Identity Theft of a Cheerleader (2019 Lifetime)
Cast: Maiara Walsh, Karis Cameron, Jesse Irving
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Synopsis (via Lifetime)
A 33 year old woman takes on a teenage identity and goes back to high school. Inspired by True Events.
Thoughts
The movie starts off with some mediocre girls trying out for a cheerleading squad. Everyone makes it except for a nerd in glasses named Vicky. The other girls make fun of her and push her. Vicky falls and hits her head on the bleachers. Vicky comes home and is bullied by her mom too. Her mom is lip injected to hell and tells her daughter that “Second is only first loser.” Vicky goes to her room and smashes her face into a mirror while voices play in her head…
Flash to 13 years later, Vicky is working at Big Box Outlet (The same store featured in Killer Downstairs) and is still living at home. (Typical Millennial, right Boomers?) The mother/daughter relationship is still strained, but now they drink wine while subtle shading each other.
It’s Vicky’s 30th birthday, and she goes over to her boyfriend’s house; he seems to be a nice guy who gives her birthday sex. (He practically says HE is her gift.) Darren seems to be using Vicky for her mom’s money. He buys a laptop to “apply for jobs.” but gambles instead.
Vicky finds her coworkers Caitlin’s school ID on the floor and steals it. She then unrelatedly gets fired due to company layoffs. Vickey uses the new laptop to enroll herself in high school. (She is a high school dropout.) She also starts working out, gives herself a makeover (with bangs.), and says a bunch of dated young people slang like YOLO, Spill the tea, and lit.
At Highschool, Heather is a popular white girl with some POC friends. (Maddy and Kelly.) Heather is a cheerleader who is back from an injury. Vicky arrives on campus and everyone feels sorry for the new girl. Vicky eats her lunch in a bathroom stall… on the floor!!!
Vicky pep talks herself in the mirror and reminds herself that she is older than all these high school kids. The next day at school, she answers questions in class, crushes on Liam, is good at volleyball, and even bonds with the girls in the locker room. Vicky becomes so popular that she sits with the popular kids while they work on cheers.
At cheer tryouts, the girls nail the routine. Vicky asks the coach what she can work on to be considered as captain. The coach tells her she needs to work on her jumps, and she might be considered for co-captain… which is basically SECOND! This is what happens. Heather makes the team, and Maddy/Vicky (or Caitlin.) are co-captains. Vicky truly can’t handle being in second, so in the middle of the night, she pours oil all over the bleachers. The next day, Vicky sabotages Maddy and causes her to slip on the oil and flip over the bleachers fracturing her ankle. Vicky gets promoted to captain.
Liam throws a party. While the girls are getting ready at Heather’s house, Vicky chugs some vodka from a locked liquor cabinet and leaves it open for Heather’s parents to find. This is a problem because Heather’s sister is an alcoholic, and her parents are very sensitive about drinking. Heather barely gets to the party before she has to go home, leaving Vicky to seduce Liam.
Darren is not into Vicky staying out late and her changing attitude. He doesn’t have to like it because his name is not on the lease. Her mom is. Vicky kicks him out and redecorates her room as a teenager’s room.
The next day at school, Maddie and Heather are annoyed that Vicky is taking over their lives. Heather liked Liam and is now suspicious of Vicky. Especially when she sees texts from Darren. Heather tells Liam to be careful.
Darren is also suspicious and follows Vicky to school. He sees her kiss Liam and work on her cheer routines and promises to ruin Vicky’s secret. She begs him to meet her for dinner at her place, and she will explain everything. She does but then bashes Darren’s head in with a frying pan.
With Darren out of the way and her mom out of town, Vicky throws a rager of a party. Heather goes snooping around and finds an old photo of Vicky and her mom at a restaurant that has been closed for years. Speaking of her mom, Vicky’s mom comes home early and sees the aftermath of the party. Instead of being mad about the party, the mom is mad that she invited losers from the box store. Vicky throws some bottles at her mom and tells her that she isn’t a loser anymore.
The high schoolers are catching on that Vicky is older than she says she is. When she calls a meme a “Me me,” Liam is DISGUSTED. Things don’t get better when Caitlin decides to return to high school. Vicky kills her before it can become an issue.
Vicky learns that Heather is onto her, and she plants booze in her locker and talks to the coach. Heather’s parents ground her, and she is banned from the big game. While home, Heather researches online and finds out who Caitlyn is. Heather goes to Vicky’s mother and tells her that Vicky is impersonating a high school student.’’
Before the big game, Liam breaks up with Vicky. Which causes Vicky to slam her head into lockers. Heather confronts Vicky in the locker room and tells her she knows the truth. Heather should have had a better plan because Vicky just body checks her, knocks her out, and locks her in a boiler room.
This is a basketball game? I thought it was football. Anyway, Liam gets a call from Heather’s mom and goes to look for her. He finds her locked in the boiler room, and Heather tells him that she called the cops and he needs to act like everything is normal.
Vicky envisions her perfect high school pep rally with everyone cheering her on, but in reality, she gets dragged away by the cops while her mom watches disapprovingly. It is a bit anticlimactic.
Later, Liam and Heather are a couple and going to college. Vicky is in jail, still practicing her cheers.
Side Note
This movie states Vicky is of a variety of ages. From 30-33. (and also 18, obviously.)
My favorite Zaddy was in this movie Ben Wilkinson. (AKA the Antonio Sabato Jr knock-off.)
Minority Report: Vicky is actually played by a Brazilian actress who is white-passing. Vicky’s boss, the detective, Darren, Roy, Craig, Maddy, and Gemma.
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Overall rating
🔪🔪🔪 (3 Knives)
🍷🍷🍷 (3 glasses of wine required)
*Photo Credit: © 2019 Lifetime
