Line #31 Film/Clueless


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/clueless_poster_1.jpg]]
2	%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.
3
4	->''"Ugh! As if!"''
5	-->-- '''Cher Horowitz'''
6
7	''Clueless'' is a 1995 American teen comedy of manners, written and directed by Amy Heckerling.
8
9	The film is loosely based on Creator/JaneAusten's ''Literature/{{Emma}}'', but [[SettingUpdate updates]] its Regency England setting for [[ItCameFromBeverlyHills a Beverly Hills high school]]. The "handsome, clever, and rich" heroine is spoiled and shallow, but essentially good-hearted, teenager Cher Horowitz (Creator/AliciaSilverstone). After she successfully matchmakes two of her teachers, Cher realizes that she enjoys bettering the lives of others around her, even though her ex-stepbrother Josh (Creator/PaulRudd) doesn't believe she does it out of altruism.
10
11	Cher decides her next project will be the mousy new transfer student, Tai (Creator/BrittanyMurphy). In her attempt to transform Tai into a pretty and popular girl, shenanigans ensue. Cher grows up a little and realizes that she might not be so infallible after all.
12
13	The film contains funny, but affectionate, jabs at early '90s teen culture, high school, and {{Valley Girl}}s, and introduced a fresh wave of California slang across the world. Creator/StaceyDash, Creator/DonaldFaison, and Creator/WallaceShawn also star.
14
15	Three YA novels (''Cher Negotiates New York, An American Betty in Paris,'' and ''Achieving Personal Perfection'') actually carried on the story after the movie's end; when the TV series was developed, the novels became based on the show.
16
17	Later inspired a TV adaptation that ran for three seasons (first on [[Creator/AmericanBroadcastingCompany ABC]] and [[ChannelHop later]] on Creator/{{UPN}}) featuring much of the same cast as the film, with the notable exceptions of Silverstone (replaced in the lead by Creator/RachelBlanchard), Murphy, and Rudd, who all went on to have successful film careers after the original was released.
18
19	A JukeboxMusical adaptation had a short run off-Broadway from December 2018 through January 2019, but was poorly received. A new musical adaptation, featuring original music by Music/KTTunstall and lyricist Glenn Slater, is opening in the West End in 2024. A series of graphic novels based on the film (co-written by Creator/AmberBenson), ''Senior Year'' and ''Our Last Summer'', were released by Creator/BoomStudios in 2017 and 2018.
20	----
21	!! "Sex. Tropes. Popularity. Is there a problem here?"
22
23	* TheNineties: An odd but valid example -- the whole movie seems really dated looking back, but at the time it was made, nobody dressed or talked like the characters in ''Clueless''. The movie influenced the '90s, not the other way around. It should be noted that some of the clothing, specifically the looks sported by the teen guys, is still relevant and prevalent as of TheNewTens.
24	* ActuallyPrettyFunny: Even though Heather's his girlfriend (at the time) and he's been engaged in SnarkToSnarkCombat with Cher up to this point in the movie, Josh laughs at Cher's line about how she remembers who said "To thine own self be true". (see ShoutOutToShakespeare below).
25	* AdaptationTitleChange: ''Clueless'' is loosely based on ''Literature/{{Emma}}''.
26	* AdaptationalAngstDowngrade: The scene in which Cher carelessly offends Lucy with her "I don't speak Mexican" comment and is chided by Josh is a loose, and much less serious, equivalent to the pivotal scene from ''Literature/{{Emma}}'' in which Emma publicly insults Miss Bates at the picnic and is sternly reprimanded by Mr Knightley. However, numerous other events, such as the failure of her driving test and her fight with Tai, collectively send Cher into the same inner turmoil that the events at the picnic induced for Emma.
27	* AdaptedOut: Due to Christian being gay, there is no Jane Fairfax equivalent.
28	* AffairHair: Dionne finds an entire braided hair extension in Murray's car, and accuses him of infidelity. When Murray jokingly suggests it may have fallen off Dionne herself, she reacts angrily, yelling, "I do ''not'' wear polyester hair!"
29	* AllPeriodsArePMS: When Murray and Dionne have another one of their typical fights and they accuse the other of commiting infidelity, Murray asks her "Is it that time of the month again?". Cue the gasps of many students gathered around the couple listening and Dionne shooting Murray an angry look.
30	* AlphaBitch: Both Cher and Amber subvert this. Cher is rich, beautiful, and one of the most popular girls in school, but she doesn't act like a typical alpha bitch (though she is dismissive of Travis in the beginning). Amber ''does'' act like an alpha bitch, [[DownplayedTrope but a milder one,]] and Cher is higher on the high school social pecking order. Also, while the two snipe at each other, they don't seem to hate each other or try to destroy each other's lives.
31	* AmbiguouslyJewish: The Horowitzes. The series makes it more explicit with Cher singing "I Have a Little Dreidel".
32	* AnswerCut: After Christian ends his date with Cher early, she wonders why he didn't respond to her:
33	-->'''Cher:''' What's wrong with me?
34	-->'''Dionne:''' (''in the car the next day'') Nothing! Maybe he really was tired.
