Ah,
high school. My life back then consisted of singing in the select choirs,
participating in every drama production under the sun, and playing an
ass-numbing amount of Halo every weekend with my friends. I did all this with
short, spiky hair that changed colors at least once a week, a closet full of
plaid skirts, and a rainbow array of fishnet stockings. Is it a surprise that I
wasn't considered one of the popular kids? Yea, didn't think so.
Nowadays,
I think back to that period of time and realize it was a stepping stone; a rung
on the ladder of life that would inevitably lead me to bigger and better things.
At the time, however, I wanted nothing more than to fit in. My mother would say: "this period of
time doesn't matter", and "all the kids that think high school is the
end-all-be-all are going to end up getting stuck in this mind-set and never
escape." Young Adult is a shining
example of this theory.
Mavis
Gary (Charlize Theron) is a fiction writer for young adults. She is vastly immature
as she has never fully grown out of her teens. She decides after seeing a "˜new baby' announcement to go back
to her hometown and win back the heart of her old high-school flame, Buddy.
(Patrick Wilson) She has convinced herself that he is not happily married,
doesn't want his child, and would be much happier living in the city with her. This plan ends badly for Mavis, as any
sane individual could imagine it would.
Mavis
gets a rude awakening when she learns that while being prom queen and winning "˜best
hair' in high school made her a big deal at the time, now her hometown just
feels sorry for her. The film's parallel imagery is obvious in places, but the
overall themes match up quite well. I have never been a huge fan of Diablo
Cody, but her screenwriting has adopted a subtler humor that I find refreshing.
Marked with brilliant supporting performances by Patton Oswalt and others, Young Adult is definitely one I would
revisit and encourage others to see---especially the video game-playing,
suspender-wearing drama kid who reads too much and dreams of one day hanging
with the popular kids.
