Superbad – Film Review

Two inseparable best friends navigate the last weeks of high school and are invited to a gigantic house party. Together with their nerdy friend, they spend a long day trying to score enough alcohol to supply the party and inebriate two girls in order to kick-start their sex lives before they go off to college. Their quest is complicated after one of them falls in with two inept cops who are determined to show him a good time.

It’s kind of insane that Greg Mottola‘s Superbad is still being talked about to this day, seeing as how it’s a coming-of-age teen buddy comedy film that was released way back in 2007, but it’s for a good reason. There is something so incredibly, oddly endearing about this film about two high school seniors who make it their life’s mission to prepare themselves for a big party in which they must find some alcohol and prepare to lose their virginity.

Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg‘s script is quite honestly one of the best in the genre. Obviously, a lot of high school students will fall in love with this movie, but it’s just as hilarious to adults. Are there a lot of scenes in this film that are completely ridiculous and non-plausible? Yes. After all, the entirety of Fogell/McLovin’s storyline revolves around him doing a bunch of crazy things with some goofy police officers, but that’s really part of the appeal of this film. It’s highly absurd and yet it knows it.

No teenager is going to watch this movie and complain about it not being one-hundred-percent realistic. They’re going to sit back with a bunch of friends and laugh tremendously hard at one of the funniest movies ever written. A lot of the comedy here also comes from its two leads – Michael Cera and Jonah Hill. Together, these two have dynamite chemistry and are totally believable as two best friends who are outrageously awkward and completely clueless on how to win over a girl.

Seeing them do bone-headed things is hilarious to watch, but it’s also sort of charming because you understand just how deep their friendship goes and they really do want to help each other out as much as possible. Jonah Hill’s character Seth, especially, reminds me of a lot of kids I went to middle and high school with, so the screenwriting team seriously nailed how the leads were written. Both Seth and Evan feel completely believable as characters. And even though they’re a little clueless and clumsy, they’re still lovable.

This film also inspired a bucket load of memes that are still being used to this day. Words cannot even begin to express just how many times I have seen McLovin’s ID shared on social media throughout the years. Christopher Mintz-Plasse was the perfect choice to play such a strange yet funny character. Not only is his performance and line delivery great, but he also just has the perfect face for the character.

Superbad is an outrageously hilarious coming-of-age teen buddy comedy with a sharp script and terrific lead performances from Michael Cera and Jonah Hill.