Booksmarts movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Booksmart

RATING: R

LENGTH: 105 minutes

Movie Review Mom GRADE: D for disgusting teenagers

IN A NUTSHELL:

From a mom’s perspective, this coming-of-age movie is trash. Every single GenZ teenager featured in the film lives in the gutter. Other than wanting to get into a good college, none of these teenagers seem to have any moral values of behavior. Their language is filthy, they do drugs, engage in underage drinking, are disrespectful to adults and each other, trash talk everything and everybody, and are constantly looking to hook up with someone. That’s not my idea of a fun, insightful comedy.

Beautiful Olivia Wilde has her directorial debut and gives us a wild movie, indeed. She said that some of the teen flicks from the 80s and 90s were her inspiration, such as The Breakfast Club, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and Clueless. I guess she just decided to turn those carefree movies into rated R garbage. This movie makes me worried for the future, except that I know many teens who are not like the type of kids in this movie.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Lots of profanity, crude language, and sooooo many F-bombs
We never see Molly’s parents in the movie. Ever. Amy’s parents appear a couple of times but are so afraid of parenting her that she does anything she wants with no discipline or restrictions.
Gay guys
Lesbians go at it in a bathroom at a party.
Talk of masturbation and sex.
Drugs and alcohol
Two girls watch porn.
A bunch of teens swim in their underwear at a party.
Social Justice Warriors will think the movie is bold and brilliant.
Yet one more movie about female empowerment that dismisses men as useless or as sexual objects.
The bad behavior is portrayed as though every teen does it.
The premise of the movie is that Molly and Amy worked hard all through high school to get into good colleges but then they learn they could have partied all of those years and decide that would have been a better use of their time.
There is a scene where guys and girls are all in one bathroom at the high school. Is that a thing in high school now?

THEMES:

“Greatness takes sacrifice.” – The recording Molly listens to each morning.
Friendship

THINGS I LIKED:

Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever did a fantastic job.
I laughed when Molly corrected the grammar on the bathroom graffiti.
The adults in the movie include funny Jason Sudeikis, Lisa Kudrow, and Will Forte.
There is a reference to “Malala.” Everyone should see the movie He Named Me Malala and be inspired.
I liked watching everyone get a water balloon to the face during the closing credits.
If it weren’t for the constant flood of F-bombs, some of the dialogue is actually amusing and even quotable.
DJ and producer Dan the Automator composed the score for this movie.
The lyrics matched the moments perfectly.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

It’s just not very funny. It seems as though the script was written more for shock value than for actual clever humor. For a movie about two smart girls, the jokes are not very intelligent.
Billie Lourd plays Gigi, who is a total psycho, more pathetic than funny.
Almost all of the teenagers look like it has been many years since they were actually in high school.
Some of the teachers we meet at the high school have potty mouths and act unprofessionally. One of them sleeps with a student.
INTERESTING LINES: