Reese Witherspoon plays the smart dumb blonde in Legally Blonde, a movie about stereotypes, overcoming stereotypes, and just getting away with being stereotypical.

Legally Blonde has been compared to Clueless countless times, but comparing them, I really do not find much in common. The plots are different, the main characters are extremely different, and the themes are different, so therefore, just about everything is different. I actually like this one a little better than that Alicia Silverstone "classic," just due to the fish-out-of-water storyline.

The movie is about a dumb blonde (or more so, a ditzy blonde) who, after being dumped by her boyfriend, decides to apply for Harvard Law School to show that she can be serious. She gets in, amazingly, and shows that she can actually practice law.

Reese Witherspoon does a wonderful job as the ditzy yet smart blonde, who is aware of the stereotype against her but really doesn't care. She does a good job of combining silliness with wit, and really dominates the screen every time she is around. This is really one of her sexier roles as well, not because of any specific content, but because of the way she works on the screen.

The script is pretty good, although not perfect. It is far above the teen comedy genre, but still shows its flaws here and there. Nevertheless, there are many funny moments throughout the film, and I never felt bored.

The only real annoyance with Legally Blonde is the murder case that makes up the conclusion to the movie. The murder itself is not focused upon, thankfully, but it is really unbelievable that a bunch of first-year interns would be working on a murder trial, and none of them would actually represent a client. This whole plot development seemed a little under studied.

Legally Blonde is surprisingly pretty good and intelligent, and this marks Reese Witherspoon's best performance to date.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.