The Duff (2015) Reviews

• An Enjoyable new generation of teen comedy

  bbickley13-921-586642015-02-24

  I never herd the term Duff before and I don't know if it exist in real culture, but it made for a humorous movie. Bianca Piper is The Duff (Designated Ugly Fat Friend). Though it sounds very cruel when spelled out, abbreviated it just means your not as cool or as hot as the friends you hang around, and if your a teenage girl who was made aware of this by your idiot jock next store neighbor without previous knowledge that you were different from your herd, that could put you on a downward spiral. This movie is just more proof that teenagers don't change (technology does and social media plays a very large part in this movie), which is why the movie seems formulated. I would not spoil anything if I told you how it ends so long as you have seen a teen comedy before. I find the topic of the Duff fascinating. The character itself has been seen in every teen movie ever. It's always the main protagonist, the semi-cooler kid that wants the protagonist to party and the third wheel, that now has a name. For the first time in teen comedy history(I think) that third wheel got it's own flick and it turns out the Duff is funnier than the one liners we had it say over the course of time. Mae Whitman played the character with amusing results. I totally recommended seeing this film. highly enjoyable

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• Hilarious, yet deep. And, worthy of a second viewing

  rannynm2015-02-20

  The comedic movie, The Duff, is hilarious, relatable and worth watching. The film is about high-school senior Bianca, played by Mae Whitman, who finds out that she is the DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) of her attractive group of friends. Determined to change her DUFF image and impress her crush Toby, she turns to her popular neighbor Wesley Rush, played by Robbie Amell, to give her a complete makeover. Through her journey of transformation, she gains self confidence and shows the school that everybody is a DUFF. Not only do I enjoy that the movie starts off fast, but I really like that it starts with a cool, graphic newspaper clip that explains high school and the different types of people in high school. Being a high school student myself, I was really surprised at how relatable the movie is, especially to today's generation of teenagers. It doesn't just portray the generic, stereotypical high school student that is so outdated. The movie has a lot of familiar celebrity stars that I enjoyed seeing. The performances by Mae Whitman, Robbie Amell, Allison Janney and Ken Jeong are especially hilarious and very entertaining. The movie is hilarious, yet deep. Most comedy movies are really funny, yet pointless or lack an overall message. I laughed so often and even shed a tear in a heartfelt scene. The facial expressions are priceless and memorable. I respect this film for being extremely funny while also having a deep, motivational moral lesson and theme. I enjoyed the plot and moral of the story as much the comedy. The movie has a lot of references that are very comical. One example is an episode of the Simpsons that the movie shows. The movie also has really entertaining graphics that make the movie even more unique, some of this include labels and an interactive screen effect. This film is one I will watch multiple times and tell my friends to watch, yet I do not recommend it as a family movie. The film may be inappropriate for children under the age of 13 due to inappropriate language and actions. I definitely recommend the movie for teenagers in high school, especially girls. I recommend the movie to ages between 13 and 18. I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars.

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• Not the next "Mean Girls" by any means but funny and entertaining enough

  ArchonCinemaReviews2015-03-14

  Take a look around and survey your group of friends, are they all good looking? Then you might be the designated ugly fat friend, or the DUFF. Bianca's life becomes undone when someone reveals to her that she is the DUFF to her prettier and more popular high school friends. Frustrated, she retaliates by instigating the status quo and social hierarchy at her school. This comedy finds its laughs as Bianca, played by Mae Whitman, desperately tries to reinvent herself and overcome DUFF status. A chronic DUFF, she can't do it alone, and makes a deal with her neighbor Wesley (Robbie Amell) to undo the damage. A fan of Mae Whitman, Robbie Amell is the clear star of this film. Playing an endearing jock without being a cliché is quite a feat and his performance is scene stealing without being a parody. From that plot alone there is not much to the story within the high school film The Duff. The film injects an archetype antagonist, played by Bella Thorne, the most classic mean girl ever invented. This character's existence is solely responsible for the plot feasibly being stretched to feature film length – otherwise the DUFF would be relegated to a solitary episode plot line on a WB television series. Though briefly marketed as the Mean Girls of the 2010's, it really is in an inferior class in comparison to the phenom that was (and is) Mean Girls. The writing, plot and direction are all ho-hum: funny enough for a one time watch with your girlfriends with popcorn, but that's about it. Please check out our website for FULL reviews of all the recent releases.

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• Duff: Defined

  dradutzky2015-02-19

  I had the pleasure of going to see the NYC premiere last night with my sister and was pleasantly surprised. Mae Whitman's performance in this film has set her up to be Hollywood's next breakout star. She brings so much humor, wit and charm to the table that's going to make her fans wanting more. Viewers will also identify with Mae's struggles in the film, as well as the overall message. I think we could all agree that everyone has has a DUFF in their friend group. DUFF doesn't always have to mean ugly or fat (it can, but it doesn't always apply). One example of a DUFF can be a friend that's always just kind of there in the friend group and makes everyone else look better. Another example of a DUFF, which is similar to Mae's character in the film, is the friend of the group that is hilarious and makes everyone die laughing, but is rarely someone a guy is attracted to or would be looking to date. There are different dimensions to the term duff. No duff is the same. Every one person can have a little DUFF in them. Meaning, a flaw, insecurities, etc. Overall, the film was funny, even a bit crude at points, but also very touching. I'd definitely recommend it.

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• Sits right on the edge of being awesome

  paul_3-960-8967742015-03-13

  The DUFF is quite entertaining and has a really nice poignant message. The film captures life, I mean the characters, and I'm mostly referring to Wesley (Robbie Amell) and Bianca (Mae Whitman), are realistic, humanized. I got a weird sense that I was watching people I knew and not a stereotypical film version of them. The movie has that documentary feel to it and it's due to how the leads portrayed their characters and how easy it is to relate to them. The only real disappointment I have with the movie is that I thought it would be funnier. It's still a comedy but it's a little more serious than I expected. Watching the trailer I thought that I would laugh a hell of a lot more, specially when you look at the established comedic cast in it. Whitman and Amell do have good comedic timing and The DUFF is fairly funny but the quality of the jokes are not as high as I hopped they would be. The story is intelligent, insightful, and kind of funny but it's still very predictable. The DUFF is on the edge of being great but it's not. @wornoutspines

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