Clueless - Genre

• Conventions/Themes


  • Sexual awareness & attraction as driving factor
  • Transition from adolescence to adult
  • Relates to TA
• Why produce coming-of-age genre?


  • Guarantees success
  • Relatable themes & conventions
  • Predictable
  • Audience finds comfort (U&G model personal identity, personal relationships & diversion into overdramatic films)
  • Easy to target audience
  • Teen genre relatability (V&G)
  • Max. profits & min. risks
  • Themes aren't 'too out there'
• Dialogue


  • Influential language
  • Teen genre iconography (pop music, character archetypes, colourful clothes)
  • Use linguistic/Californian style of speech
  • Pop culture references
• Dialogue


  • A 'full on Monet' (far away they're okay, but a mess up close)
  • A Baldwin (famous & handsome Baldwin bros)
  • Her life is a Noxzema commercial
  • Great singers of the past who now do infomercials (Lori Davis hair products, Dionne Warwick psychic friends network)
  • Cher calls J Kato' (K Kaelin witness in OJ Simpson case, lived in his guesthouse)
  • Flintstones characters (Betty Babe & Barney Lame Guy)
• Dialogue


  • Reflects personal attitude & interests
  • Also creates divisions between them (in-groups)
• Conventions/Iconography


  • Colourful clothes typical, teens take pride in appearance, primary colours (draws attention)
  • Female protagonist cares about boys, fashion & popularity, has a romance/crushes (stereotype)
  • Mainstream songs audience relates & engages with (e.g. 'All by Myself' relates to love for Josh & isolation)
  • Romance, young love, TA relates
  • Substances (alcohol & drugs) - warning, experiment
  • Life changes (e.g. moving school, fitting in, desire of acceptance)
  • Designer, boys, alcohol, parties
  • Parents have issues (divorce, dead wife)
  • Teen overcoming obstacle (e.g. her & T fallout)
• Conventions/Iconography


  • Bully/villain (Elton)
  • Crushes & flirting, in them over
  • Shopping malls, importance of fashion for teens
  • CD & players, phones mise-en-scene
  • Peer pressure, drugs & alcohol, addicted
  • Cliques (Persian Mafia, AV station, popular boys, jocks)
  • Setting (quaint vs stereotypical), loadies (stoners sit on grass)
  • Worried about diet 'are you sure that's fat free?'
  • Makeover, new hair, makeup, showing skin (cut clothes), montage (supermodel), workout on TV
  • 'Wants to do something good for humanity' TA's 'project, HS fundraiser