When people think of classic dark comedies about teens, they probably think of Heathers or Mean Girls, but Darren Stein’s Jawbreaker is too often overlooked. The pitch-black comedy depicts three popular girls who accidentally kill the fourth member of their clique by gagging her with a jawbreaker. They then spend much of the film's runtime trying to get away with the murder. While reviews were poor during the initial release, people who gave the movie a chance most likely noticed its memorable characters and eye-popping style.
Jawbreaker feels like a '90s time capsule, and it should be considered a major staple of the time period. Every aspect reflects the '90s, from the punk rock band at the prom to the unique outfits that are now considered influential. Furthermore, its cast features some of the most iconic actors of that decade, like Rose McGowan and Rebecca Gayheart.
Besides representing the '90s, Jawbreaker is the definition of a perfect black comedy. The film features murder, great one-liners and female rivalry, all things that made teen staple Heathers such a hit. Heathers is undeniably a great black comedy about Veronica Sawyer and her insane boyfriend, JD, killing several classmates, and it gets lots of attention for being so influential; however, Jawbreaker does nearly the same thing, only a tad bit better.
In Jawbreaker, the predictable route would be for Courtney, the queen bee of Reagan High, to murder more of her classmates, like Veronica and JD do, but there is no more death after the opening of Jawbreaker. Instead, the film becomes a high school-noir crossed with a John Hughes movie on crack. Courtney manipulates everyone around her instead of becoming more violent, causing the film to rely more on wit than shock value.
Jawbreaker is also a very female-driven movie, more so than Heathers. While Heathers has a leading lady with Veronica, it's JD who's the main source of conflict. He is the catalyst for all the violence, and if he was taken out of the equation, none of the events of the film would transpire. In Jawbreaker, Courtney is the mastermind behind all of the diabolical events that plague the students of Reagan High. In fact, the whole movie relies on the female characters, with the male characters primarily being there to serve the women.
A lot of people could say that Heathers influenced Jawbreaker and other teen comedies, but the queen bee archetype seen in later films owes plenty to Courtney as well. Courtney steals the film as the leading lady, cementing that these kinds of characters can carry a movie, as seen in films like Mean Girls.
Mean Girls, which is one of the most popular teen, black comedies of the 21st century, wouldn't be what it is if it weren't for Heathers and Jawbreaker, with both movies exploring the twisted hierarchies of high school in their own ways. Jawbreaker specifically seems to have heavily influenced Mean Girls, with the latter recreating the iconic hallway strut from Jawbreaker; however, this version features protagonist Cady falling into the trash.
Despite the lack of attention from the wider public, Jawbreaker has been re-appraised by some as a teen classic. The film lingers in pop culture, having been made into a musical and parodied in Not Another Teen Movie. It is also beloved by some members the LGBTQ community, being screened at 2016's Rupaul's Dragcon. There is no doubting that Jawbreaker has become a cult classic for some, but its influence goes beyond its niche audience, and it deserves a wider appreciation.