35	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: Cher calls Josh for a ride home from a party because her driver abandoned her:
36	-->"This guy with a gun held me up, took my money and my phone, and he yelled at me and he forced me to ruin my dress!"
37	* ArtsyBeret: Josh briefly has a pretentious college girlfriend, who talks condescendingly about philosophy and wears a beret. She's not quite as intellectual as she thinks she is, as she mangles a Shakespeare quote that Cher knows correctly.
38	* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther:
39	** While most of the time Dionne and Murray are snapping at each other, Cher notes they really are affectionate with each other when they think no one's looking.
40	** Same with Josh and Cher, as most of the time when the two are bickering, neither can stand it when the other gets hurt. (Cher disapproves of Tai liking Josh because she likes Josh; Josh argues with a lawyer who insults Cher over a minor mistake.)
41	* BelligerentSexualTension: Cher and Josh who spend most of the time bickering and fighting before falling for one another and eventually dating.
42	* BigFancyHouse:
43	** Cher's mansion. It's big enough to throw Mr. Hall and Ms. Geist's wedding.
44	** Also Dionne’s house, which is enormous and beautiful, even if it’s not a mansion.
45	* BirdsOfAFeather: Tai and Travis, who are both to some extent "stoners", end up becoming a couple.
46	* BlackComedy: Travis seems to lead a depressing teenage life, though [[ThePollyanna he faces it all with a smile]]. He tries to commit suicide when he sees the grades on his report card and cheerfully thanks his parents for never giving him a ride to school, hinting at either ParentalNeglect or simply them not having the means to help their kid ride to school (or both). This is all PlayedForLaughs.
47	* BlatantLies: When Christian asks Cher if she likes Music/BillieHoliday. Cher replies: "I love him." Christian clearly sees through the lie, even if Cher remains clueless.
48	* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Cher, Dee and Tai, respectively, with Dee as the TokenMinority type. Amber replaces Tai in the show.
49	* BouquetToss: At the end of the film, the girls have a minor catfight over Ms. Geist's bouquet. It helps that their dates made a bet on which one of them will get the bouquet.
50	%%* BrainlessBeauty: Cher, undoubtedly and her friends to lesser extent.
51	* BreakUpBonfire: While they weren't actually ''together'', Tai decides to burn the items she held on to that reminded her of Elton in Cher's fireplace.
52	* ButchLesbian: Cher describing her gym teacher Miss Stooger, who dresses and behaves in a masculine way but also gives good girl advice to some of her students on getting over bad break-ups form boys. She even wears a tuxedo to [[spoiler: Mr. Hall and Ms. Geist's wedding at the end.]]
53	-->'''Cher:''' And in the grand tradition of all gym teachers, Miss Stooger seemed to be same-sex oriented.
54	* CantTakeCriticism: Downplayed with Cher, who thinks grades are something to be negotiated, instead of a reason to improve her schoolwork.
55	* CaptainObvious: Cher helpfully explaining how to attract a boy's attention, and the reasoning behind her methods:
56	-->'''Cher:''' Sometimes you have to show a little skin. This reminds boys of being naked, and then they think of sex.
57	* CliqueTour: Cher shows Tai the ropes of high school by showing her the cliques as they walk up to the school entrance. She points out the people who run the TV station, the "Persian mafia", and the popular boys before the conversation is derailed.
58	* ComicallyMissingThePoint:
59	** Amber accuses Cher of talking about "some ''little'' party" instead of their assigned debate topic, but Cher points out that it was her dad's fiftieth birthday, which is hardly little.
60	** Travis thinking his record of getting to class late the most times is cause for celebration - complete with ''acceptance speech''.
61	* CompletelyOffTopicReport: Cher summarizes Haitian/American relations for her class debate this way (while mis-pronouncing it as Hay-ti-uns):
62	-->So like, right now for example. The Haitians need to come to America. But some people are all, "What about the strain on our resources?" Well it's like when I had this garden party for my father's birthday, right? I put R.S.V.P. 'cause it was a sit-down dinner. But some people came that like did not R.S.V.P. I was like totally buggin'. I had to haul ass to the kitchen, redistribute the food, and squish in extra place settings. But by the end of the day it was, like, the more the merrier. And so if the government could just get to the kitchen, rearrange some things, we could certainly party with the Haitians. And in conclusion may I please remind you it does not say R.S.V.P. on the Statue of Liberty. Thank you very much.
63	%%* DeadpanSnarker: Josh. Cher also has her moments, especially when she's interacting with him.
64	* DistractedByTheSexy: Cher undoes her pigtails to get her hair down and Josh gets distracted, much to their lawyer's annoyance, and gets called out on it.
65	* DontTellMama: When Dionne finds out Murray is shaving his head at the party, she gets angry and tells him she's going to call his mother. Murray, who had been mocking her up to this point, immediately gets upset and pleads with her not to call his mother.
66	* EntitledBastard: Elton, who Cher characterizes as ''a snob and a half'' after he says he couldn't date Tai because "do you even know who my father is?"
