Guilty Pleasures: Election (1999)

Election

1999

Alright, technically Election isn’t a guilty pleasure. With a 93% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, this brilliant satire is nothing if not a cult classic and critical darling. Perhaps what is guiltily pleasurable about this film, however, is the fact that every Penn student has a little bit of Tracy Flick in 'em. After all, Reese Witherspoon's Tracy is the ultimate conniving perfectionist — an Ivy League-style mess of competitiveness, anal retention and surprising sexuality — in desperate pursuit of the elusive student council presidency.

Darkly humorous and bitingly satirical, this is the ultimate high-school-movie-for-adults (take that, Nick and Norah). And while Witherspoon carries the film (with an absurd intonation that undoubtedly helped inspire Sarah Palin by way of Tina Fey), Chris Klein’s beautiful but dumb football stud and Matthew Broderick’s bitter social studies teacher infuse it with high school stereotypes of the best variety.

So pick Flick. Because love her or hate her, you are her. Embrace it.

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