The Age of Jennifer’s Body

Scorned husbands, vengeful kings, and medieval courts have historically used accusations of witchcraft as a means of restraining women for a variety of reasons: their “hysteria,” their violence, their independence of mind. The demonic teen girl, whose paranormal faculties emerge alongside the new desires and burning disappointments of girlhood, is defined by these same measures––which are only intensified by the mundane cruelties of the American high-school experience. Carrie has since inspired a spate of successors; two notable examples are Nancy Downs, the power-drunk leader of her school’s coven in The Craft, and the dog-eating werewolf Ginger Fitzgerald, of the low-budget classic Ginger Snaps. But the most infamous demonic teen girl of the 21st century is Jennifer Check, the hot cheerleader turned boy-eating succubus in Karyn Kusama’s cult favorite Jennifer’s Body, written by Diablo Cody and released 15 years ago today. Although it’s fun to cheer on their bloodthirst, there’s a lot more to these girls; their ferocity is only the first layer of their intricate personalities.