The Des Peres Wehrenberg theater was kind enough to allow me to see a free advanced screening of the movie The DUFF. I had seen the previews for the movie and was excited to see it.

When I got to the theater I was very anxious to see if the movie would reach my expectations, and as it began I immediately related to the main character, Bianca, and found her character to be an honest, accurate representation of teenage girls.

The plot features a misunderstood and unique teenage girl, Bianca, who doesn’t know her place in the world. Upon realizing her Designated Ugly Fat Friend (DUFF) status, she gets in a fight with her pretty, popular best friends.

Bianca then turns to Wesley, the most popular guy at her school, to help her become less of a DUFF. In a somewhat cliche twist of events, Bianca ends up falling for Wesley and he falls for her.

In the end, Bianca learns being a DUFF doesn’t mean she’s less important or desirable, and in a sense she realizes everyone is a DUFF in their own way.

Before even seeing the movie I had pretty high expectations, and surprisingly, I wasn’t let down. I planned on the story line being a repetitive and cliche teen movie and although the message of the movie and the love story- the popular guy falls for the nerdy, lame girl- was definitely a cliche, the  message was portrayed was in an original way.

The concept of a DUFF is something a lot of people, especially young girls, can relate to, and in today’s society, many can relate to Bianca’s choice to isolate herself and spend her time on the Internet instead of being socially interactive.

While most teen chick-flicks imply the girl is a misfit and unpopular, The DUFF directly acknowledges the main girl is a “loser.”

The idea of someone being a DUFF may seem slightly offensive, but in my opinion, it’s quite refreshing. So many movies revolve around this idea, but refuse to admit it; The DUFF is direct and blunt about saying Bianca isn’t as pretty or popular as her friends, but that doesn’t mean she’s less than them.

As the DUFF, Bianca learns others can’t define who she is; only she can decide who she is.

The movie is a cliche but also provides a different portrayal of adolescence, one that’s honest about the difficulties and hardships teens face. The message is empowering and encourages people to embrace their uniqueness. I would definitely see The DUFF again. The DUFF comes out in theaters on Feb. 20, and I recommend it to teens who enjoy movies that are somewhat cliche but also quirky teen comedies.