September 11, 2022
On her senior year of high school, Olivia (Madelaine Petsch) is very determined to get into Stanford for college. She was very active in her debate club in order to add more distinction to her application. However, the sudden death of her good friend Jane (Chloe Yu) made her feel distraught and disoriented. When she got news that her application to Stanford had been deferred, she became even more disturbed.
Olivia reconnected with her other friend Izzy (Chloe Bailey) after Jane's death. They began to confide with each other about problems encountered in school. The two of them decide to make an account in Jane's name on social media, and began to post anonymous videos about classmates and teachers who annoyed them. However, there began to be nasty posts that would appear on Jane's account that neither of them posted.
In films, we usually see cyber-bullying from the point of view of the victims. However for a change, "Jane" decided to tell the story from the point of view of the offending bully. In this her debut feature film, writer-director Sabrina Jaglom warns us of the fact that because of the anonymity online social media afforded, any kind of identity can be assumed to spread malicious information, and you can never guess who could do such a thing.
Madelaine Petsch gained mainstream fame from the TV series "Riverdale" for the role of Cheryl Blossom, a troubled character which she still plays up to the present. Even if Petsch is already 28 years old in real life now, she could still pass for a precocious, ambitious, smart and manipulative teenager Olivia. Her subtle portrayal of Olivia's obsessive behavior and ghostly vision kept the proceedings tense and uncertain right up to the climax.
Chloe Bailey is half of the Grammy-nominated musical duo Chloe x Halle, together with her sister Halle (now more known for being cast as Ariel in the upcoming live-action version of Disney's "The Little Mermaid"). Bailey had a strong presence which was quite effective in adding confusion to the turn of events in the film. Oscar-winning actress Melissa Leo played the principal in the school, a very minor role in the scheme of thing.
The concluding sequence ended the whole film on a very disturbing and uncomfortable note. Some people are desperate enough to go all the way to reach their high goals, no matter who they hurt or destroy along the way. Mental health issues of envy, insecurity and pressure can push someone to do things no one could ever suspect them of being capable of. With single-minded focus and presence of mind, they can get away with anything. 6/10.
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