Charley reviews Turn Me On, Goddammit

Hollywood has forever been cluttered with images of hormone-ridden, horny young men who, having just learnt what their genitals are for, are prepared to do everything in their power to put them to good use. Well now, thanks to Element Pictures, we can finally see things from the female perspective.

Turn Me On, Goddammit (initially released two years ago under the name, Turn Me On, Dammit! / Få meg på, for faen) is a hilarious look at the raging hormones lingering within the average teenage girl, and the terrible repercussions for those girls brave enough to act on them. The film follows a stint in the life of 15-year-old Alma (Helene Bergsholm) who, after divulging the details of an intimate (and, may I say, very odd!) sexual encounter, to her judgemental and disbelieving friends, finds herself excluded from her friendship group, and stranded in a town that has nothing more to offer than empty roads and the occasional post box – admittedly, this film doesn’t offer the most attractive view of Norway.

As if the school problems weren’t enough, it emerges that Alma has something of a liking for phone sex, something which an over-sized telephone bill eventually reveals to her poor mother. So, outcast from school and severely judged at home, Alma suffers through the trials and tribulations of being a horny teenager, something she must battle against without friends Sara (Malin Bjørhovde) and Ingrid (Beate Støfring), who have decided they can no longer be seen with her. While the film certainly delivers a few outright hilarious moments, there are also moments of frustration and sympathy on behalf of the distraught teenager, who has only found herself in this situation because of the infantile behaviour of the characters she is surrounded by; by this, I am referring especially to Artur (Matias Myren), the Casanova responsible for Alma’s first sexual encounter, which he then denies to the rest of the student body.

All of the actors in this flick deserve a massive pat on the back for being such good sports, if nothing else! Bergsholm in particular deserves commendation for taking to this role so well: trapped in a world of sexual curiosity and experimentation, she delivers an inspired performance than will resonate with many (embarrassed and ashamed) teenage girls out there. As we’ve come to expect from these films, there is a happy ending (don’t worry, I won’t give it away) which lightens the trauma of the young girl’s recent experiences! If this film provides nothing else for viewers, then it at least succeeds in showing us that there is a light at the end of that long, dark and sexually-confused tunnel.

Turn Me On, Goddammit, is scheduled for release in the United Kingdom on March 25th, and will hit the shelves with a 15 certificate (unsurprising, given the amount of explicit content – including at least two shots of an actual penis – consider yourselves warned!) and a £15. 99 price tag. This film is definitely one for the girls, particularly those of us who are ex-horny-teenagers, and definitely for those of us who still are!

Turn Me On, Goddammit is released on DVD on 25 March, courtesy of Element Pictures. Order your copy on Amazon at amzn.to/XVSMtb.