All I Wanna Do(1998 film)

All I Wanna Do(originally titledThe Hairy Bird) is a 1998 Americancomedy filmwritten and directed bySarah Kernochan.It starsKirsten Dunst,Gaby Hoffmann,Monica Keena,Heather MatarazzoandRachael Leigh Cookin anensemble castas students of the fictional Miss Godard'sPreparatory Schoolfor Girls, andLynn Redgraveas the school'sheadmistress.The film takes place in 1963 and focuses on several students' plotting and sabotage of a proposedmergerfor the school to gocoed.

All I Wanna Do
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Sarah Kernochan
Written by	Sarah Kernochan
Produced by	Ira Deutchman Peter Newman
Starring	Kirsten Dunst Gaby Hoffmann Lynn Redgrave Rachael Leigh Cook Thomas Guiry Vincent Kartheiser Monica Keena Matthew Lawrence Heather Matarazzo Merritt Wever
Cinematography	Anthony Janelli
Music by	Graeme Revell
Production company	Redeemable Features
Distributed by	Alliance Communications(Canada) Miramax Films(United States)
Release dates	August 21, 1998(1998-08-21)(Canada) September 4, 1998(1998-09-04)(United States)
Running time	97 minutes
Countries	Canada United States
Language	English
Budget	$5 million
Box office	$907,996

Originally titledThe Hairy Bird,the film's screenplay, set in 1963, is based loosely on Kernochan's experiences atRosemary Hallaround that time. Filming was done inToronto,Ontario, Canada at theTrafalgar Castle SchoolinWhitby.The song "The Hairy Bird" plays during the film's end credits; it was written by Kernochan and sung by a group which includes Kernochan and five of her Rosemary Hall classmates, includingGlenn Close.

The film was given a limited release on September 4, 1998, in the United States under the titleAll I Wanna Do (as its American distributorMiramax Filmsfound the original title too offensive), and was then acquired byBuena Vista Home Entertainmentwho released itstraight-to-video.In Canada and the United Kingdom (as well as for later streaming distribution in the U.S.), it was released under the titleStrike!.

Plot

In the winter of 1963 inNew England,Odette "Odie" Sinclair is forcibly transferred by her parents to Miss Godard's Preparatory School for Girls after her parents find out that she has planned to have sex with her boyfriend, Dennis. Upon arrival at the school, which is run by the stern but kind headmistress Miss McVane, Odette is introduced to her roommates, the intelligent and charismatic Verena von Stefan and the promiscuous Tinka Parker. Verena and Tinka are the school's primary troublemakers; both mock an uptighthall monitornamed Abigail "Abby" Sawyer, who has a penchant for tattletaling, and Verena regularly buyscigarettesfrom a lunch cook and is constantly late for classes.

After a briefhazingperiod, Odie is welcomed into the D.A.R. (Daughters of the American Ravioli), asecret clubof several girls at the school who have greater aspirations than those of their peers; the members congregate in the school's attic, where they have access to canned ravioli stored above the cafeteria. The club is led by Verena, and consists of several other girls, including Theresa "Tweety" Goldberg, abulimicwho self-induces vomiting by drinkingipecacsyrup and plans to be a child psychologist; and Maureen "Momo" Haines, a well-spoken science nerd and aspiring biologist. Verena has plans to start a fashion magazine likeVogue,while Tinka plans to be an "actress-folk singer-slut". Odie declares her interest in politics, but pines to finish what she started with Dennis and lose her virginity.

The D.A.R. begins planning a rendezvous for Odie and Dennis, but when it is discovered that Miss Godard's is considering goingco-edwith the nearby St. Ambrose boys' academy, the girls become divided on the matter and ultimately the club breaks up, with Verena and Momo determined to sabotage an upcoming dance with the St. Ambrose boys. Meanwhile, the board oftrusteesfor the school, which include Abby's parents, deliberates on the matter. Miss McVane detests themerger,but can do little about it because of the school's financial problems.

As the St. Ambrose dance arrives, Verena and Momo concoct a plan to cast the boys' academy in a bad light by spiking the fruit punch with alcohol from thechemistrylab and feeding them Tweety's ipecac to induce vomiting during their choir performance; Verena then plants empty liquor bottles in their school bus. The same night, Dennis arrives at the academy dressed in a St. Ambrose uniform and meets Odette for their rendezvous in the attic of the school. Just before they can consummate their relationship, Odette starts to have second thoughts when Dennis casually brushes off her interest in politics. They make up and begin kissing, but are caught by Mr. Dewey, a St. Ambrose teacher who acts lasciviously with students. Dewey throws Dennis out, but before he can make an advance on Odie, a group of teenage male townies called "The Flat Critters" —led by Snake who has a crush on Tinka—crash the scene, steal Dewey's clothes, and lock him in a closet.

Tweety and Tinka have a change of heart on the co-ed integration after Tweety is sexually assaulted and humiliated by some St. Ambrose students. With the help of the Flat Critters, they end up sending the intoxicated St. Ambrose boys home with a poor reputation. Mr. Dewey is also fired from the school. Miss McVane recognizes Verena as the mastermind behind the sabotage. Despite Miss McVane's appreciation for Verena's efforts, she is forced to expel Verena for having been caught fraternizing in her undergarments with a St. Ambrose boy.

The following week at the end of the year ceremony, the announcement of the merger is made by Mrs. Sawyer, much to the disapproval of the girls, including Abby. The students, led by Odie, hole up inside the school dormitories and demand a student body vote be counted as a single vote on the board of trustees. Meanwhile, a media circus surrounds the school, and the board of trustees agree to a student vote. Ultimately, the votes against the integration outnumber those for it, and the students donate their personal savings to help with the school's debt.

