Booksmart

Booksmart

Starring Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Noah Galvin, Billie Lourd

Directed by Olivia Wilde

The Story:
Best friends Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein) spent their entire high school careers focusing on studies and getting into prestigious colleges, and stayed away from the parties and other social events their classmates participated in because they felt that they were on the fast track to success.  Molly especially looked down on her fellow students, until she learned that pretty much all of them have also found their way to attend prestigious colleges as well, but also managed to have fun in the process.

Molly is so distraught by this fact that she convinces Amy to attend one last party - thrown by party boy Nick (Mason Gooding) - before graduation the following day.  She convinces Amy to go by pointing out that her crush Ryan (Victoria Ruesga) would be there.  Their only problem is that they don't know where the party is at, and no one will tell them because they're labeled the prudes of the school.  Their quest to find the party takes many hilarious turns, until they finally find the party and find a new part of themselves in the process.

The Synopsis:
"Don't make the same mistake I made."  Thus was the advice Amy and Molly received by their favorite teacher as they searched for the party of the year - and also the first one they were attending - the day before graduation.  It's no surprise that a film like "Booksmart" would hit theaters at the height of high school graduation season, because it serves to reinforce the most important thing in life - friends, and the lasting memories you make with them.  In the end, it's not about how much you studied, how you put aside social interactions to favor a possibly successful future, or how you feel superior to everyone else, but rather the type of person you are, and the person you'll turn out to be.

"Booksmart" is smarter than you'd expect, a film that re-vitalizes the coming-of-age subgenre and revolutionizes it in unique ways.  I graduated way back in 1999, but friends I have now that are just graduating or have in the last few years say they see the characters in this film in their high schools, and it's refreshing that they're not given one-note performances, but provide well-rounded characterizations that supersede their stereotypes.  While the film focuses on Amy and Molly, it's really an ensemble piece, and there's no character wasted or needless moment.

At the heart of the film is the friendship of Amy and Molly, two high school outcasts who spent their formative years with their noses in books and libraries (in fact the only "bad" thing they ever did was get fake IDs so they could get into college libraries) in hopes of getting into the creme-de-la-creme of colleges.  While both managed to succeed in this endeavor, Molly realizes that the majority of her fellow students also got into Ivy League schools without much effort (one did on a soccer scholarship, another scored a high SAT score, and one kid is foregoing college entirely to work as a Google coder) - and she's outraged by this.  She feels like she wasted her time studying when she could've been to parties, and convinces Amy to go to one last party with her - and it's a night the girls will never forget.

Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein act like they've been best friends their entire lives, and both actresses give it their all here.  Dever's Amy is the quieter one, the one who believes in social justice and plans on spending the summer in Botswana rolling tampons, the girl who recently came out and harbors a secret crush on a fellow classmate, but is too timid and shy to say anything.  On the flip side is Beanie Felstein (sister of Jonah Hill, in which I just found out) as Molly, the leader of the group who's outspoken nature overshadows Amy's throughout the film.  She's the more judgmental of the two, who looks down on her fellow classmates as mere annoyances until she learns that they've also got into the same colleges she wanted to get into.  While both girls play to their tropes, they also manage to give more than just that, supplying well-rounded performances that are 95% hilarious and 5% heartfelt, with moments that pretty much every set of best friends have gone through in their lives.

The supporting cast also do more than just their stereotypes offer, and no character goes to waste.  From George's (Noah Galvin) flamboyantly gay drama club leader to Jared's (Skyler Gisondo) over-the-top wealthy golden boy, to Hope's (Diana Silvers) bad girl persona and Nick's (Mason Gooding) party boy image, there's more to each character and more that they deliver than just their stereotypes - a film that also presses the issue by having more than one conversation between different characters and how they see one another versus how they really are.  The real scene stealer though is Billie Lourd's Gigi, who simply has to be seen to believed.

Likewise the adults manage to shine in a type of film that generally pushes them to the side, and that's due to the strong actors chosen to play them.   Jason Sudeikis (director Olivia Wilde's husband) plays the principal of the school in a totally unique way, while Miss Fine (Jessica Williams) offers more than just ageless wisdom but also proves to have a youthful side as well.  Lisa Kudrow and Will Forte play Amy's parents with charm and a silly countenance that pretty much personifies why teenagers are often embarrassed by their parents, and Mike O'Brien plays a great supporting role as a pizza guy who dispenses more than just piping hot pizzas.

Typically comedies are the films I like the least, because they follow the same roadmap as other films of the like, but "Booksmart" is refreshing in that it doesn't adhere to the films of the past (yet still manage to honor them), but instead forges its own unique path, and that's due to the outstanding directing of first-time director Olivia Wilde, once again proving that actors can really deliver behind the camera as well.

The Summary:
Creating its own path to the coming-of-age subgenre, "Booksmart" lives up to its title in every way, providing a smart, inventive, and downright hilarious film that's easily viewed again and again, delivered with heart and humor by a strong, capable, young cast.

The Score: A+