BOOKSMART
US, 2019, 102 minutes, Colour.
Beanie Feldstein, Kaitlyn Dever, Jessica Williams, Jason Sudeikis, Lisa Kudrow, Will Forte, Mason Gooding,
Directed by Olivia Wilde.
Depending on your age and your response to teenage comedies, high school comedies, your reaction might be “great, another one� or a groaning “oh no!�.
For many older audiences, the response might be the latter.
However, Booksmart turns out to be somewhat different (what a relief!).
The action takes place over a period of about 24 hours, the day and night before high school graduation. We are introduced to two of the students, friends for years, Molly (Beanie Feldstein, sister of Jonah Hill, and it might be very enjoyable to see them together in a film) and Amy (Kaitlyn Dever). Molly is always very much in charge, Amy in support. It emerges that they have loved study, that they actually are book-smart, have plans for their future, but tend to be ridiculed by fellow students. There is a particularly awkward scene where Molly is in the toilet and overhears a group mocking her, carving her up. (And, woe of woes, all the students, despite slacker attitudes and behaviour, already have places in prestige colleges.)
The crisis for the night is that the two girls realise that they have been all work and no play, that they have missed out on socialising. So, they plan to go to a party (but don’t have the address and are reliant on getting it from a pizza house with their deliveries – the manager who reprimands them for their behaviour later gets his comeuppance in a most unexpected way).
In comparison with so many of the parties in the raucous comedies, this is a somewhat quiet and better-behaved affair. However, Molly who has a crush on her rather playboy student VP student becomes disillusioned with him. Amy, who has come out as lesbian, has a crush on one of the students who disillusions her. Surprisingly, this leads to a rather strong scene where Molly and Amy have a very public fight, a shouting match and denunciations in front of everyone.
So, how will graduation day turnout? Awkwardly, at least at the start, because Amy has taken the initiative to draw off the police who raid the party enabling everyone else to escape but her finishing up in jail. Molly comes to rescue her, mutual apologies – and hurrying on to the graduation.
The film is carried by the performances of the two young women. It is something of a relief to see a film which indicates that there is more to school and college years than drinking, drugs, sex, wasting opportunities. Somebody remarked that this is the kind of film that parents prefer to watch and may prefer their children to watch.
1. Teenage comedy? For teenage audience? For a parents’ audience? Comic and serious?
2. The title, Molly and Amy as booksmart? All study but no play?
3. The traditions of teenage comedies, raucous and crude? The elements here? But a different context? The suggestion that this is the kind of image parents might want to see?
4. The town, homes, school, the party? The feel of the town?
5. The musical score, the range of songs, nostalgic?
6. The two girls, their age, friendship over the years, studious, Molly controlling, president of the students, Amy complying, later accused of being a coward? The bond between the two girls? Plans for the future, graduation, college, Amy going to do work in Botswana?
7. Molly, her crush on the vice president of the students’ group? Amy, the same-sex attraction, her coming out, her crush on Ryan, but remaining at the level of crush? Molly and unrequited crushes?
8. The last day, the discussions with the headmaster? His dismissing them? Miss Fine, her own personal story, encouraging the girls, their ringing her for rescue, giving them the dresses for the party, going to the party, the attraction to the Latino student, the sexual encounter, the later talking with him at the graduation?
9. At school, the treatment of Molly and Amy by the other students, talking about Molly in the toilet and her overhearing all the criticisms? The fact that the slacker students were all accepted to the best colleges, the issue of study versus partying?
10. The two girls’ discussion, the decision to go to the party, to make up for lost time, the difficulties in getting the address, the idea for the pizza order, the pizza man, their disguising themselves with their long hair as a mask, his threats and telling them to behave? The extra irony of his being the local strangler?
11. Miss Fine, and her taking them to the party?
12. A comparatively subdued party, much less of the usual raucous behaviour?
13. Molly, seeing the vice president, the games with him, his interest in Harry Potter, their bonding, yet his going off, flirting with Ryan, Molly’s reaction? Amy and Ryan, flirting, swimming, seeing Ryan with the vice president, upset, meeting the lonely girl, the critique, the kiss, the vomiting?
14. The two girls creating a scene at the party, the loud quarrel, accusations?
15. The police raid, Amy volunteering to act as a decoy, her finishing up in prison?
16. Molly waking on graduation day, going to the prison, the frank talk with Amy, the apologies, giving information about the strangler? Their getting out?
17. Their dorky friend, seen giving the gift to Miss Fine even though he was not in her class? His helping Molly? Taking her place at the ceremony, his justifying his background and the false rumours, his reading of the speech? The details of Molly’s speech, the feminist tone and his presenting it?
18. The car, driving fast, the crashing entry? Molly’s brief speech?
19. Amy’s parents, their pampering her, the toy bear?
20. To the airport, Amy to Botswana, Molly leaving – the return at the airport? The future of the girls?
21. Interesting that beneath the raucous there were more serious undertones of study and responsibility?
