Charles is in control of his life. He is about to finish 6th form college and start at Oxford. He is 19 and wants an 'older' woman before he turns 20. Enter the beautiful Rachel, and Charles puts his 'master-of-seduction' routines into top gear. Things however get complicated, Charles has a string of ex's and a weird brother-in-law. Rachel has a boyfriend named Deforest and Charles' father has a mistress...The first thing you notice about this film is that its a strange mix of Bright Lights, Big City, and Ferris Buellers Day Off. The second thing you notice is how quickly you fall into Charles world.And finally the third thing you realise is how shallow and pathetic Charles is, and yearn for more Jonathan Pryce. The thing is With the main character is the fact that Fletcher makes him come across as a spoilt brat, someone who may never have to do much work in his life, someone who gets everything for very little.But having never read the book, I don't know whether this was intentional, having a snivelling middle class squirt breaking the fourth wall and giving me utter spurious advice on the fairer sex.So when you start to despise the main character, the rest of the cast had better be great. And they are. Skye is wonderful as the titular character, and Pryce steals the show as Norman, the Neanderthal In Law.So all in all, its not bad, but the main character is one of those people you'd just like to punch in the face.

Film and TV students, use this as a case study of why the British film industry was internationally sniggered at for years until Four Weddings & a Funeral came out. Trials and tribulations of smart-mouthed Middle class idiot-boy and upper crust stuck-up American girlie getting it together. Predictably implausable plot. Going through the motions acting. Extended naked writhing to make up for it. The UK's version of Ferris Bueller? That's desperate. No brass in this muck.Only Jonathan Pryce comes out with some credit. Spader is barely utilised. God knows what he thought of all this. I wonder if he has a copy at his house? Perhaps this and Crash for a James Spader double header at the local Blockbuster? Now there's a thought...3/10

I have found "The Rachel Papers" to be a delightful mix of young convoluted romance, bittersweet in nature, and a bit of cute comedy. I've seen the movie several times, having taped it in 1991, and find it refreshing each time I view it.I particularly enjoy the music soundtrack which I feel gives each scene its own distinctive flavor. Dexter Fletcher plays an excellent role as an egotistical yet bumbling opportunist, and Ione Skye is outstanding as the target of Dexter's amorous intentions, and is somewhat equally nebulous of mind as is Dexter.It impresses me as a free-spirited production that does not require a great deal of laborious attention on the part of the viewer, and as such is truly entertaining.

Despite some fine performances and great source material, this movie doesn't stand up as well as I'd hoped it would. It's either too dark and serious for the comedy it hopes to be or it's too gauzy for the serious look at modern teenagers in Britain that it hopes to be.Still, it's interesting to see Dexter "did you know I was in Bugsy Malone AND Lock, Stock & 2 Smoking Barrells" Fletcher, Ione "wow, am I really this naked in this movie" Skye, Jonathon "why aren't I working more often?" Pryce and James "didn't I play this same character only with more lines in Pretty in Pink" Spader in a movie that hardly any American has ever heard of...This has its clever moments, its funny moments, its heartbreaking moments and a few moments that are meant to be (and are) disturbing... It's not as clever as its American cousin, or as funny...but it does have a bit more depth...and Ione Skye is REALLY naked in it.That's worth a rental, isn't it?