67	* EroticEating: Cher does this eating chocolates she bought herself in order to make the guy she likes jealous.
68	-->'''Cher:''' (narrating) Also, anything you can do to draw attention to your mouth is good.
69	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: In the first scene after the opening montage, we see Cher use a computer program to choose a suitably co-ordinated outfit for school, after which she heads to the kitchen and tries to persuade her dad to have a glass of orange juice with breakfast, reminding him that his doctor is concerned about his health. This establishes her as placing significant value on both personal appearance and the well-being of those she cares about, and it provides an early hint that she's not as shallow as she initially seems.
70	* {{Expy}}: Several characters, as the film is basically a SettingUpdate of Jane Austen's ''Literature/{{Emma}}''.
71	** Cher is Emma Woodhouse.
72	** Josh is Mr. Knightley.
73	** Cher's father is Mr. Woodhouse.
74	** Tai is Harriet Smith.
75	** Christian is Frank Churchill.
76	** Travis is Robert Martin.
77	** Elton is Mr. Elton.
78	** Amber is Mrs. Elton.
79	** Ms. Geist is Miss Taylor/Mrs. Weston.
80	** Mr. Hall is Mr. Weston.
81	** To a lesser extent, Dionne and Murray are Isabella and John Knightley.
82	%%* TheFashionista: Mainly Dionne, but also Christian and of course Cher herself. This is the woman that gave knee socks to TheNineties.
83	* TheFilmOfTheBook: A modern-day adaptation of ''Emma'' by Jane Austen.
84	* FlirtyStepsiblings: Cher and Josh, who initially fight like siblings but end up getting together romantically. It helps that their parents are no longer married.
85	* {{Foreshadowing}}:
86	** In his introductory scene, Christian (who's later revealed to be gay) stands in front of a sign saying "End Discrimination." In the scene where Cher is packing for her father and is surprised by Christian's call, he is at a museum; the painting behind him is of two men affectionately in an embrace, another foreshadow of his sexuality.
87	** The films that Christian watches on video with Cher, ''Film/SomeLikeItHot'' and ''{{Film/Spartacus}}'', provide clues to his sexual orientation. The first movie deals with cross-dressing men (who are escaping from a mob hit). The second includes the famous scene where a Roman master (Creator/LaurenceOlivier) tries to seduce his male servant (Creator/TonyCurtis).
88	** The book Christian is reading during class, ''Junky'' by Creator/WilliamSBurroughs, is another clue and indication of his sexual orientation, as its author had strong homosexual desires.
89	** When Christian first appears at the class, Cher has new hopes for high school boys. However, as the shot pans from her gaze to him in the doorway, just over his left shoulder on the wall in the classroom is a cutout headline from the newspaper which reads, "On the Road to Nowhere."
90	** When Cher comes downstairs in her white Calvin Klein dress for her date with Christian, the ReactionShot of her arrival is given to Josh and not Christian.
91	* FourthDateMarriage: Subverted. The scene where Cher and Josh admit their feelings for each other and kiss is immediately followed by a wedding scene... at which point, Cher's voice-over points out how gross it is for anyone to assume that it's ''her'' getting married, seeing as she's only sixteen and "this is California, not Kentucky." The wedding is actually for the teachers she set up earlier in the movie. Also serves as commentary on the reality of Austen’s times, where girls very much did get married at 16 after four "dates."
92	* FourGirlEnsemble: Dionne (sexy and glamorous), Tai (ditzy and clueless), Amber (snarky and haughty), and Cher (conflicted protagonist).
93	* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Cher (Sanguine), Dionne (Choleric), Christian (Melancholic), and Tai/Murray (Phlegmatic).
94	* FreezeFrameBonus: Cher's report card. The comment from her (male) geometry teacher is "Nice shapes".
95	* FunnyBackgroundEvent: Several. Most involving Elton. One has him [[ProudBeauty admiring his reflection]] in one of his CD's during one of Cher's inner monologues, another has him [[{{Squick}} flossing his teeth]] during Ms. Geist's lecture on the Pismo Beach disaster.
96	* GeekyAnalogy: Searching for a boy in high school is as useless as searching for meaning in a Creator/PaulyShore movie.
97	* GeekyTurnOn: Tai and Travis bond over [[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Marvin the Martian]].
98	* TheGlassesGottaGo: Cher and Dionne give Mrs. Geist a speedy makeover that mostly consist of removing her glasses, tucking her shirt and fluffing her hair.
99	* GladToBeAliveSex: Dionne and Murray do this after she almost gets into an accident while driving on the freeway.
100	-->'''Cher:''' (''voiceover'') And that's when Dionne's virginity went from "technical" to "non-existent".
101	* GoneHorriblyRight: At the beginning, Cher helps give Tai a makeover and attempts to make her "fit in" as one of the new popular girls. This winds up backfiring on her later in the film when Tai's popularity at school skyrockets due to her "near-death experience" at the mall, leaving Cher less popular (if for a while, depending).
102	* GoodBadGirl: Most everyone, but especially Cher. The primary theme of the movie comes down to it being possible to be vapid, shallow, and even a little naughty (Cher is shown drinking and smoking a little at a party) while still having a good heart with good intentions.
