In honor of March being women's history month, Netflix released the new female-power teen movie, Moxie. Based on the young adult novel of the same name, Moxie follows a teenager who decides to fight back against her school's sexist rules and culture by creating a female power zine. Though the movie is not without criticism, it is entertaining and inspiring. Plus, it's directed by the iconic Amy Poehler.
Since Moxie deals with teen angst, sexism, and a revolution, it's no surprise that the movie has characters fan love and characters fans never want to see again. From questionable high school faculty and jocks to an inspiring and diverse group of kickass teenage girls, Moxie has a wide array of characters.
Mitchell Wilson
Though there are a handful of antagonists in Moxie, none are as horrible as Mitchell Wilson. Mitchell has it all and he knows it. He's the captain of the football team, the quarterback, and the "it" boy of the school which makes him untouchable. In short, anything Mitchell wants, he gets.
That is until Lucy arrives and becomes the first girl ever to stand up to Mitchell and his entitled ways. Not only does Mitchell not respect Lucy, but he attempts to make her life a living hell. Additionally, later on in the movie, Mitchell gets even worse when it's revealed that he raped his former girlfriend, making him the worst of the worst.
Principal Shelly
It can be hard to understand how a woman in power can be so dismissive to female students, especially when they're expressing their concern about sexism and harassment from male students but it's often an unfortunate reality. Principal Shelly is the perfect representation of these types of people, making her a terrible principal.
Not only does she regularly protect Mitchell and the other male students at the school, but she also engages in causal sexism herself. She dress codes Kaitlyn, despite other students being dressed similarly, she actively tells Lucy to ignore Mitchell after Lucy tells her she's being harassed, and she even suspends Claudia when she finds out about the zine. By the end of the movie, Principal Shelly does get some redemption when she takes the allegations against Mitchell seriously but it's too little too late at that point.
Mr. Davies
Everyone has had a teacher like Mr. Davies in their life. He's the type of teacher who wants to forget that his students are people going through real issues and instead focus on the lecture at hand. And he's also the type of teacher who favors his male students and male scholars, albeit somewhat accidentally.
Mr. Davies could have been an amazing ally to the female students in his class but instead of listening to their concerns and their critiques about the novels he has them read, he dismisses them. And he also never steps in to put Mitchell in his place when he harassed the female students in the class. In the end, Mr. Davies shows a bit of remorse for his actions and supports the students' walk-out, but like Principal Shelly it's too little too late.
Claudia
Claudia is arguably one of the more complex characters in Moxie and one that finds herself unsure of where she stands in the Moxie revolution. At the beginning of the movie, Claudia indulges in the sexism at their high school despite knowing it's wrong.
She also has a hard time supporting the "revolution" because she doesn't want to get in trouble with the school and ultimately disappoints her mother. In the end, Claudia becomes a key player in the Moxie movement and even takes the fall for the group when things go wrong.
Lisa
Not only did Amy Poehler direct Moxie, but she also appeared in the movie playing Lisa, Vivian's mother. Lisa is an interesting character who inadvertently inspires Vivian to start Moxie after reminiscing about her adolescent, rebellious teen years.
While Lisa does support her daughter's movement, she's not always happy with how Vivian goes about things. Lisa also gets demoted from being a fan favorite because she tries to keep her new relationship hidden from Vivian which only makes Vivian's angst worse.
Vivian
Vivian may be the main character of Moxie but she's definitely not the fan's most favorite character. Sure, she's the one behind the magazine that helped launch the revolution but that's really all she does. The biggest issue that fans had with Vivian is that she's the quintessential example of "white feminism," wanting to act as some kind of savior for Lucy when what is needed is some actual help.
While her words were inspiring, it was really the other members of Moxiethat were enacting real change and doing the hard work and not Vivian at all. She also loses points when it comes to being a good friend because she never let Claudia explain why she was having a hard time supporting the movement.
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn might not have been the main character, but she certainly had a huge impact on the plot and the Moxie movement. When fans first meet Kaitlyn she is being singled-out by Principal Shelly for her choice in her shirt.
Kaitlyn tries to fight back, pointing out that another female student is wearing a similar shirt and some of the male students are always shirtless but Kaitlyn loses the battle. Instead of letting Principal Shelly win, Kaitly fights back against the sexist dress codes, proclaiming she should be allowed to wear whatever she wants.
Seth
Most teen movies include a heartthrob for audiences to fall in love. While Peter Kavinsky may have been Netflix's golden boy for years, he might have been dethroned by Moxie's Seth. Seth has a ton of things going for him but he became a fan-favorite because he's the first male student to support the Moxie movement right from the beginning.
He draws stars on his hands, helps get Kiera nominated for the student-athlete award, and regularly listens to the concerns of the girls in his class. In addition, he's the only one who knows Vivian is the creator of Moxie and keeps it a secret despite him thinking she should own it.
Amaya
Like Kaitlyn, Amaya might not be the main character but she definitely had a powerful impact. As a member of the school's soccer team, Amaya is fed up with how the student body ignores the girl's soccer team who consistently wins and instead fawns over their losing football team. She's also one of the first students to support Moxie in the beginning,
Amaya becomes one of the leaders of Moxie when she stages an impromptu meeting at a house party. She also regularly supports her friends, nominating Kiera for the student-athlete award and voicing her support for Emma when she confesses that Mitchell sexually assaulted her.
Lucy
The biggest criticism Moxie has faced is that Lucy should have been the main character of the movie. She certainly deserved it and was the most interesting. Lucy is the new girl at the school who immediately finds herself subjected to Mitchell's harassment.
Instead of staying quiet, Lucy fights back even when no one else supports her. After Vivian launches Moxie, Lucy takes the reigns and helps get the girls organized. She regularly leads their meetings and their different protests. She may not have written Moxie but she is definitely the driving force behind it.