Josie and the Pussycats (2001 Movie)

Josie and the Pussycats is a 2001 movie directed by Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan and starring Rachael Leigh Cook, Rosario Dawson, Tara Reid, Alan Cumming and Parker Posey; it is based on the same Archie Comics characters as Josie and the Pussycats (1970 Animated Series).

The plot of the entire movie is about mind control; consumer preferences are being systematically manipulated by record industry executive Fiona (Parker Posey) by means of subliminal messages embedded in music. When the current top band (the ironically named DuJour) discovers the truth, their manager Wyatt Frame (Alan Cumming) arranges for their plane to crash. This means he now needs to find a new band to replace them; so when he finds a struggling small-town band called the Pussycats, he promises them stardom.

Wyatt renames the band “Josie and the Pussycats” claiming it'll increase their sales. But later in the movie, Fiona and Wyatt plot to remake Josie (Rachael Leigh Cook) as a solo artist, discarding Valerie (Rosario Dawson) and Melody (Tara Reid). In order to do this, Wyatt gives Josie a specially created CD of her music, ostensibly a remix for her to approve, which actually contains subliminal commands to reject her band-mates. However, though this is initially successful, it proves to be a step too far as Josie realizes she has been manipulated and investigates, discovering the subliminal messages and their role in the band's success.