103	* GoodFeelsGood: The premise is Cher coming to realize this. She starts out meddling in her teachers' love lives to schmooze them for better grades, then befriends the new girl she originally saw as a project. By the end, she volunteers to head a donation drive at school.
104	* GossipEvolution: By the time news of Tai's incident gets back to Cher (who witnessed it), it's turned into an attempted gang execution.
105	* HeldGaze: One long held gaze happens between Cher and Josh towards the end which becomes TheBigDamnKiss with that as the lead-in.
106	%%* HeterosexualLifePartners: Cher and Dionne.
107	* HighSchoolAU: The work takes the Regency England setting of ''Emma'' and relocates it to a 1990s California high school.
108	* HurricaneOfEuphemisms: When Murray is telling Cher that Christian is gay.
109	--> '''Murray:''' Your man Christian is a cake boy!\
110	'''Cher & Dionne:''' A ''what?''\
111	'''Murray:''' He's a disco-dancing, Creator/OscarWilde-reading, [[Music/BarbraStreisand Streisand]]-ticket-holding [[Film/TheWizardOfOz friend of Dorothy]], know what I'm saying?
112	* HypocriticalHumor: Lucy gets mad when Cher [[InnocentlyInsensitive mistakes her for a Mexican]] (she's from El Salvador). After she storms out of the room, Cher comments to Josh that she doesn't see what the big deal is, and Josh says, "You get upset if anyone thinks you live below Sunset."
113	* IncompatibleOrientation: Cher and Christian (as he's gay).
114	* InsistentTerminology:
115	-->'''Tai:''' Cher, you're a virgin?
116	-->'''Cher:''' You say that like it's a bad thing.
117	-->'''Dionne:''' Besides, the PC term is "hymenally challenged".
118	-->'''Cher:''' It's not like I'm a prude or anything. I'm just... highly selective.
119	* InstantlyProvenWrong:
120	** The moment Cher declares high school boys "not boyfriend material", Christian walks in. (Subverted because it does turn out he's not boyfriend material, at least not for a girl.)
121	** Tai enters a party and immediately falls down the stairs, and worries that everyone will think of her as the fall-down-the-stairs girl. Cher reassures her that no one even saw it, but is interrupted by a random guy asking Tai if she's okay, since that fall looked really bad.
122	* {{Irony}}: Josh claims he would "die of shock" if Cher ever did something that was less than 90% selfish, and she replies that that would be reason enough for her, making it 100% selfish no matter what it was.
123	* ItsFakeFurItsFine: Cher responds to Dionne's giving her a hard time about her fur purse: "It's faux!"
124	* InterruptedIntimacy: Josh is busy making out with his girlfriend when Cher phones him to come pick her up.
125	* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: The mugger gets no comeuppance for his assault on the high-schoolers. He vanishes into the night and is never seen or heard from again]].
126	* KickTheDog: For accidentally screwing up the paperwork she helped her father label to "September files", one of the lawyers working for Cher's father gets mad and tells her to "go back to the mall or something". Cher leaves in tears and Josh berates the lawyer for doing that.
127	* KnowNothingKnowItAll: Downplayed with Heather, who misquotes Shakespeare ("To thine own self be true") only to be corrected by the thus-far ditzy Cher. The irony is that she was quoting ''Hamlet'' (with a totally un-nuanced interpretation thereof) in order to back up her (rather vocal) opinion on a subject.
128	* LegFocus: At one point Christian compliments Cher on her "nice stems" after he ([[MaleGaze and the camera]]) get a nice look at them.
129	* LiteralMinded: Cher apparently thinks the rule to "pause" at intersections is about mentally pausing, and breezes through one without stopping.
130	* LongingLook: Tai shows one for Travis. Travis shows several for Tai when Cher tried to fix her up with Elton. Josh and Cher exchange these multiple times to each other without the other knowing, much to a lawyer's annoyance.
131	%%* LoveEpiphany: "Oh my God, ''I'' love Josh!"
132	%%* LoveTriangle:
133	%%** Travis/Tai/Elton
134	%%** Tai/Elton/Cher
135	%%** Cher/Josh/Tai
136	* MadeOfIron: Tai is unfazed by her habit of falling and hitting her head at every party she goes to.
137	* TheMakeover: Two. Tai gets a new outfit and hairstyle and somewhat of a new personal regime. Later, Cher decides to "make over her soul" and become a nicer person by getting involved in charity work.
138	* MissingMom: Cher's mother died during a freak complication during a routine liposuction. Granted, Cher doesn't really remember her that much, although she does pretend her mother watches over her and greets the large picture of her at the front door. Josh also teases her about this being her motive for wanting to make over Tai and treat her like one of her dolls. There is one surprisingly touching scene where, when she's insecure that she isn't a good person, her father tells her he hasn't seen so much good-doing since her mother, which seems to greatly comfort her.
139	* TheMonolith: Cher's phone, when she's waiting for Christian to call her back.
