exteriors for Georgia's house, were filmed in and around Ealing Studios, London. Areas in nearby west London like Bishopshalt school in Hillingdon and the Liquid nightclub in Uxbridge were used as well. Other sites include locations in Teddington and Twickenham. Costumes included green blazers and kilts borrowed from St. Bede's Prep School in Eastbourne, and props included Eastbourne's signature blue bins to add to the effect and continuity when filming in multiple locations.
Release
Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging was the first film produced by Nickelodeon Movies to receive a PG-13 rating.Reception
The film received positive reviews. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 72% based on reviews from 25 critics, with an average score of 5.92/10. The site's consensus states: "Based on two of British writer Louise Rennison's popular books, Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging is a pleasant and funny tween comedy, comfortable for UK audiences as well as stateside crowds."Critics noted the strong central performance of Georgia Groome, who was praised for her "super-engaging" " performance.
Box office
The film has earned $14,924,919, which includes $10,627,381 from the UK alone. The film was in the top 40 in the UK and Ireland and Malta 2008 box office. The film was not released theatrically in the United States, but instead had its U.S. premiere on Nick at Nite and TeenNick, where it was rated TV-PG, and later was released on DVD.Music
Some songs played in the film were not included on the soundtrack:- "Out of Time" - Stiff Dylans
- "You're the Best Thing" – The Style Council
- "Agadoo" – Black Lace
- "True" – Spandau Ballet
- "I'm Your Man" – Shane Richie
- "Mr. Loverman" – Shabba Ranks
- "Dance wiv Me" – Dizzee Rascal featuring Calvin Harris and Chrome
- "Teenage Kicks" – Nouvelle Vague
- "Big Fish, Little Fish" – Nik Martin