The Spirit of Guyness

Rating: 9/10 (20 December 2007)

I like Superbad for the following reasons:
1. Superbad is uncompromising in its look at what it can be like to transition out of High School. The roles of the girls and boys in the story are anchored in exceptionally balanced, three-dimensional characters. In these characters, there are redeeming qualities and flaws that range from subtle to glaring. However, Seth, Evan, Fogell, Jules, Becca, and the two cops are all different people at the end of the movie than they were at the beginning, and the story is told in a way that the audience understands.
2. The profanity. Words are tools, and the dialog of Superbad builds the expression of not only the thoughts and the characters, but also of what the collective culture of the characters is. This is not a movie for someone to get caught up on what it is young people say. This is a movie for people who appreciate what young people mean.
3. Quid Pro Quo. Just as Juno is to Knocked Up and Mean Girls is to...well, pretty much the whole genre of High School Boy Geeks Overcoming Oppressive Jocks Movies, Superbad is begging for a response to be made from a female perspective.
That would be the movie to threaten the establishment.
sincerely,
Dave