Young Adult

[MacGuffin]

Trailer

Release Date: December 9th, 2011 (wide)

Starring: Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson, Patton Oswalt, Elizabeth Reaser, J. K. Simmons

Directed by: Jason Reitman

Premise: Mavis Gary, a writer of teen literature, returns to her small hometown to relive her glory days and attempt to reclaim her happily married high school sweetheart. When returning home proves more difficult than she thought, Mavis forms an unusual bond with a former classmate who hasn't quite gotten over high school either.

[©brad]

Looks good but man people really love to hate on Diablo Cody huh? If you look at the comments on Gawker and AVClub where this trailer is also posted they just eviscerate her. I don't really get it. I mean yes some of her dialogue is overwritten in a Dawson's Creek on meth kind of way, but despite its shaky start, Juno is a really sweet film. And the later episodes of United States of Tara were very well done. I think she gets a bad rap.

[Sleepless]

I'm not a Diablo Cody fan at all. And that poster is the worst I've ever seen.

[squints]

Yeah that doesn't look so bad. I'm kind of excited.

[Ghostboy]

Reitman movies always have amazing trailers. This one looks good though, Charlize looks tops. And that poster is kinda awesome in its perfect ugliness.

[RegularKarate]

I like the poster.  It fits in its intentional ugliness.

I don't think Juno is a good movie.  I used to hate on Diablo Cody, but I can give her the benefit of the doubt.
I'll see this because of Patton Oswalt, but nothing in that trailer seemed interesting or new... just another boring movie trying to mimic quirky/indie.  Felt extremely stale.

[matt35mm]

Saw this tonight. They've been doing surprise screenings around the country. Patton Oswalt and Jason Reitman were there.

I liked the movie. I've never hated on Diablo Cody, but I also didn't really love Juno, so I guess that's where I'm coming from. I do think that this is much better written. The storytelling is much stronger, and the wittisms are dialed way down. It's not a quirky movie at all, really.

The characters are interesting and the acting is solid and entertaining. Even though it's bleak, I thought it was a lot of fun. It's not mind-blowing and it's not gonna be an awards contender in the way that Juno or Up in the Air were. Compared to those, it's minor, simpler, but better for it.

I also found it to be a more mature work in the sense of not needing to be loved. A movie like Juno screams "Love me! Love me!" and even Up in the Air was at times self-aware of its supposed importance and relevance. Everyone involved just has a clearer vision of what they're doing with this one, and it felt like they were pleasing themselves first, and the audience can jump on board or not.

So, thumbs up.

[RegularKarate]

Damn it.  I didn't know about this screening.  I would have liked to have gone just for Patton.  Oh well.

Your review makes me much more interested in the film.  Doesn't sound as desperate.

[matt35mm]

Yeah well we didn't know what it was going to be until they introduced Patton and Reitman. Although, Patton did tweet about the secret screening a couple of days ago and so a lot of us suspected it would be this.

[SiliasRuby]

This is Patton's and Charlize's best performance. Hands down. The ending does a sharp left turn and that make some people angry about it. Hope Patton gets a supporting actor oscar nomination. He's THAT good.

[Reel]

I wasn't gonna go anywhere near this, but after that write up how can I resist?

[Ravi]

I agree with matt35mm's review. This is an intriguing portrait of a woman whose glory days were in high school, and even though she was the only one to leave her small town for the city, high school was her peak. The film doesn't softpedal on how selfish and miserable she is and how nobody is especially glad to see her again.

Professions in movies and TV are usually nebulous concepts. Lots of movie characters are writers or are in advertising, probably because the filmmakers think they're romantic or glamourous occupations, but this is one of the few films I've seen that shows something of what it is like to be a writer; to stare at a blank page or to overhear a conversation that ends up in one's work.

[Alexandro]

After seeing this film, my adolescent crush with Charlize Theron feels like a jumbo soda that just got a refill. She is so fucking good in this, which is at the same time joyful and enraging because how many other great actresses like her are turning down comedies to do some forgettable oscar bait dramatic role. This is her best work to date. And it didn't requiere her to transform into a hero or hide behind tons of makeup to look ugly. It's just being a great comedy player.

Oswalt is equally good. I think I can now forgive Diablo cody for Juno and that other stupid movie with that slut.

Being a more mature and intelligent work than Up in The Air or any other film Jason Reitman has done, this was obviously ignored during awards season. But what else is new?

[©brad]

I think I can now forgive Diablo cody for Juno and that other stupid movie with that slut.

Was that really necessary?

[Alexandro]

shit, I forgot her name...
ok, dude. she's not a slut. she's just an actress with an elusive display of talent...
what's her name? the one in the vampire movie and transformers.