Wild Child Review

Another week, another screening where I feel as welcome as Gary Glitter at an international airport. The problem I have with these public shows is I always sit as far away from all the families and teenage girls dressed like Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver as I can. And its this that makes me look like a weirdo. So for the next tweenfare I'm gonna sit right in the middle of these annoying, screeching pre pubescents in the hope that only the ones close to me think I'm a wrong un. The rest of the movie going public will think I'm just sitting with my family. And if anyone complains to an usher, they'll pop their heads in and say, 'Its alright. Its just Owen.'

The Wild Child of the title is Poppy (Emma Roberts) a spoilt little brat whose life revolves around boys and parties. When she pisses off her father one time too many he sends her to Blighty and a private school that would get Ms Hilton to fly right. While there she tries to get herself chucked out by misbehaving in a 12A style way, which means copping off with the headmistresses son. Oooooh take that conventional life!

After months of watching the trailer, thinking Jesus H Christ I may take a pass on this whole watching every movie thing and chase traffic on the M25, I was swayed by the opening titles. Because for all its faults in the idea and the marketing and the plot and the idea and the plot this is after all a Working Titles picture. Which instantly means its been put together by people that know a thing or two about films. And while it takes til halfway through to break me down, it eventually does.

The inclusion of Nick Frost, some quite witty one liners and the central message that us Brits are better at raising children than the Americans, all go down incredibly well. While the film falls a little when Poppy tries to Americanise her new friends, rather than the friends Briticizing her, the crossing the pond idea works well in this context. With the Spartacus ending working better than it should I'd probably say this one of the biggest surprises of the year. In that what I was hoping would be a train wreck, instead, is a better than average teen flick.