As good as promoted

Rating: 8/10 (13 December 2016)

Forget the fanboys/intellectual movie-going clique and their description of this being so "essential" and seminal for the teen movie genre, because A- that's no virtue seeing what later followed in bunches and B- that's not even the film's better qualities.
The film's better qualities are, well, the film itself (not what it stands for): the message it delivers, the totally original plot, its various intriguing developments, the characters and what's behind them, and the outcome ultimately.
Rather than being a mere ode to the rise of the teenager, the era of rebellious scum adults have to take seriously - this is rather realistic, its social commentary obvious yet very relevant, and the morality and overall feel much more humane than ideological. One 'feels' this film rather than agrees with its political message.