You Need To Watch “Moxie” ASAP!
By Jennifer DiTomasso
Released the first week of March, “Moxie” is Netflix’s latest original film. Directed by Amy Pohler, the movie follows 16-year-old Vivian after she anonymously publishes a zine criticizing the sexisim at her high school. Although the film has some stumbles, its incredible soundtrack, on-point costume design, and messages about female unity make “Moxie” a joyful story about a group of young women finding their footing as feminists.
The movie addresses a variety of important issues faced by young women today, such as unfair dress codes, lack of recognition in sports, harassment, sexual assault, and racism. The girls work together to face these issues as a united front, sometimes failing and other times making real, significant change. The movie is not afraid to acknowledge the ways in which these issues are both cultural and institutional, and through Principle Shelly and Mr. Davies we see the way that Rockport High’s staff, policies, and scholarships discriminate against its female population. The girls of Moxie aren’t just fighting against the boys in their grade who neg and objectify them, but also the teachers who call CJ by her deadname and a principal who actively ignores claims of harassment. Through the character of Claudia the movie also reminds the audience that when it comes to activism there is no right way to be a feminist, teaching girls that everyone deserves the freedom to do things their own way.
Vivian is initially inspired to start Moxie after perusing her mother’s collection of Riot Grrl memorabilia. Started in the 1990s, the Riot Grrrls were a group of high school and college aged feminists whose activism focused on female friendship, girl power, and providing a safe space to share stories of assault and harassment. With strong ties to the punk scene in Olympia, Washington, the face of Riot Grrrl is often considered to be Kathleen Hanna of the band Bikini Kill (although Hanna has publicly contested this assertion). Her song “Rebel Girl’,’ the retrospective anthem of this movement, is played multiple times in the movie at critical moments. Additionally, the song’s lyrics are reflective of the relationship and first meeting between Vivian and Lucy, the new girl at Rockport who boldly asserts that she will “keep her head up – high” in the face of harassment from male students. Overall, “Moxie” is a love letter to the Riot Grrrls, with references and easter eggs scattered throughout the film. From the hearts and stars drawn on hands to the presence of zines and the phrase “Girls to the front,” Moxie aims to convert an entirely new generation to the Riot Grrrls revolution.
Moxie is by no means a perfect movie. The story could spend more time delving into the inner lives of its POC and LGBT characters, displaying the intersectionality of racism, transphobia, and misogyny in ways other than the occasional quip. The movie also missed an opportunity with its disabled character Meg. We constantly get glimpses of the ways in which she is discriminated against for being in a wheelchair, yet we never get to hear from her in a meaningful way, nor do we see how Moxie unites to help her the way they do for other characters.
That said, the film is still worth attention. It manages to tackle a lot of issues in a meaningful, if imperfect, way. At its core, Moxie’s value is in starting a conversation. The film captures that fire you have when you see the world for exactly what it is. Those first moments when you realize the ways in which you have been treated differently for being born a woman. Watching Vivian create her first Moxie zine, bike to the copy store in the pouring rain, and aggressively demand copies from the clerk is hilarious and cathartic for those of us who experienced that same moment, allowing us to revel in that specific, female anger. Vivian is the perfect heroine for this imperfect story. She makes mistakes and acts out of turn and sometimes does things that make the audience cringe. And the narrative is unafraid to lean into these mistakes, to question Vivian’s actions when she allows her race, privilege, and ego to supersede the struggles of those around her. Like many of us have since high school, Vivian will likely develop her ideas about feminism, growing more educated and intersectional. But this movie shows her flawed beginnings, and does a great job planting the seeds for the next generation.
As Lucy asserts after the first Moxie zine is published, “I’m just glad that we’re talking about this.”