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Truth in advertising
"Superbad" really is the coming-of-age film of our generation
By Melissa Campbell
“Superbad” is a balance of crass humor and delicate humanity, a film that is simultaneously honest and absurd in its portrayal of adolescence.
When I read reviews that called “Superbad” (R, 114 min.) the “American Graffiti” of our generation, I was taken aback. Those are some mighty big shoes to fill. Needless to say, I went into “Superbad” with high hopes, and much to my delight, I was not disappointed. “Superbad” is a balance of crass humor and delicate humanity, a film that is simultaneously honest and absurd in its portrayal of adolescence.
“Superbad” is the story of two inseparable high school seniors, Evan (Michael Cera, “Arrested Development”), and Seth (Jonah Hill, “Knocked Up”), on a mission to score booze and a lay for the party of the year.
To buy the alcohol, they must enlist the help of friend Fogell (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), who has a recently acquired a fake ID. Mishap after mishap ensues, making the success of their mission seem more and more unlikely with each passing moment. But director Greg Mottola (“Arrested Development,” “The Daytrippers”), knows how to deliver a crowd pleaser, and “Superbad” ends happily, but not sappily.
The writing team behind the film, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (“The 40 Year-Old Virgin,” “Knocked Up”), marries teenage humor (think the word penis, all its synonyms, and anything that you can do with it), with awkward sentimentality.
Seth and Evan may be obsessed with getting laid, but they are more scared about losing each other as they head off to different colleges in the fall. This fact causes dissent between the boys that grows as the film progresses, culminating in a very couple-like yelling match followed by them storming off.
What sets “Superbad” apart from other recent “sex by graduation” films, like “American Pie,” is its honesty. While “American Pie” is filled with cookie-cutter high school stereotypes that are funny, but totally unbelievable; the kids of “Superbad” are completely relatable: they are hopeless without being desperate, and charismatic without being exaggerated.
In high school, you were either one of those guys, friends with one of those guys, or made fun of one of those guys. Either way, there is a Seth, Evan and Fogell in every American high school.
The truth behind the humor in “Superbad” is the key to its success, and should ensure its place among coming of age films like “The Breakfast Club” and (yes I am going to say it), “American Graffiti.”
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