Diablo Cody broke into the industry with Juno, winning an Oscar and a BAFTA for the original screenplay. With her penning Jennifer's Body, as well as having actresses like Megan Fox, who was the leading actress of some of the highest grossing films of the 2000s, and Amanda Seyfried, who showed off her comedy chops in Mean GirlsJennifer's Body should have been a critical and commercial success, especially with Karyn Kusama's vision for this feminist, queer piece of horror; however, that was not the case.

It barely earned back its budget domestically, and considering that most films need to make twice their budget to be considered profitable, Jennifer's Body didn't cut it. Along with that, the reviews were mixed, with some critics recognizing the film as a fun satire and others believing it missed the mark. Even audiences thought the film was average at best; however, in more recent years, Jennifer's Body has been getting a second chance at life.

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The film has appeared on best of lists for horror films directed by women, as well as LGBTQ horror movies. This film deserves to be on these lists because it's an excellent B-movie that mixes humor and horror in a way that is fun yet provocative; however, the world of 2009 was not ready for a horror-comedy that was made by women for teen girls, especially one that included queer themes, as well as a feminist message that suits the #MeToo era better than it does an era where the top films were all directed by men, and most films made for women were restricted to the romance genre.

Jennifer's Body follows best friends Needy and Jennifer, who are some of the only survivors of a bar fire; however, Jennifer is taken by the band Low Shoulder, who were performing at the bar. Believing she is a virgin, the band sacrifices Jennifer to Satan, so they can be the next big thing in the industry; however, Jennifer isn't a virgin, and the sacrifice leads to a demon possessing her. While Jennifer's personality stays in tact, physically she develops powers and must eat humans to maintain her strength, and Needy soon realizes her best friend is a threat to the town.

The movie as a whole is unabashedly queer and sex positive. From Jennifer being proud of her body and sexual experiences, to Needy losing her virginity in a short and awkward love-making scene, to the two besties sharing in a passionate kiss, this movie shows that its more than fine for a woman to enjoy sex, that sex can be awkward and that exploring one's sexuality is natural. The film even has students, as well as Jennifer, remarking how her friendship with Needy seems to be more than platonic. Jennifer even proclaims "I go both ways," which is a reference to who she eats, but it is also confirmation for her being one of the rare bisexual, female leads in a film.

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While the film deals with sexuality, and Jennifer does use sex to lure her victims to their deaths, the movie is far from sexy; however, looking back at the sexualized posters, as well as the trailers that focus on how Jennifer is the girl every boy would die for, it's clear the marketing department painted the film out to be a male fantasy. There was even the idea to have Fox host an amateur porn site, which Kusama stopped since the idea was disrespectful to Fox and was inappropriate for a film that had nothing to with the adult entertainment industry.

Kusama and Cody fought against the marketing campaigns, which painted their film to be a cheap flick full of exploitative nudity for boys. They knew that this would tank Jennifer's Body because their target audience may not give it a shot since the advertisements made the film out to be another horror movie that objectifies women, and those who do see it under the notion that it will satisfy their sex fantasies will be disappointed. Unfortunately, this seemed to be the case.

Eleven years later, with the film no longer dependent on its marketing campaign and Kusama becoming a bigger director after The Invitation and Destroyer, the film has been given a second chance. Audiences are realizing the movie has always had sharp and funny dialogue, campy and confident performances and themes that are relevant today and revolutionary for 2009.

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Throughout the film, Jennifer makes remarks to Needy about how the only way for her to be valued or achieve anything is through her body. While she loves her body, it's clear that these sorts of expectations take a mental toll on Jennifer, something the intended teen girl audience can relate to. The film also features the two leads exploring their sexualities, as mentioned earlier, showing how natural it is for girls to pursue sexual relationships, question if they are interested in someone who's the same gender as them and feel simultaneously confident yet confused about how their bodies work.

Furthermore, this film's catalyst, the sacrifice of Jennifer, shows Low Shoulder exploiting, hurting and traumatizing Jennifer all for the betterment of their success in the entertainment industry. With Hollywood, the music industry and so many other branches of entertainment profiting off and taking advantage of women, having a film made by women that calls out this inexcusable behavior eight years prior to 2017's #MeToo movement is equally shocking and important.

While Jennifer's Body was not a success upon release, it has always been a good film that is as fun to watch as it is important. It tackles serious themes of trauma, sexuality and gender, but it does so in a tongue and cheek manner, thanks to the sharp script, visionary directing and camp performances. Jennifer's Body had the cards stacked against it in 2009, but 2020 welcomes the film as a new staple for feminist and queer horror.

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