A huge drop in living standard


I wasn't feeling well today, and this movie came on while I was lying down on the sofa and I just didn't have the energy to change the channel. Since I thought the first "Bring It On" movie was cute (if a bit of fluff), I figured this would't be too bad.

I think where I had a lot of trouble getting into this movie though, was the drop in living standards for Britney's family was a bit *too* huge, it seemed. I can see her dad losing his job and being lucky enough to find another one immediately, even with a pay cut. I can see that possibly the pay cut was just enough that he realized they wouldn't be able to afford the super-fancy house in the super-exclusive school district his daughter was in. (Latte bars and sushi bars for the kids? Really?)

But I find it hard to believe that the pay cut was so drastic that he moved his family--and daughter--into a school district that couldn't even afford books for the students. I'm figuring whatever the father was doing for a living, he did it well enough he got paid the big bucks that ensured they could afford a lot of high-end stuff in the first place, and if he did it well enough that after losing his job, another company grabbed him right away, then while their living standard might have dropped, it wouldn't have been *that* dramatic. (I could see another company 'taking advantage' of his sudden job loss to get him at a 'cheaper' rate, but it doesn't seem likely it would be *that* cheap.) Even if it were, I'd think her parents would at least be willing to try and figure out a way to get her into a better school district.

I would also think if things were *that* drastic, Britney would be having to sell that cute little car of hers and taking the bus or borrowing her parents' car. Maybe her folks paid cash for it so they figured she might as well keep it, but if things had gone that sour, I'd think the insurance for a teenager to be driving a car like that would stretch their budget way too much.

But it just seemed like the standard of living drop was way too huge of a drop to be realistic. I could see them going to a more middle-class way of life, but not straight to 'the ghetto', as the movie itself put it.

reply

I admit I wasn't paying attention to every single little detail in the movie, but I swear they first said the lost his job and then they said he was transferring for his job. You don't transfer for a new job.

anyhow, I agree with you about the ridiculous move from a beverly hills type city to a city like East Compton. However, this was the main plot line for the movie, so had to be done.

reply