The Killer Style of Jawbreaker (1999)
When the question of teen media with iconic styling is brought up, there are the usual suspects: Mean Girls, Clueless, and more recently, Euphoria. However, there is another unsung hero that deserves to stand beside these other shows and movies for its distinctive style identity: 1999’s Jawbreaker. The awkward middle child of mean girl clique flicks, it is often forgotten due to the cultural status of its predecessor Heathers and its successor Mean Girls. Nonetheless, it possesses the best of both worlds with its quotability, bitingly dark humor, and of course, memorable fashion which can be attributed to costume designer Vikki Barrett of Clueless and Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion fame.
Jawbreaker follows a trio of high school mean girls (Courtney, Marcie, and Julie) who accidentally kill their fourth. It’s a tradition in the town for teenagers to be “kidnapped” on their birthdays by friends for a surprise day out; this is what happens to Liz Purr, except she ends up choking to death after they stuff a jawbreaker in her mouth as a gag. The designated loser of the school, Fern Mayo finds out about it. In exchange for her silence, the remaining three agree to give her a makeover and make her the newest member of their group, renaming her Vylette.
The movie embraces bright and saturated colors for the wardrobes of the main clique, creating a strong sense of irony. While the actual plot of the movie is quite dark, the girls are dressed head-to-toe in the complete opposite of a palette for mourning. At one point, Vylette wears a completely hot pink ensemble that would make even the Plastics balk: a cropped tank with the word “Bitch” emblazoned across the middle, tight pants, and a jacket littered with silver rhinestones. Think Barbie meets Grease. The use of color is excessive, and there is often no usage of neutral pieces to balance out the brightness. The approach to styling seems to mimic candy itself.
The striking contrast that results from this is evident in one of the first scenes in the film, where they carry Liz’s body away. Clad in high heels and loud hues, the other girls are a far cry from Liz’s ensemble. Liz is dressed in pale colors with pops of bright yellow from the floral pattern on her top; overall, though, she seems to fade away in comparison in perhaps a subtle nod to her death. Soon after, the remaining trio is seen strutting down the school hallway in the same outfits. Notably, the wardrobes are the only visual aspect that is candy-colored. The setting is still normal, so the girls stand out even more against the dreary grays that make up the high school.
Jawbreaker (1999)
Another stand-out quality of the styling is that it’s deliberately anachronistic. While many teen shows and movies seek to accurately reflect the time period it’s set in, Jawbreaker takes inspiration from decades past. Director Darren Stein cites the 80’s and 50’s as the primary reference points. Rather than sporting garments that are traditionally associated with the 90’s, the characters instead don pencil skirts and chiffon neck scarves. This creates an effect similar to what many people have said about Euphoria. Looking like a normal high schooler actually makes one look out of place, especially when put beside the more elaborately dressed protagonists. Partway through the film, one of the clique’s members, Julie, leaves due to her guilt over covering up Liz’s murder. Her style shifts to a more 90s wardrobe of denim jackets and muted colors; in becoming the only main character who looks like she belongs in that time, she also becomes the plainest.
All of this gives the movie a very unique look compared to its contemporaries and makes Jawbreaker worthy of being more people’s style inspiration. As director Darren Stein remarked in an interview, “We really wanted to pull from all time periods: 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s. Everyone's like, ‘It's so 90s!’ But it's not. If it were, the fashion wouldn't be iconic.”
By Julianne Estur