''LOL'' is a 2012 American teen romantic

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film written and directed by

Lisa Azuelos Lisa Azuelos (born Elise-Anne Bethsabée Azuelos; 6 November 1965 in Neuilly-sur-Seine) is a French director, writer, and producer. She is the daughter of singer Marie Laforêt. Biography Lisa Azuelos is the daughter of French singer and actr ...

. A remake of the 2008 French film ''

LOL (Laughing Out Loud) ''LOL (Laughing Out Loud)'' is a 2008 French comedy film directed by Lisa Azuelos and starring Sophie Marceau, Christa Theret, and Alexandre Astier. Written by Azuelos and Delgado Nans, the film is about a teenage girl whose life is split betw ...

'' (also directed by Azuelos), the film stars

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( ; born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans across varied styles and genres, including pop, country, rock, hip hop ...

Demi Moore Demi Gene Moore ( ; née Guynes; born November 11, 1962) is an American actress. After making her film debut in 1981, Moore appeared on the soap opera '' General Hospital'' (1982–1984) and subsequently gained recognition as a member of the Br ...

Ashley Greene Ashley Michele Greene Khoury (born February 21, 1987) is an American actress. She is known for playing Alice Cullen in the film adaptations of Stephenie Meyer's ''Twilight'' novels. Early life Greene was born on February 21, 1987, in Jack ...

, and

Adam Sevani Adam G. Sewani (born June 29, 1992) is an American actor and dancer, known for playing Robert Alexander III / Moose in the Step Up film series. Acting career In February 2008, Sevani appeared in the Touchstone Pictures dance drama film '' Step ...

. It received a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unit ...

in the United States on May 4, 2012, by

Lionsgate Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...

. The film received mostly negative reviews from film critics and it earned $10.4 million on an $11 million budget, making it a box office bomb.

Plot

Lola "Lol" Williams leads an ordinary life in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, with her boyfriend Chad and best friends Emily, Janice, and Kyle. When they return to school, after the summer, Lol discovers that Chad has cheated on her, so they break up. Lol and Kyle realize they have feelings for each other and pursue a relationship. This is difficult as Chad is his best friend, and Lol's nemesis, Ashley, is a flirt, especially with Kyle. His and Chad's band, No Shampoo, wants to compete in the battle of the bands, but Kyle's father does not support his passion for music and feels that it interferes with his schoolwork. Chad's jealousy towards Lol and Kyle's new relationship further complicates things. Lol's mother, Anne, is a divorcée who frequently has sex with her ex-husband, Allen, until she discovers he has also been sleeping with another woman. Anne also begins to feel she and Lol are growing further apart. Lol throws a party and is caught by Anne who threatens to not allow her to go on her class trip to Paris. She is already grounded for the party. Things finally start to change when Anne meets police officer James and they begin to date. He offers her advice on how to reconnect with Lol, which she takes up. After a presentation at school, Lol looks for Kyle in the bathroom and overhears two people having sex in the stall. She assumes it is Kyle and Ashley after seeing a purse similar to Ashley's peeking out from under the stall. It was actually Emily and Wen hooking up, but Emily does not tell Lol because she is embarrassed she hooked up with him. Afterwards, Lol confronts Ashley, who does not deny it because she likes Kyle and wants to get in between Lol and Kyle's relationship. A huge argument ensues between Kyle and Lol, where Lol accuses Kyle of cheating, and they break up. When Kyle's father discovers Kyle has lied about his grades and smoked pot, he grounds him and destroys his guitar. After the break-up, Lol is determined to make Kyle jealous, and tries to do so by making out with her childhood friend Jeremy. Meanwhile, she and her mom reconnect, and Anne allows Lol to go on the class trip to Paris. While on the Paris trip, Emily finally admits to Lol it was actually her and Wen in the bathroom, not Ashley and Kyle. After this realization, Lol and Kyle reconcile and Lol spends the night with Kyle and they have sex for the first time. When they all return home, Chad and Kyle rekindle their friendship and he gives his blessing to Kyle and Lol. Lol sticks up for Ashley when Chad insults her, resulting in them become friends. Meanwhile, Anne finds Lol's diary and discovers that Lol has slept with Kyle and smoked pot. Confronting Lol, they have a huge falling-out, and Lol moves in with her father. Eventually, Lol and Anne reconcile and Lol moves back in with her mother. Kyle's band wins the battle of the bands and his father finally begins to support his musical aspirations. Kyle and Lol stay together. Ashley and Chad begin to date and Emily and Wen are together as she is no longer embarrassed to be with him. The film ends with Anne and Lol laughing out loud while cuddling.

