Clueless (1995)

Cher’s big good deed is taking the new girl and remaking her in her own image, and the movie is in no hurry to notice that’s a little rude. Fair warning: you’ll be on Cher’s side the whole way anyway. Alicia Silverstone plays her as shallow, sweet and fully convinced she’s helping, and she lands every line like she rehearsed it in a three-way mirror. Brittany Murphy’s Tai is the heart, a goofy, open-hearted new kid who gets popular fast and lets it go to her head. Paul Rudd’s Josh is the guy reading philosophy at a pool party. The slang is so specific it should have dated instantly, and people still quote it. Amy Heckerling packs 97 minutes with jokes, a computerized closet and a freeway mix-up with Dionne behind the wheel that’s pure panic. It made $56.8 million worldwide on a reported $12M. An 8.3 because it’s much sharper than it pretends to be. $7,627 says you answer someone with a single whatever this week and make the W with your fingers.

What works: Alicia Silverstone’s comic timing is perfect, and the script is packed with lines people still quote decades later.

What doesn’t: The makeover plot is shallower than the movie admits, and a few of the jokes and side characters have aged poorly.

Who it’s for: Anyone who loves a sharp teen comedy, a computerized closet, or a heroine who’s wrong in the most charming way.