Alicia Silverstone in Clueless, 1992
Archetypal Clueless Valley Girl Cher (Alicia Silverstone) may smack her gum in class, say “like” more than seems humanly possible and mispronounce “Haitian,” but she’s far from stupid. Her in-class debate speech, taking the affirmative on whether all oppressed people should be allowed refuge in America, makes artful use of metaphor in comparing party-crashers who didn’t ruin her father’s big 5-0 to refugees seeking asylum. Her line about the lack of an RSVP request on the Statue of Liberty is one of the best zingers in American history (or at least American history class)—but opponent Amber (Elisa Donovan), even though she never makes her case against Cher’s argument, may best sum up many debate-watchers’ feelings of frustration.
Fighting Words: “If the government could just get to the kitchen and rearrange things, we could certainly party with the Haitians.”
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf7MT1p1VNI]