The Unicorn Scale: Jennifer's Body

The horror genre can be a complicated one. We all know the trope, you have sex, and you die. Sometimes the spunky good girl virgin lives to fight and kill the bad guy, and if you’re lucky, you’ll see some boobies. Obviously, this is an oversimplification, but you know what I’m talking about.

I’m always happy to see a horror movie that plays with these tropes, and Jennifer’s Body is definitely a movie that tries to do that. If you aren't familiar with our Unicorn Scale, head over here for some details. Also, be warned there will be SPOILERS from here on out and a content warning: blood. 

Jennifer’s Body stars Megan Fox (#OneOfUs) as Jennifer. After a bad night with a mediocre (and Satan-worshipping) band (led by Adam Brody), she becomes a bloodthirsty succubus. Her best friend Anita (Amanda Seyfried) is faced with the decision of whether to protect or kill Jennifer. 

What I Liked:

Anita and Jennifer's friendship is admittedly toxic and slightly insane even before Jennifer becomes a succubus. In large part, the movie is about Anita breaking free of Jennifer's thrall. However, I really appreciated that the main focus was actually the friendship between these two young women. 

Anita has a boyfriend, Jennifer's a succubus, but the story is really about a female friendship. Yeah, that's pretty awesome. And it's a horror(ish) movie, a genre that doesn't normally prioritize female friendships. 

So why is this a Unicorn Scale? From the beginning, Jennifer and Anita's friendship seems a little bit extra. Yes, Anita has her sweet boyfriend, Chip, who she clearly loves, and Jennifer is shown as quite the teen vamp, but their closeness takes priority over any of those romantic relationships. 

Jennifer is almost dangerously possessive of her friend, and Anita will defend Jennifer no matter what. 

But the movie doesn't just settle for implying that their friendship has the element of a crush. Yes, they are shown holding hands in a manner that seems more than friendly at a concert, and other students tease them about their closeness, but Jennifer's Body actually makes their crush explicit. 

At one point, Jennifer shows up in Anita's bedroom and says, "We always share your bed when we have slumber parties." She then begins to stroke Anita's hair, leans in, and kisses her. Anita kisses back, and the two end up making out on the bed, and both of them seem pretty into it. 

It becomes clear that Jennifer only cares about Anita and Anita's attention when Jennifer attempts to eat Anita's boyfriend, Chip. In a reverse sleeping beauty, Anita climbs through the thorns in her hideous formal gown to save the helpless Chip. 

She finally breaks free of Jennifer's thrall and realizes that her best friend has been using her throughout their entire friendship. She also learns that she needs to take some of Jennifer's power, that, in fact, she can't spend her life being passive and nice. 

What I Didn't Like:

A case could be made for the whole hypersexual bi woman stereotype. Jennifer's literally hungry for everyone's love and consumes them with her out-of-control sexuality. She uses men and women's attractions to her to feed her own ego and eventually to feed her supernatural hunger.

However, I feel like she is well balanced by Anita being the only one in the town who can recognize the pattern of mutilated bodies as being a pattern. Anita rejects Jennifer's toxic sexuality while still remaining sexual, which I really appreciate as well. 

The Rating: 

In all honesty, this movie is far from perfect. However, I really enjoy the campy dark comedy of it. In terms of bi representation, I love that they shared the stereotype but also gave us a smart, resourceful bi woman with a real character arc. I was really pleasantly surprised when I rewatched this and am going to give it 4 shiny unicorns.