140	* MoodWhiplash:
141	** At one point, the narration of Cher's rather glum introspection on her feelings for Josh and how everything seems to be going wrong for her is suddenly interrupted [[RetailTherapy when she notices some nice clothes in a store window]].
142	** The house party starts out fun, switches to Dionne throwing a dramatic fit over her boyfriend Murray shaving his head, and then back to the fun again.
143	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: When it's pointed out to Cher that she's genuinely done something wrong or crossed the line, she feels genuine guilt over it. For example, when she casually assumes that Lucy the family maid is from Mexico when she's actually from El Salvador, once it's sunk in that this is actually quite rude and offensive of her, she's genuinely apologetic.
144	* NoAntagonist: The movie has no central antagonist. Amber, the character who butts heads with Cher and her friends the most, never outright tries to sabotage them at anything and isn't always wrong in her criticisms of Cher. A lot of the conflict or manipulation from the film comes from Cher's own well-meaning (or at least non-malicious) poor decisions. Elton and the mugger are certainly antagonistic, but only for brief scenes without much impact on the main story.
145	* NotBloodSiblings: Cher and Josh. Ex-stepsiblings in this case; Josh's mother and Cher's father had married and subsequently divorced each other when Cher and Josh were younger.
146	* NotDistractedByTheSexy: To his credit, the street criminal who robs Cher doesn't even look down when she shows him her dress, explaining that it's an Alia.
147	* OneDialogueTwoConversations: Likely what happened with Heather, who was just trying to make a point about living the life you want to live.
148	-->'''Heather:''' Excuse me, I think I remember ''Hamlet'' [the play] accurately.
149	-->'''Cher:''' Well, I remember Mel Gibson accurately, and [Hamlet] (the character) didn't say that. That Polonius guy did.
150	* ParentalFashionVeto: Cher is about to head to a party (on a date with Christian) when Josh asks her dad if he's going to let her go out in what she's wearing, a white mini-dress. Cher's father asks her if that's what they're calling dresses these days, tells her it looks more like underwear and makes her put something on top. Which turns out to be a transparent wrap.
151	* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: When Tai expresses a crush on Josh and sees Cher's disapproval of it, she eventually snaps and says, "Why should I take advice from you? You're a virgin who can't drive." It's downplayed because Cher is obviously hurt; Tai immediately regrets saying that and they reconcile a few scenes later.
152	* PoliticalOvercorrectness:
153	** Cher mockingly asks Amber if she prefers to be called "ensemble-y challenged".
154	** Dionne claims that being a virgin, and not just a technical virgin, is called "hymenally challenged".
155	* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure: When Cher and Josh are working on Mel's lawsuit.
156	-->'''Josh:''' You look like ''Literature/PippiLongstocking''.
157	-->'''Cher:''' You look like ''Film/ForrestGump''. ({{Beat}}) Who's Pippi Longstocking?
158	-->'''Josh:''' Uh, someone Creator/MelGibson [[BrickJoke never played]].
159	* PreviouslyOverlookedParamour: Near the end of the movie, Cher realizes that she is in love with Josh, her idealist "ex-stepbrother", who is not afraid to call Cher out on her superficiality.
160	* ProductPlacement:
161	** Cher interrupts her voiceover with "Ooh, ''Snickers''..." when she's looking around the teacher's lounge.
162	** Also there are a few brands mentioned in the movie, such as Calvin Klein and Fred Segal, and the outfit Cher buys during her walk in Rodeo Drive is from Christian Dior, as seen later from her shopping bag.
163	** Cher is also seen with a Starbucks cup in few scenes.
164	** Diet Coke cans are seen multiple times during the film.
165	* {{Reconstruction}}: It's difficult to imagine now but the whole Teen Movie genre was moribund in the early '90s; ''Clueless'' was the first commercial and critical success in many years, perhaps because it was such an exuberant return to the optimism of the '80s genre films.
166	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Mel Horowitz. He seems scary at first but is actually open-minded and understanding. It's also implied he's aware of Josh's crush on Cher and approves.
167	* RelatedDifferentlyInTheAdaptation: An unusual case in which the characters are technically no longer related. In ''Literature/{{Emma}}'' (upon which ''Clueless'' is loosely based), George Knightley is the brother of Emma's brother-in-law (her sister is married to his brother). In this film, Cher is an only child and the Knightley analog Josh is her ex-stepbrother (her father has since divorced his mother) who hangs around because he still has a good relationship with her dad.
168	* RetailTherapy: Cher goes shopping whenever she's feeling down. This is actually used as a joke at one of the more serious parts of the movie, as she's mulling over how much of a mess she's unintentionally made of things while walking past a store.
169	-->'''Cher's Inner Monologue:''' Oh, and this Josh-and-Tai thing was [[TotallyRadical wiggin']] me more than anything. I mean, what was my problem? Tai is my pal. I don't begrudge her a boyfriend, I really—ooh! I wonder if they have that in my size.
170	-->''[Cut to Cher walking home with a shopping bag, her monologue picking up as if nothing had happened.]''
171	* RipTailoring: While making Tai over, Cher does this to her shirt to bare her midriff.
