Product Details

• Actors: Mia Kirshner, Meredith Monroe, Dominique Swain, Scott Bairstow, Rachel True
• Directors: Zoe Clarke-Williams
• Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English, French
• Region: Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
  PLEASE NOTE: Some Region 1 DVDs may contain Regional Coding Enhancement (RCE). Some, but not all, of our international customers have had problems playing these enhanced discs on what are called "region-free" DVD players. For more information on RCE, click here.
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• DVD Release Date: July 16, 2002
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000068QJR
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #15,490 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
A breath of fresh air in a stale genre, Zoe Clarke-Williams's canny look at the catty world of college cliques is the smartest dissection of the complex world of class envy, social acceptance, and the seduction of privilege since Heathers. But this drama plays it for tragedy. Local working-class girl Mia Kirshner is transformed from social outcast to campus Cinderella and adopted into the hedonistic party world of a trio of rich fun-loving sorority princesses (Meredith Monroe, Dominique Swain, and Rachel True), and comes out the other end in a drug-induced coma. Confidently directed and elegantly constructed in puzzle-piece flashbacks, this sensitive, sympathetic, smartly made drama is refreshingly free of glib moralizing, the rare young-adult film that twists the usual clichés and leaves its audience with more questions than answers. The DVD also features an audio commentary track by director Zoe Clarke-Williams. --Sean Axmaker

From the Back Cover
Welcome to Colby University, where the wealthy and powerful rule. Into this world step Alicia, a girl of modest means who dreams of becoming a lawyer. When she meets the beautiful, popular Hadley, Alicia quickly becomes a member of an elite clique. But she's about to learn the hard way that her new friends walk a dangerous line. A seductive thriller in the tradition of "Cruel Intentions" and "Wild Things", "New Best Friend" will have you guessing until the shocking final scenes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great movie for a hot date!, November 13, 2003

By	MartyHansen (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

A poor girl who falls in with rich girls suffers an overdose, and the local sheriff wannabe is brought in to investigate. The rich girls are young and very attractive, especially when they're partying in their spaghetti-strapped dresses. And the poor girl, played by Mia Kirschner, is no slouch in the looks department herself with her dark features and jet black hair.

Mia eventually ingratiates herself with all of the friends; smoking, drinking, and doing drugs - and sharing dark secrets - like when she and Dominique Swain discover that both of them had been molested by their fathers when they were ten-years-old, which causes them to bond by exploring each other's mouths with their tongues, pawing at each other's clothes, and then falling asleep in each other's arms soon afterwards.

Mia then uncovers that Rachel True, a gorgeous fair-skinned black girl, is bulimic; and Mia offers to help her quit when she's ready. Rachel is touched, but rather than make it with Mia, she shares a deep soul kiss with Ms. Swain to continue an on-going relationship with Dominique (who is bisexual).

Dominique is on a roll, but the only girl among her circle of friends she doesn't kiss is Meredith Monroe, who plays Hadley, the story's main character - and main suspect! Meredith looks a lot like Natasha Henstridge (`Ghosts of Mars'), so watching her is definitely easy on the eyes. The most risque thing she does in the movie, though, is get naked (from the back) with her boyfriend in bed. But her performance as a seemingly innocent and helpful best friend is excellent.

Besides Meredith, another fine appearance is made by Taye Diggs as this Southern college town's interim sheriff. He approaches his task with sensitivity and determination, and it is through his eyes - and the flashbacks that he's told - that we get to enjoy the girls' divulged sensuality.

Taye solves the crime, and one of the girls is brought to justice. She ends up behind bars at the movie's end - while we see Dominique, asleep and naked in bed - and lying between both her own boyfriend and another girl! (Gee, I don't remember college life to be this good!)

This movie is well produced - and well paced - and Dominique (who I loved in `Lolita') is definitely fun to follow. This would be a great film to share on a really hot date. Enjoy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat confusing but still worth while, July 26, 2002

By	"incrowdbrittany" (Port Huron, MI) - See all my reviews

Although this is a grown up teen movie set for the 20 something college genera, it is still quite a good mystery flick. Throughout the film the plot manages to twist and turn just enough to throw you completely off track in regards to your opinion on "Who Done It?". Although the film does boast Dominiqe Swain as one of the title characters, don't expect her to be the lead, she does play a big part, but not as big as Mia Kirshner and Meridith Monroe.
Definately a film worth checking out if you like to have a surprise ending and like to act like Shurlock Holmes!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Movie, June 4, 2003

By	Diaspora Chic "diaspora_chic" (Silver Spring, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Best Friend [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Alicia, daughter of a working-class mother, had the aspirations of being a lawyer. When she met Hadley, a rich and spoiled, but neglected daughter of a wealthy man, her world is not going to be what it is. She hangs around Hadley and her friends going to partites and doing drugs, leaving her best friend from kindergarten behind. The lifestyle that Alicia enjoys isn't all that it is cracked up to be. The decadence of sex and drugs destroys her mentally and causes friction with Hadley, who in turn no longer wants to have anything to with her. However, Hadley is at fault for creating her into the person that she isn't. The rich girl gets foiled over by the former outcast. And she does what she can to keep her from the rest of them.
This was a good movie. I couldn't help but stayed glued to the television as the story unfolds to events that led to Alicia's overdose. Alicia needed someone to let her know that things were looking up for her and not to give up every time she got rejected. Hadley needed her father's emotional support but she also needed to learn to be on her own without relying on daddy's money. The other two women that hung around Hadley were just as out of control as Hadley. Taye Diggs, the investigator, does a great job. He was on the ball as he unfolds this event going into the depths of college life.