Last night we rented The DUFF on Xbox Video. I have a tendency to enjoy these types of movies (Easy A is one of my favorite movies) so I figured this would be enjoyable. It turns out my hunch was right. A lot of people have seen trailers for this movie and laughed it off as a silly premise and assumed the movie would be terrible. I’m here to assure you that that is not the case with this movie.

Mae Whitman plays the socially awkward character Bianca perfectly and is enjoyable to watch (just as she was in The Perks of Being a Wallflower). Her chemistry with Robbie Amell’s character, Wes, is great throughout and even as their unlikely romance is predictable it’s still great to watch it unfold.

The DUFF deals with many issues that plague high school life, but one of the primary issues it addresses is cyberbullying. A video taken of Bianca as she loosens up and enjoys herself for once is edited by her peers who attempt to humiliate her and the video goes viral over the course of a single day. The damage that can be done by this type of cyberbullying is briefly addressed, however the way that Bianca overcomes this bullying is heartwarming to watch, even if the entire situation isn’t entirely realistic.

Overall I enjoyed The DUFF from beginning to end, and am not ashamed to admit it. I definitely recommend checking it out, especially if you’ve enjoyed other films such as Easy A.