Jawbreaker (1999)

Three of the most popular girls at Reagan High accidentally kill the prom queen with a jawbreaker when a kidnapping goes horribly wrong.

Director:

Darren Stein

Writer:

Darren Stein

Stars:

Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rose McGowan	...	Courtney
Rebecca Gayheart	...	Julie
Julie Benz	...	Marcie
Judy Greer	...	Fern
Chad Christ	...	Zack
Ethan Erickson	...	Dane Sanders
Tatyana Ali	...	Brenda
Charlotte Ayanna	...	Liz Purr
Jeff Conaway	...	Marcie's Father
William Katt	...	Mr. Purr
P.J. Soles	...	Mrs. Purr
The Donnas	...	Themselves
Marilyn Manson	...	The Stranger
Carol Kane	...	Ms. Sherwood
Pam Grier	...	Detective Vera Cruz

Storyline

In what was meant as a harmless birthday prank, three of Reagan High School's most popular girls, Julie, Marcie, and Courtney pretend to kidnap their friend, the latter shoving a jawbreaker into the victim's mouth to keep her from screaming. Their plan goes awry when the girl accidentally swallows the jawbreaker, choking to death. The cool and calculating Courtney tries to cover the crime but is found out by school geek Fern Mayo. In return for her silence, Courtney transforms the gawky Fern into the stylishly beautiful Vylette, leaving the conscience-stricken Julie out in the cold, threatening to set her up for the girl's murder if she breaks her silence.

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Plot Keywords:

written by director | popsicle | erotica | female protagonist | fake kidnapping | 

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Taglines:

Suck it and see...

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality, language and violence, all involving teens

Did You Know?

Trivia

Pam Grier's contract states that she must be in charge of doing her own hair for her films. For this film, she's wearing about three wigs blended together.

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Goofs

When Courtney enters the phone booth to call detective Cruz, a black microphone wire can be seen hanging out of under her dress all the way down over her stockings.

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Quotes

Marcie: Trends change. People change. It's all about details. Pay attention to details. Look at my nails. In junior high, I wore only pink. Now it makes me puke. So I change. See? It's called Demented. Seriously, the color's called Demented.
Courtney: Mine? Decayed. Like Julie. Our friendship with her is decayed. Rot. Julie is over. Done, null and void. In two weeks, no one will know her including you. From now on, you don't know her. Never knew her. She's like Fern Mayo. A bad dream. Get it?

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Connections

Featured in Jawbreaker Movie Special (2001)

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Soundtracks

Flow
Written by Gary Clark, Eric Pressley and Keely Hawkes
Performed by Transister
Courtesy of Interscope Records
Under license from Universal Music Special Markets and Virgin Records Ltd.

User Reviews

A wicked, funny, twisted flick... I think not

As Heathers did, this film tries to do. It is supposed to be a clever black comedy that is twisted, sick, and you have a hell of a fun time viewing it. Jawbreaker succeeds in nothing. Absolutely nothing. I like Rose McGowan but as you're supposed to, you don't love her. Rebecca Gayheart is the one you're supposed to root for, I couldn't stand her in this role. And the rest of the cast besides the school's principal, fell flat. That's not their fault, it is the faulty script. Unwitty dialogue and unclever antics make this film a downer. After accidently killing a friend they hatch a cover up scheme yet obviously someone is uncovering it. Now one friend must find a way to prove that her friend killed this girl. I didn't get that factor. It was an accident, yes it turned sick, but Courtney didn't actually, purposefully kill the girl. The ending is predictable, and there is crappy casting. I say this because Marilyn Manson is cast as a man that well... does... his real-life love interest Rose McGowan. It's odd, unfunny, and with a black comedy, it should be witty. This isn't. D-

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 February 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jawbreaker

Filming Locations:

Culver City Studio Drive Inn - 5250 N. Sepulveda Drive, Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,603,425, 21 February 1999

Gross USA:

$3,117,085

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,117,085

Company Credits

Production Co:

Crossroads Films, Jawbreaker Productions Inc., Kramer-Tornell Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1