I'm a fan of Mean Girls, and Juno, and I'm always down for a look at the world through the lens of high school, so Easy A was a no-brainer. Starring the delightful Emma Stone, the movie provides first-person narration of the highs and lows of a season in the life of an American teenager. But this American teenager has more than her own fair share of problems, as she seems to be the saint of lost causes and a bit of a lost cause herself.

Olive (Stone) is well-loved by her family but ignored by her peers. She has nothing which attracts her to other teenagers in her own mind, but she's bright and witty, and the audience is soon eating out of her hand, er, video blog. Her parents (Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson) are interested and engaged, but not obtrusive, and her favorite English teacher (Thomas Haden Church) knows something is up with his favorite student in the midst of their reading of The Scarlet Letter. But only Olive knows the full picture of what is going on, and it is quite a painting.

Olive lies to her best friend about a one-night stand that she didn't have, which leads to "favors" provided to various boys in the school. She is soon reveling in her infamy, ironically enjoying the "A" which she has chosen for herself, as it brings her attention and meaning within the high school framework. But, of course, this isn't going to last, and she's bound to see the pain that she's causing to herself and to others, right? Sure, in due time, after much humor, and a bit of plot development, and a few opportunities for us to reflect on identity, dishonesty, and the public arena as a place for both truth and gossip to get completely jumbled up.

I found the movie to be completely hysterical, and fun, but also pretty realistic (and thought-provoking). Who do we allow to determine our moral code, and our personal worth? How can we establish ourselves individually and yet still exist within societal norms (and should we)? One of the key elements to which Olive compares/contrasts herself is the "Christianevangelical" front (Amanda Bynes & Co.) that gives the movie a Saved feel. And, as seems to be typical in mainstream media, the church doesn't come out looking so hot, but a couple of the critiques are valid. At one point, Bynes' Marianne cries out, "God wants us to love the homosexuals and (prostitutes) but it's so HARD!" Again, my faith doesn't have a hierarchy of sin (no sin is greater than another) but it does come across that way when "church leaders" are quoted on the nightly news.

But this isn't just about bashing organized religion, and that shouldn't keep you from giving it a spin. It's a helpful look at what it means for parents to talk with their kids, and to determine what line of "full disclosure" is appropriate. It takes a crack or two at how the problems of adults often cause more heartache in the lives of kids, and how young people are often forced to bear the burden that wasn't really theirs to carry. And among other things, it shows how sometimes, finding real love means loving yourself first and being loved by someone who doesn't care about your fatal flaws.

Olive finds peace, solace, and a place where she belongs when she "comes clean." There's a certain amount of "confession is good for the soul" that brings closure to the movie and allows us to see the moral of the story, the conclusion of the parable. We often push it to the periphery, but "the truth shall set you free" is a great axiom, and the truth here is that if you open yourself up to the heart of Easy A, you'll be better for it.