In an epilogue prior to the credits, the girls' fates are revealed:

Verena goes on to publishMoi,one of the most-read women's publications in the world;

Odette becomes a congresswoman and declares war on thetobacco industry;

Momo is a scientist developing the first male oralcontraceptive;

Tinka, a famous actress,comes outtoBarbara Waltersin a 1997 interview;

Tweety became a psychologist and wrote a best-seller about bulimia;

Abby, a radicalpolitical activist,is serving a prison sentence for a 1970 bank holdup;

and Miss Godard's remains a girls school whose graduates include thousands of corporate and community leaders.

Cast

• Kirsten Dunstas Verena von Stefan
• Gaby Hoffmannas Odette "Odie" Sinclair
• Lynn Redgraveas Miss McVane
• Rachael Leigh Cookas Abigail "Abby" Sawyer
• Tom Guiryas Bradley "Frosty" Frost
• Vincent Kartheiseras Snake (Flat Critter)
• Monica Keenaas Tinka Parker
• Matthew Lawrenceas Dennis
• Heather Matarazzoas Theresa "Tweety" Goldberg
• Merritt Weveras Maureen "Momo" Haines
• Robert Bockstael as Mr. Frank Dewey
• Brenda Devine as Miss Phipps
• Rosemary Dunsmoreas Page Sawyer
• Nigel Bennettas Harvey Sawyer
• Jenny Parsons as Mrs. Dewey
• Dorothy Gordonas Mrs. O'Boyle
• Michael Reynoldsas Mr. Armstrong
• Caterina Scorsoneas Susie
• Michael Barryas Possum (Flat Critter)
• Zachary Bennettas Skunk (Flat Critter)
• Aaron Pooleas Beagle (Flat Critter)
• Danny Smithas Groundhog (Flat Critter)
• Noah Shebibas Conrad Bateman
• Robin Dunneas Todd Winslow
• Paul Alexander Nolanas Charles Schumacher
• Hayden Christensenas Tinka's date
• Christopher Redmond as Danforth
• Shawn Ashmoreas St. Ambrose photographer
• Jack Duffyas School Guard
• Richard McMillan as Bert Chubb (St. Ambrose Boy Housemaster)
• Les Porter as Graham John (St. Ambrose Boy Choirmaster)

Production

All I Wanna Dowas filmed in 1997 inWhitbyandToronto,primarily at theTrafalgar Castle Schoolalso at Loretto Abbey CSS (especially the chapel scenes), and was financed through Canadian distribution companyAlliance Communications(renamed around the time of release toAlliance Atlantis,following the completion of Alliance's merger with Atlantis Communications).Nora Ephronserved as an executive producer.

Release

Box office

The film was picked up byMiramax Filmsfor U.S. distribution for $3.5 million.Miramax insisted on retitling the filmStrike!because they found the film's original working title,The Hairy Bird (which alluded to male genitalia), to be too offensive.It was given a test release on 13 screens in Seattle on August 21,1998 to minimal ticket sales. Alliance released it on the same day with the same title in Canada on 133 screens and grossed over $1.3 million, It was also released in the U.K. under that title. on March 24, 2000, Miramax permitted the filmmakers to re-release the film in the U.S. under another title,All I Wanna Do.The film played for one week in New York at the United Artists Union Square and grossed $5383. It received enough critical attention that Disney Home Video took it on for VHS and DVD release. (Confusion over the many titles has caused it be labeled differently on various U.S.-baseddigital distributionplatforms—such asAmazon Prime VideoandYouTube—which often list it as "Strike!(akaAll I Wanna Do) ", though with the U.S. title being used in the opening credits.) Australia was the only country in which the film was released under its original title.

In 2019, directorSarah KernochansaidMiramaxco-chairmanHarvey Weinsteinintentionally shelved the film,an incident which is detailed inPeter Biskind’s bookDown and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance, and the Rise of Independent Film.While Weinstein was initially enthusiastic about the film and told Kernochan it would screen in 2,000 theaters across the U.S.; Miramax ultimately buried the film.

Critical response

OnRotten Tomatoes,the film has a score of 67% based on 12 reviews.OnMetacritic,it has a score of 60% based on reviews from 6 critics.A. O. ScottofThe New York Timesnoted that the film "mixes such prim old-fashioned naughtiness with more consequential misbehavior...All I Wanna Dolurches between girl-power melodrama and bratty farce, but the ungainliness is part of the film's charm. "He also noted that the film is "surprisingly pleasant, thanks to smart, unstereotyped performances – especially by Ms. Hoffmann and Ms. Dunst – and the filmmaker's evident respect and affection for her characters."Writing for the Australian publicationThe Age,Tom Ryan deemed the film "an appealing slice of nostalgia for a time when the world seemed ready for the taking for those with enough spunk to try."

Nathan RabinofThe A.V. Clubfavorably reviewed the film, noting that in its final act it "gains focus and momentum, becoming less a nostalgic celebration of female bonding than a boldly feminist teen sex comedy that isn't above the occasional group-vomiting scene. It improves steadily as it goes along, right up through an enormously satisfying ending that combines rousing rhetoric about the price of gender inequity and the power of group solidarity—and throws in a rowdy snobs vs. slobs setpiece worthy ofAnimal House."

External links

• Script for the film,inPDF format,from the director's website
• Lyrics and MP3 for the title song,also from the director's website
• All I Wanna DoatIMDb
• All I Wanna Do at 20at HeadStuff