Often, it seems that the high school comedy has become overshadowed by social media, the primary entertainment for teenagers. By 2015, most teenagers scrolled Instagram instead of going to the movies with friends. Fortunately for us, the high school comedy would try and fail to make a comeback with The DUFF (2015), now celebrating its tenth anniversary. The film might not make sense as a realistic portrayal of high school and young people, but it stands out as an effort to bring back the dying genre.
The film begins with an anecdote from Bianca (Mae Whitman) about high school archetypes and how they for sure exist in the real world. What makes a high school comedy work the most is how it heightens the real world, like Superbad (2007) or Heathers (1988). These films focus on more dramatic scenarios (such as an end-of-year party or the murder of the most popular girl in school) to juxtapose the mundanity of real high school life. The DUFF immediately fumbles by trying to explain how high school in real life does in fact mirror its film depiction. The film remedies this by commenting on those archetypes Bianca mentions, but it feels like it is trying too hard to imitate a much better movie.
Despite its tendency to over-dramaticize very mundane high-school drama, the film does contain an interesting premise. Bianca is told by jock Wesley (Robbie Amell) that she is her two friends’ “DUFF” (Designated Ugly Fat Friend), an implication that is incredibly misogynistic. The film continues this thread throughout the rest of the movie by constantly comparing Whitman to conventionally attractive women. While this is an important part of her personality that she unlearns over the course of the plot, it sets a bar that if a girl does not look a certain way, then she must be the DUFF of her friend group.
The DUFF has a solid cast, considering the writing. Whitman is a standout with great comedic timing–one hopes she will get more live-action screen time. Foiling her is Amell’s Wesley, who has a memorable performance as an airhead jock due to his comedic flare matching Whitman’s. Rounding out the supporting cast are Bella Thorne, Bianca Santos, and Skyler Samuels. The cast of “teenagers” is great in terms of performances, with Whitman and Amell having convincing chemistry, but it falls into a common problem of having actors that look too old to be playing high school seniors. This further takes the audience out of the film as it fails to offer a realistic high-school-aged or slightly younger cast to mirror the world it is trying to imitate.
The film is situationally funny at times, but mostly in an awkward way and not because it is actually trying to comment earnestly on teenage life. This humor comes from the cast and direction by Ari Sandel rather than the writing. The script is mediocre, losing steam significantly by the end of the first act. The best teen comedies find creative ways to explore their premise, but The DUFF twiddles its thumbs until it remembers that it needs to resolve the entire idea of whether or not Bianca embodies the label Wesley gave her.
The entire second act of the film focuses on a forced friends-to-lovers romance between Bianca and Wesley, which detracts from the idea of individuality and self-love the first act sets up. If the movie came out today, there would likely be no indication of Bianca and Wesley liking each other, instead focusing on how Bianca does not need to prove herself to anyone romantically or platonically. This further dates the film by reminding the audience that the big kiss at the end is what the film wants to focus on. This reliance on romance is tired and further exhibits how the film falls into tropes while at the same time trying to critique those same generic tropes and traditions.
Although the film is only ten years old, it feels older due to the dialogue and depiction of teenage life: Vine still exists, Instagram is known for food pictures, and Facebook is still used. Writing the film to pander to such a specific audience at such a specific time detracts from its efforts to place itself within the same field as Superbad.
The DUFF wants to be like iconic films and this is visible in its dialogue and plot, but it comes off even more dated than a film like Heathers, which has witty, if corny, dialogue and a far more dramatic plot. The DUFF has dialogue that is, at least in 2025, incredibly cringe-inducing rather than witty which causes many to turn away instead of embrace it. It’s not a teen comedy for the ages; it’s a teen comedy for 2015.
The DUFF is an example of a film that tried to be different but could not help but fall into its own trap. Other teen comedies from the 2000s and even earlier maintain relevance because of how timeless the plot and characters are even if a few jokes are dated. Perhaps with time this film will get its just desserts and be more understood as a time capsule rather than a cringe-inducing, mediocre film. As The DUFF turns just a decade old, it becomes evident that piggybacking off of internet trends and using a misogynistic plotline ages a film more than one would expect.
Retrospective Courtesy of Nadia Arain
Image Credit to Lionsgate Pictures via IMDb