172	* SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl: Cher and Josh - she always pushes him to go out and have fun.
173	* SettingUpdate: Of ''Literature/{{Emma}}''. Most of the plot stays the same, except it gets rid of some of the ValuesDissonance of the Creator/JaneAusten novel, such as the marriage focus (having the Frank Churchill stand-in, Christian, turn out to be [[AdaptationalSexuality gay]] rather than secretly engaged, for example) and the class issues. Cher lampshades the former difference when her [[spoiler: RelationshipUpgrade moment and kiss-fest with Josh]] flips straight to a wedding where she says, "As if! I'm only 16!" and reveals it to be Miss Geist and Mr. Hall's wedding.
174	* ShoutOut:
175	** Cher is a fan of Creator/CindyCrawford.
176	** Josh thinks [[Creator/MarkWahlberg Marky Mark]] might use his celebrity for something good, like planting trees.
177	** While attempting to seduce Christian on a sleepover, Cher narrates how his favorite movies that they're watching are works starring actor Tony Curtis in ''Film/SomeLikeItHot'' and ''Film/{{Spartacus}}''.
178	** Cher narrates on how she compares Dionne and Murray's volatile relationship, "I think they've seen [[Film/WhatsLoveGotToDoWithIt1993 that Ike and Tina Turner movie]] way too many times."
179	** Amber dances with a guy wearing a Dr. Seuss hat.
180	** Cher also lampshades how she and Dionne are named for Music/{{Cher}} and Music/DionneWarwick.
181	** Subverted with Elton, who is not named for Music/EltonJohn, but for the character Mr. Elton in ''Literature/{{Emma}}'', but the fact that the name is associated with the musician is the reason why Dionne and Cher are named for singers.
182	** The setting of Cher's LoveEpiphany (with the fountain suddenly coming to life) is one to ''Film/{{Gigi}}''; this is actually {{Lampshaded}} in the novelisation, where Cher talks about the setting being just like this movie she watched the other week with Christian,[[FiveSecondForeshadowing where a guy suddenly realizes he's in love with a girl he's known for years.]] It even has the ''theme from Gigi'' playing in the background of this scene.
183	** The episode of Beavis and Butt-Head (1993) that Cher and Josh watch is called Beavis and Butt-Head: The Great Cornholio (1994).
184	** When Cher is waiting for Christian's call, the camera angle and shot make the phone look like the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey; the music playing at that point is from the same movie.
185	* ShoutOutToShakespeare: When Josh and Heather (his then-girlfriend) are giving Cher a ride home and having a discussion:
186	-->'''Heather:''' It's just like Theatre/{{Hamlet}} said; "To thine own self be true."
187	-->'''Cher:''' Uh, Hamlet didn't say that.
188	-->'''Heather:''' I think that I remember ''Hamlet'' accurately.
189	-->'''Cher:''' Well, I remember Creator/MelGibson accurately, and he didn't say that. That Polonius guy did.
190	* StandardSnippet: Cher's phone serves as TheMonolith while ''Music/AlsoSprachZarathustra'' plays in the background. Cher explains that boys calling when they say they would is extremely rare, so she is appropriately surprised and impressed when Christian does call the following day.
191	* StatusCellPhone: The main characters all having mobile phones despite being in high school was intended as a joke about how spoilt and well-off they were. Modern viewers tend not to understand why a high school student with a mobile phone is supposed to be funny.
192	* SternTeacher: The DMV instructor refuses to pass Cher on her driver's test -- with good reason.
193	* TheStoner:
194	** Travis [[spoiler: He later gives up the drugs but keeps up the stoner vibe.]]
195	** Tai is depicted as a former stoner.
196	* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: When Travis donates his bong to the Pismo Beach disaster relief Cher is in charge of, Cher wonders where to put it until she guesses in the box labeled "kitchenware". Travis responds, "That's where I always put it."
197	* SuicideAsComedy: Travis tries to jump out a (first story) window when he sees his report card. Mr. Hall nonchalantly holds him back.
198	* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Cher has spent most of the movie using the power of persuasion to get her way, from earning higher grades in debate class rather than putting in actual work. Her dad encourages this behavior, as a lawyer. Then she tries the same tactics [[spoiler:during her driving test after she makes some minor mistakes and then scrapes several parked cars. Her instructor isn't impressed by how she tries to talk her way into a passing grade and tells her that's not how life or road safety works]].
199	* TeensLoveShopping: Cher, Dionne, and all their friends from school's favorite hobby and way to relax is shopping and hanging out at the mall.
200	* TokenMinorityCouple: Dionne and Murray, the only plot-relevant black characters, are dating.
201	* ThemeNaming: Cher and her friend Dionne share first names with '70s singers, apparently so the leading male character could be called Elton, like his counterpart in ''Emma'' (although in the case of the novel character, that was his ''last'' name).
202	* UnlimitedWardrobe: Since the leads all come from families with tons of money and are interested in fashion, they are understandably shown in a variety of outfits. {{Lampshaded}} in that Cher has a computer program to assist her in matching clothes and takes Polaroids when trying to decide between different outfits.