Cast

Production

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as ...

began on July 16, 2010, in

Dearborn, Michigan Dearborn is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 109,976. Dearborn is the seventh most-populated city in Michigan and is home to the largest Muslim population in the United States per ...

. ''LOL'' was primarily filmed at Grosse Pointe South High School in the city of Grosse Pointe, a suburb northeast of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

. It was also shot in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

. In September 2010, production moved to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. Post-production began on September 14, 2010, and required a year and two weeks before it was completed on November 1, 2011. The film was set to be released in 2011 but it was pushed to 2012. The film was initially supposed to be a television drama, but such plans were changed when the series ran into legal issues connected to the French film of the same name.

Soundtrack

#"Everybody" –

Ingrid Michaelson Ingrid Ellen Michaelson (born December 8, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Her first album, ''Slow the Rain,'' was released in 2005, and she has since released eight more albums: '' Girls and Boys,'' '' Be OK'', '' Everybody'' ...

Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime" is a 1980 single written by James Warren and first performed by British pop band the Korgis; Warren was lead singer in the band. It has subsequently been covered by numerous other artists. Background "Everyb ...

" – Jean-Phillipe Verdin #"

You Can't Always Get What You Want "You Can't Always Get What You Want" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones on their 1969 album ''Let It Bleed''. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it was named as the 100th greatest song of all time by '' Rolling Stone' ...

" –

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically dr ...

#" Somewhere Only We Know" – Keane #"

Houdini Harry Houdini (, born Erik Weisz; March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926) was a Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts. His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician ...

" –

Foster the People Foster the People is an American indie pop band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2009. Its members are singer Mark Foster, guitarist Sean Cimino, and keyboardist Isom Innis. Foster founded the band in 2009 after spending several years in ...

#" The Big Bang" – Rock Mafia #"Microphone" –

Coconut Records Coconut Records is a German record label formed in 1981 by producers Tony Hendrik and Karin Hartmann. The label has released multiple genres of music, including dance, schlager, eurodance, electronica, Hi-NRG, Dance-pop and R&B. Artists Art ...

#"Location" –

Freelance Whales Freelance Whales was an American indie rock band which formed in Queens, New York, United States, in 2008. The band consists of frontman Judah Dadone and bandmates Chuck Criss, Jacob Hyman and Kevin Read. History 2008–2011: Formation and de ...

#"Cul et chemise" – BB Brunes #"Birds" –

The Submarines The Submarines are an American indie rock band from Los Angeles formed in 2006. Band history Working as solo artists in Boston, the two members of the band, John Dragonetti and Blake Hazard, were introduced through a mutual friend, Joe Klompus. ...

#"Heart on Fire" – Jonathan Clay #"Little Sister" – Jonathan Clay and Becky Henkel #"Dreamers" – Jonathan Clay #"I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby – the LOL School Girls

Release

''LOL'' was originally set to have a wide domestic release, but instead, it was rushed into a

with no significant marketing from the theatrical team. The film was released solely because of a technicality in the contract, which contributed to its underperformance at the box office. On February 10, 2012, ''LOL'' was released for the first time in India, and on March 1, 2012, in Singapore. It later received a limited release in the United States on May 4, 2012, by

. In its opening weekend in the US, the film grossed $46,500 from 105 theaters, with an average of $440 per theater.

Critical response

''LOL'' was panned by critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, the film holds an approval rating of 16% with an average score of 3.7/10, based on six reviews.

Awards and nominations

Home media

The film was made available on DVD,

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

, digital download, and on-demand on July 31, 2012, in the United States from

Lionsgate Home Entertainment Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...

References

External links

* * *
''LOL''
at The Numbers {{DEFAULTSORT:LOL 2012 films 2012 romantic comedy-drama films 2010s coming-of-age comedy-drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s high school films 2010s teen comedy-drama films 2010s teen romance films American coming-of-age comedy-drama films American high school films American remakes of French films American romantic comedy-drama films American teen comedy-drama films American teen romance films Coming-of-age romance films Films about mother–daughter relationships Films directed by Lisa Azuelos Films scored by Rob Simonsen Films set in Chicago Films set in Paris Films shot in Chicago Films shot in Detroit Films shot in Paris Mandate Pictures films 2010s American films