-
Jan 29
by Chloe Rogers
As I settle into my seat at Carmike Cinemas and the lights dim, I can think only about how if “Youth in Revolt” is going to be exactly like every other one of Michael Cera’s movies. It’s true that he is type-cast as the awkward, sarcastic teenager; however, this movie was a little different.
The plot centers around Nick Twisp (Cera) and Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday), two 16-year-old teenagers who find themselves stuck in a religious trailer park with nothing to do. After promptly falling head over heels for each other, Saunders says that she needs him to be more “dangerous.” Thus, Françoise Dillinger is born. A bad boy, alter ego of Twisp, Dillinger has the two things that every Frenchman would ever need to make a woman swoon — cigarettes that are always dangling from his lips, and a pencil thin moustache.
Their idea of a good time includes numerous felonies, including writing explicatives on the family’s RV and then committing arson with said RV. After Saunders hears about what Twisp has done in order to receive a “bad boy” appeal, she is, of course, falling all over herself with teenage lust. Every teenage girl definitely needs a boyfriend with a leather jacket and who rides a motorcycle, right? Oh, I guess I was confused since now the definition of “rebel” has a picture of Michael Cera dressed up as a funny-looking Frenchman. Soon after Saunders’ parents hear about Twisp’s adventures, she is sent off to a French boarding school. Not only does Twisp feel as though he cannot live without talking to her; he actually goes to this school. True teenage love right there.
“Youth in Revolt” isn’t just about teenage love — excuse me, lust — but it’s also about teenage virginity. Twisp’s thoughts center on when he can get some and how he can get some. Now I’m not ignorant. Even I realize that those thousands of hormones surging through a teenage boy’s body make it difficult to concentrate on math or history, but this movie is so blunt about sex that its R rating would make even Hugh Hefner blush.
I can see how a younger generation would find this movie funny, maybe even hilarious. Sex can be a funny subject to adolescents who have to sneak into the movie to look like they’re old enough. However, the humor can only halfway cover up the fact Cera has been type-cast. I didn’t think I bought a ticket to Superbad, considering it has only been out for, oh, about two years now.
Overall, the movie was funny and, surprisingly, actually had a plot. But I wouldn’t go to it again, especially in theaters. To get the same effect that this movie gave me, I can rent Juno for $1.99 at Hastings for a week.
Wednesday, September 8