203	%%* ValleyGirl: Several main characters are Valley Girls.
204	* VomitDiscretionShot: When Cher is having an inner monologue about people finding love, it cuts to a few teenage couples outside the Christmas party making out, one of whom is puking his guts up into the swimming pool while his girlfriend aids him.
205	* WeddingBellsForSomeoneElse: After Cher and Josh get a RelationshipUpgrade, Cher's narration says that the viewer can probably guess what happened next. The scene then cuts to a wedding... it's not theirs though, it's the teachers' Cher was 'shipping at the beginning, and she berates the viewer for thinking the former.
206	-->'''Cher:''' As if! I'm only 16, and this is California, not Kentucky.
207	* WhatTheHellHero: Cher gets called out on the more self-interested aspects of her 'altruism' at several points, most frequently by Josh. She gradually takes these criticisms on board and tries to improve herself, becoming genuinely altruistic in the process.
208	* WhosOnFirst: When Tai first meets Cher and Dionne, she asks them for an "herbal refreshment" meaning marijuana. Cher and Dionne, not understanding what she means, assume she is talking about tea and tells her that they don't have any tea to drink but they do have Coke. Tai excitedly asks if they really do have Coke here, assuming they're referring to cocaine. When in actuality Cher and Dionne were talking about the soda beverage Coke.
209	* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: While narrating how she was trying to find a suitable Ms. Right for Mr. Hall, Cher narrates how "the evil trolls from the Math department" were actually married, then momentarily gets distracted by their Snickers candy bar before moving on to describe gym teacher Miss Stoger and last but not least Ms. Geist.
210	-->'''Cher:''' Ooh, ''Snickers''...
211	* YouNeedToGetLaid: In describing how unpleasant Mr. Hall is and how he doesn't have much of a life: "What this man needs is a good healthy boinkfest!"
212	* ZettaiRyouiki: Cher's iconic yellow plaid schoolgirl skirt/vest combo. Dionne wears some as well.
213
214	!! "In her world, she's an ordinary troper" - Tropes featured in the TV series include:
215	* AffectionateParody: The episodes "Scream Murray Scream! (Part 1)" and "Scream Again Murray, Scream Again (Part 2)" are this, of the 1996 film ''Film/{{Scream\|1996}}''.
216	%%* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Amber's mom.
217	* [[AsHimself As Themselves]]:
218	** The band Luscious Jackson, on "Sharing Cher"
219	** [=Salt-N-Pepa=], whose song "Shoop" appeared on the film's soundtrack, make a cameo in an episode.
220	* AntiSchoolUniformsPlot: The season one episode "The Party's Over" sees the school gain a new principal, who is disgusted with what he saw as the students' lack of discipline. His decision is to institute uniforms overnight, leading to Cher imagining the school becoming a place of robotic clones. [[spoiler:The episode ends with Cher reworking the "I Have A Dream" speech into a speech about individual freedom with the principal conceding he was wrong.]]
221	* AscendedExtra: The actor who played Sean had a very small role (as a different character) in the film, but was elevated to main cast for the show.
222	* BrokeEpisode: Cher and her father went broke in the season 2 finale, "Cashless", until "Back from Bakersfield" in season 3 when [[StatusQuoIsGod they're back to being wealthy]].
223	* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Though at first nearly every character from the movie appeared in some capacity on the TV series, this was gradually whittled down to just the core five of later seasons.
224	* CompletelyOffTopicReport: On "City Beautification", the students are assigned to interpret the phrase "no man is an island". None of the students do it right (except Cher), as they instead tell about ''actual'' islands along with their experience vacationing there, how the phrase is actually a typo, and even how the phrase (and words in general) unfairly put the word "man" in it, instead of woman.
225	* CorruptTheCutie: Cher and Dionne's [[TheMakeover makeover]] to Felice unintentionally causes a sweet, nerdy, studious, smart girl turning into a beautiful, school-skipping, flirty, (deliberately) stupid girl.
226	* {{Crossover}}: With ''Series/{{Moesha}}''. Shar Jackson and Lamont Bentley appeared on "Prom Misses, Prom Misses" (Season 3, Episode 20) as their respective characters, Niecy Jackson and Hakeem Campbell.
227	%%* DaddysGirl: Cher (just like in the movie) and Amber.
228	* {{Disneyfication}}: Even though Dionne and Murray had sex in the movie, [[LastMinuteHookup they do not hook-up until the last episode of the show.]]
229	* DotingParent: Amber's dad spoils her rotten, so rotten that he is willing to move his entire family to Cher's house when her family is broke and later move back to his family's old house when Cher regains her wealth, all because of Amber. His wife despises him for being one.
230	* FallenPrincess: Cher (when she was broke), from a rich and popular Beverly Hills princess, to a GreasySpoon waitress, as described by Dionne below:
231	--> '''Dionne:''' (voiceover) Were forced by economics, she must use the five saddest words a Beverly Hills princess can ever utter.\
232	'''Cher:''' (working as a greasy spoon waitress in Bakersfield) Can I take your order?
