Culture Pick: “Do Revenge” should be on your October watchlist

Anna Hill, Contributing Writer

Netflix’s latest movie release, “Do Revenge,” brought many fandoms together with its intriguing, dramatic and modern storyline. The film includes a range of talented actors; the two main characters are played by Camila Mendes from “Riverdale” and Maya Hawke from “Stranger Things.”  

Drea, played by Mendes, and Eleanor, played by Hawke, are two high school girls who navigate revenge and battle with forgiveness, betrayal, humiliation and the horrors of popularity.  

The movie kicks off with Drea’s life as the “It Girl” of Rosehill, a private school of extremely rich kids, like her best friends Tara, Meghan and Montana. The audience is introduced to Drea and her group, as well as her boyfriend, Max, at a party. 

At first, Drea seems like a carefree, popular student with great friends and infinite support, but as the movie progresses, her struggle with happiness and the consequences of her past decisions unfolds.  

Drea does not feel connected with her friends and never feels like she will fit in because she is not as rich as her classmates and can only afford the school’s tuition through a scholarship. 

At the end of the school year, Drea’s boyfriend Max betrays her by releasing their sex tape and faces no repercussions, even as Drea is put on academic probation for punching him in the face. Suddenly, the whole school and Drea’s best friends take the side of her now ex-boyfriend, and Drea’s world is turned upside down.  

As she deals with being shunned by her social circle, Drea meets Eleanor at a tennis camp over the summer. Drea eventually warms up to Eleanor, a new student at Rosehill, who also has a goal to get her revenge on another student who outed her to the entire class. 

Drea and Eleanor begin their senior year and realize school may be more difficult than they thought, since they have no friends and desperately want revenge on their classmates. So, because no one knows they are friends, they both come up with a plan to “do” each other’s revenge. 

“Do Revenge” includes many colorful wardrobes for every character created by costume designer, Alana Moreshead. In school, the students wear purple and green pastels with gingham and matching accessories. Outside of class, many of the students wear expensive and trendy items. 

In an interview with W Magazine, Moreshead said she looked at movies like “Clueless,” “Heathers” and other 90s and 2000s high school drama movies for clothing inspiration. She chose icons like Twiggy, Naomi Campbell and Harry Styles for fashion inspiration and used color palettes to match the clothing to each character’s personality.  

The film takes many twists and turns, and features fascinating direction by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and inspiration from the 1951 film “Strangers on a Train” directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The storyline is also inspired by 1990s and 2000s movies, which is even mentioned when Eleanor gets a school tour by Max’s sister on her first day. 

One part of the movie that compliments the storyline and keeps up with the chaos is its soundtrack. The film features songs from Olivia Rodrigo, Rosalía, The Cranberries and many more artists, including songs that are great to sing along to and some that match the scenes and the feelings the characters portray.  

With a late-in-the-film twist that’s best left unspoiled and a thematic throughline about why we’re so eager and so comfortable vilifying (and in turn glorifying) such villainy in teenage girls, ‘Do Revenge’ is a frothy delight,” said Manuel Betancourt in a review for Variety. 

Even with such a recent release, “Do Revenge” has received a lot of attention. Its diverse cast, action-packed storyline and notable fashion choices have drawn a lot of viewers who are looking for their next Netflix watch.