YMMV / Cadet Kelly

• Alternative Character Interpretation: Does Kelly's mother really care about her daughter's happiness or is she self-absorbed and only caring about the happiness of her new marriage? She forces the free-spirited Kelly to uproot her life and join a military academy in order to please her husband and she immediately dismisses Kelly's suggestion that she could stay at her old school by moving in with her friend Amanda because "families live together" and "families don't leave anyone behind." Apparently her idea of "living together" is making Kelly spend five days of the week living in a barrack full of strict rules while she lives the idyllic life of a happy housewife. Furthermore, her pregnancy unknowingly guilt trips her daughter into pretending that she wasn't completely miserable at her new school.
• Heartwarming Moments:
  • The climax.
  • Sir in general. He does genuinely want to be a good father to Kelly, she's just so different from him that he comes off as cold and uncaring, but he genuinely does. He wants what's Best for Kelly but he wants to show it in the way he is used to. The fact that he is more than willing to organise a makeshift rescue mission for Kelly's father when he's hurt, and wants to respect her wishes to have her father see her perform shows that he does accept her.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: The actors of Sir (Gary Cole) and Jennifer (Christy Carlson Romano) would later play as father-daughter in Kim Possible, which was released later the same year as Cadet Kelly.
• Ho Yay: Kelly and Jennifer. Kelly and Jennifer perform a routine at the end that involves rainbow colored ribbons and Kelly paints Jennifer's hair rainbow to take revenge. Plus, while there is a boy, Brad, he quickly comes out of focus and the ending scene of Kelly and Jennifer is sad and poignant.
• LGBT Fanbase: The film has a lot of queer women fans, and Kelly/Jennifer is often cited as "baby's first femslash ship" for lesbian and bisexual women of the right generation.
• Tear Jerker: Jennifer tearing up Kelly's protection blanket in front of her face.
  "I thought I told you I never wanted to see this again." (Rips it in two) "And now I won't."
• Unintentionally Unsympathetic: Kelly's mother, see See Alternative Character Interpretation.

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