Sierra Burgess Is a Loser

Sierra Burgess Is a Loser is an American teen comedy-drama film directed by Ian Samuels from a screenplay by Lindsey Beer. The film is a modern retelling of the 1897 play Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand, and stars Shannon Purser, Kristine Froseth, RJ Cyler, and Noah Centineo. The film was released on September 7, 2018, by Netflix.

Sierra Burgess Is a Loser
Film poster
Directed byIan Samuels
Produced by
Written byLindsey Beer
Starring
Music by
CinematographyJohn W. Rutland
Edited byAndrea Bottigliero
Production
companies
Distributed byNetflix
Release date
  • September 7, 2018 (2018-09-07) (United States)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Sierra (Shannon Purser) is smart and aspirational, striving to get admitted into Stanford University. She isn't popular, and not considered attractive. Popular classmate Veronica (Kristine Froseth) both criticises and insults her, which she answers with wit and sidesteps with charm.

Jamey is a handsome football player from another high school; he doesn't know that Veronica has a "boyfriend" attending college, and so Jamey asks for her phone number. Veronica wants to dodge Jamey's attention, so she gives him Sierra's phone number as if it were her own.

Jamey begins texting, they exchange messages and flirt. Although Sierra realises Jamey believes he's communicating with someone else, she develops a crush on him. In band class, Sierra tells her best friend Dan (RJ Cyler) that she has "met a guy", explaining how it happened. Dan disapproves of Sierra for having concealed the facts from Jamey; he says, "It's called catfishing, and I'm pretty sure it's illegal." Sierra defends herself by saying that Jamey's decisions to engage with her have been based solely on his interactions with her, alone.

Sierra approaches Veronica, upset after being dumped by her college boyfriend, Spence, because he considers her dumb. She offers to tutor Veronica, in exchange for help in continuing to talk to Jamey. Veronica agrees, and they begin tutoring. As they continue helping each other, Sierra learns more about Veronica's frustrating family life, and Veronica develops appreciation for Sierra. Veronica reveals how her father abandoned her mother for a 22-year-old and how it has affected them. Her overbearing mother pushes her into cheerleading and popularity. One night, Jamey video calls Veronica, who appears on the camera screen while Sierra talks behind it. The video call soon ends when Jamey tells her there is lag, and as soon as they hang up, Sierra and Veronica gleefully laugh together over the fact that it worked. Although initially cold to one another, Veronica and Sierra end up becoming friends.

When Jamey asks Sierra (who he believes to be Veronica) out on a date, Veronica goes with him as a favor to Sierra. However, when he tries to kiss her, she tells him to close his eyes and Sierra kisses him instead.

Before a football game, Jamey kisses Veronica. She gets angry at him for doing this, because she feels like she is betraying Sierra. Jamey does not understand why she is angry, Sierra witnesses the kiss and gets upset. As revenge, she decides to reveal that Veronica was dumped by her ex-boyfriend. During the football game, Veronica angrily tells Jamey the truth, and when a panicked Sierra attempts to defend herself and explain, he recognizes her voice. Shocked, he tells both Sierra and Veronica to stay away from him and he leaves.

Sierra writes a song called "Sunflower" and sends it to Veronica as an apology. Veronica confronts her mother, telling her she needs to be her own person. Then she shows up at Jamey's to make him listen to the song and tell him that Sierra is a great girl. Jamey decides to forgive Sierra and take her to homecoming, bringing her a sunflower. Jamey expresses his feelings for Sierra, saying that she is exactly his type. They kiss again and go to homecoming together. At the dance, Veronica and Sierra see each other. Without a word, they reconcile by sharing an embrace, and are joined by Dan.

Cast

Production

The film was first announced in September 2016 as a modern retelling of the Cyrano de Bergerac story, to be directed by Ian Samuels from a screenplay by Lindsey Beer (Chaos Walking). Ben Hardy had been set to play the male lead role.[1] In the same announcement, it was revealed Molly Smith and Thad Luckinbill's Black Label Media (Sicario, La La Land) would produce the film, with Beer executive producing.[1] On January 18, 2018, it was announced that Netflix had acquired the rights to the film.[2]

In December 2016, RJ Cyler was cast as the title character's best friend.[3] On January 5, 2017, Shannon Purser was set to star as Sierra Burgess,[4] and the following day, Kristine Froseth was cast in a supporting role.[5] Later that same month, Will Peltz was also added.[6] On February 1, 2017, Noah Centineo was set for the male lead, taking over from Ben Hardy.[7] Also in February 2017, Lea Thompson and Alan Ruck were cast as the title character's parents.[8]

In July 2017, songwriter and musician Leland announced that he had completed scoring the film, with Bram Inscore. In addition, he stated that the pair had also co-written a song with Troye Sivan and Allie X that would be featured in the film. The group co-wrote a song with the film's screenwriter, Lindsey Beer, entitled "Sunflower," an original song written in the script and performed by Shannon Purser.[9]

Release

The film was released on September 7, 2018, on Netflix.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 61% based on 38 reviews, with an average rating of 5.68/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Sierra Burgess Is a Loser, but her movie's okay - largely thanks to Shannon Purser's work in the title role, which is strong enough to counter an uneven narrative."[10] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 60 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews."[11]

The film has been criticized by some for romanticizing certain character choices by the female protagonist, Sierra Burgess, specifically her catfishing and sharing a non-consensual kiss with her love interest, hacking, cyber bullying and mistreating her friend, and pretending to be deaf with support from one of her friends.[12]

See also

References
  1. Fleming Jr, Mike (September 9, 2016). "Ben Hardy to Topline Modern Cyrano de Bergerac Pic 'Sierra Burgess Is a Loser'". Deadline Hollywood.
  2. Hipes, Patrick (January 18, 2017). "Netflix Seals Deal For 'Sierra Burgess Is a Loser'". Deadline. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  3. N'Duka, Amanda (December 1, 2016). "RJ Cyler Cast In 'Sierra Burgess Is A Loser'; Annika Marks Boards 'The Last Champion'". Deadline Hollywood.
  4. Hipes, Patrick (January 5, 2017). "'Stranger Things' Shannon Purser To Star In 'Sierra Burgess Is A Loser'". Deadline Hollywood.
  5. Hipes, Patrick (January 6, 2017). "Kristine Froseth Joins Class For 'Sierra Burgess Is A Loser'". Deadline Hollywood.
  6. Hipes, Patrick (January 27, 2017). "Benedict Hardie Joins 'Stem'; Will Peltz Enrolls In 'Sierra Burgess'". Deadline Hollywood.
  7. N'Duka, Amanda (February 1, 2017). "Miya Cech Joins Fox's 'The Darkest Minds'; Noah Centineo Cast In 'Sierra Burgess Is A Loser'". Deadline Hollywood.
  8. N'Duka, Amanda (February 14, 2017). "Lea Thompson & Alan Ruck Join Black Label's 'Sierra Burgess Is A Loser'". Deadline Hollywood.
  9. Hernandez, Brian Anthony (July 14, 2017). "Songwriter Leland Talks Selena Gomez's 'Fetish' & Working With Fellow Queer Artists". Billboard.
  10. "Sierra Burgess Is a Loser (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  11. "Sierra Burgess Is a Loser Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  12. PROMA KHOSLA SEP 11, 2018. "Netflix's 'Sierra Burgess is a Loser' fails on so many levels: Review". Mashable. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
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