Emma Stone displays star-making charisma in this teen comedy, playing Olive Penderghast, one of those girls who just fades into the background at high school. So when the fibs she tells about her (actually nonexistent) sexual exploits start doing the rounds, it's no surprise that Olive is flattered by the attention. But, of course, we know that those tall tales are only going to get her into deeper trouble, even if we understand the peer-pressure to seem cooler (or should that be hotter?) than she really is. What unfolds, however, is a deft, witty and sympathetic tale of adolescent confusions that bravely references both Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter and John Hughes teen pics of the 1980s - and gets away with it. There's also a stellar supporting cast that includes Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson as Olive's groovy parents, and Malcolm McDowell and Lisa Kudrow as members of the school staff, and they all make the most of writer Bert V Royal's gold-standard dialogue. True, the plot almost overreaches itself, but it's still enormously funny and has surprising cross-generational appeal.

Olive, an average high school student, sees her below-the-radar existence turn around overnight once she decides to use the school's gossip grapevine to advance her social standing. Now her classmates are turning against her and the school board is becoming concerned, including her favorite teacher and the distracted guidance counselor. With the support of her hilariously idiosyncratic parents and a little help from a long-time crush, Olive attempts to take on her notorious new identity and crush the rumor mill once and for all.