LOS ANGELES, June 27 (UPI) -- Clueless is returning to theaters Sunday for its 30th anniversary, but it's never really left the culture at large. While there have been many teen comedies since, the film's lingo and fashion remain evergreen and some of the details prove surprisingly prescient.
Alicia Silverstone stars as Cher Horowitz, a teenager attending Beverly Hills' fictional Bronson Alcott High School, wearing designer fashion and carrying a cell phone. Cher plays matchmaker for her teachers, and new student Tai (Brittany Murphy), similar to Jane Austen's heroine Emma.
In the '90s, words like "whatever" and "as if" were common, following the Bill & Ted and Wayne's World popularization of "no way" and "yeah, right." Clueless made "I'm Audi" synonymous with "I'm out of here" (as in Audi/outtie), with an emphatic "Audi 5000."
Those terms may have been usurped by TikTok lingo like "delulu" and "cheugy" but the sentiments haven't changed. Delulu means delusional and "as if" is essentially telling someone they are delusional, "as if" they think that's going to happen.
The plaid skirts and knee-high socks were sort of retro at the time of the film's release, but they'd still work now.