233	* FunWithAcronyms: Episode 8 of Season 3 was titled "Never [[AnimalWrongsGroup P.E.T.A.]] Squirrel".
234	%%* HollywoodToneDeaf: Cher, although this is [[ReVision revised]] later on.
235	%%* IdleRich: Every single student of Bronson Alcott High. Too many of them seem to have some serious RichInDollarsPoorInSense tendencies as wall.
236	* InformedJudaism: Cher and her dad, mentioned only when the plot demands it.
237	* TheMakeover: Just like the movie, Cher and Dionne also give a makeover in the TV series to a nerdy TeenGenius, Felice, who tries to dumb herself down to get guys, because they want her to have both beauty and brain. It works, but sadly, it makes her a flirty DumbBlonde who focuses more on the boys than school.
238	%% * MissConception - no context
239	* MockMillionaire: Sean in "Graduation" is revealed to be this by faking his address to be at Cher's house (with the help of Mel), despite actually living in South Central, which violates the law to attend public school in Beverly Hills. He did it to be able to attend a good public school, since he couldn't afford private school, due to his mom working as a waitress at the restaurant where Mel usually eats.
240	* MythologyGag: In an early Cher voiceover in the movie, she says that she and Dionne were "both [[NamedAfterSomebodyFamous named for famous singers]] who now do infomercials." The first season episode "I Got You Babe" is, of course, named for the famous Music/SonnyAndCher song, and brings it all full circle, since the plot centers around Cher falling for a college student named... Sonny.
241	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Several episodes involve Cher attempting to make people's lives better in some way and failing, or, as in "Secrets and Lies," the first SeasonFinale, tells someone an unpleasant fact that creates trouble.
242	* OvercomplicatedMenuOrder: In the [[RecycledTheSeries TV show version]], Cher and Dee have a favorite restaurant to go to for lunch period, which has "the best" Chinese Chicken Salad - which they order without the chicken or dressing. They pay $12 for a bowl of lettuce.
243	* ProgressivelyPrettier: The [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000445/ original]] Mel Horowitz was portrayed as balding, pudgy & tough. The [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0503627/ second]] was noticeably softer and had regained a full head of hair, while [[http://i54.tinypic.com/9qgpj4.jpg third one]] that's presented [[BadassDecay is even more relaxed, reasonable & mellow]], noticeably taller as well as having, shall we say [[MrFanservice a different appeal]]. This was {{lampshade\|Hanging}}d in the voiceover in the first episode of season 2: "Thanks to a summer of my encouragement, calorie counting and booby-trapping the refrigerator, my totally prominent attorney daddy ... looks like a brand-new man."
244	* RemakeCameo: Brittany Murphy (Tai in the movie), Breckin Meyer (Travis) and Paul Rudd (Josh) all guest-starred on the series (respectively as Jasmine in "Driving Me Crazy," Harrison in "Do We With Bad Haircuts Not Feel?" and Sonny in "I Got You Babe").
245	* {{Retcon}}: Dionne's house in the movie is shown as Amber's house in the TV series.
246	* RichBitch: Amber. She's bitchy and snobby enough to make one guy she dated (who's from the Valley and would later (briefly) date Cher as well) hate ''everyone'' from Beverly Hills, thinking everyone from the area is just like her, causing a problem when Cher later tries to date him on her [[SlummingIt undercover mission to buy her father a gift with her own money.]]
247	* RichInDollarsPoorInSense: Bronson Alcott High is full of these.
248	** Cher's friends laugh when they find out Cher plans to get an after school job, they think she's joking. Dionne even calls her plan ''drastic''.
249	* ScholarshipStudent: Sean, even though he attends a public school. See MockMillionaire.
250	* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: Amber on taking her SAT and getting into Harvard:
251	-->'''Amber:''' I spoke to daddy and he told me not to worry about this pesky test, he'll just... make a substantial donation to Harvard, so don't be surprised if next year there's an "Amber Hall".
252	* [[ShoutOut Shout-Out]]: In "The Party's Over", after Cher hears that the new principal might institute uniforms at Bronson Alcott High, she envisions a dystopian nightmare much like the music video to ''Music/PinkFloyd'''s "Another Brick in the Wall."
253	* [[ShoutOut/ToShakespeare Shout-Out: To Shakespeare]][=/=]WholePlotReference: "''[[Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet Romeo and Cher]]''"
254	* TeenPregnancy: The episode "PG Seventeen" focuses on the characters helping a classmate who finds out she's pregnant.
255	%%* TwoTeacherSchool: Mr. Hall & Ms. Geist as well as Coach Stoger.
256	%%* ValleyGirl: Cher, Dionne and Amber.
257	%%** Interestingly, in one episode, Cher had to [[SlummingIt act and dress as one]] to get an after-school job in the Valley in order to buy her father his birthday present with her own money, so people from her neighborhood and also her Beverly Hills-hating boss, who happened to be her crush, wouldn't find out. Also, according to Cher and Dionne, Valley girls are unfashionable and outdated when it comes to style.

Context Film / Clueless