Young Adult

Remember that song by 4 Non Blondes, a typical 90s song which will be recalled and replayed by those who were teenagers during that time through the rest of their existence. Well it makes a cameo appearance in this film, it's about a woman who recalls those hazy high school days as the best time of her life. Mainly because her current existence is that of a disappointed adult brimming with an empty pointless lonely life.

Well, it's certainly a different direction for the power-duo who created the juggernaut Juno. Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman rejoin for this particularly dour film to explore the life of a woman who still wishes she was a teenager as she ploughs through adulthood with a bad attitude and a blatant alcohol addiction. As far as films go it is definitely lacking that feel good factor, be forewarned this is not a comedy, the humour comes from some pretty disgraceful comments made by our lead character and the emotional journey is stunted and unfulfilled, this is a character study more than anything. As far as films go it's pretty much as close to life as you can get, but that doesn't make it a particularly enjoyable experience, well for some people. I can't say I loved this movie but for some profound reason I definitely admired it, it's not a film that craves your love, it just is unapologetically itself. As I previously mentioned this was the brain child of Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, whereas Juno dealt with a teenager in a very adult situation handling it with humour and grace and of course a little bit happy go lucky charm, this is quite different. It's an adult behaving like a teenager dealing with a situation which is essentially mostly in her own head and behaving atrociously without any form of redemption, plus all of Juno's quirk and colour are relentlessly stripped away.

So, my theory that this is not a Reitman/Cody comedy as Juno was, this is more of a dramatic character study with black humour thrown in for good measure is a good place as any to staart talking about this film itself.

We are introduced to Mavis, a girl who has made it, whatever that could mean, she has moved away from her smalltown life to the big city of Minneappolis and is a ghost writer for a teen series about vampires or wizards in a school, with a popular beautiful main character waltzing around handling her teenage problems. Mavis is shown living in an apartment which is filthy and disorganised with a printer she has to cajole into producing a printout ofthe film's impetus, her highschool boyfriend has just had a baby. She then goes back to try and regain his affections and lure him away from his happily married existence and his new child. It's not a question of why she possibly thinks this is a good idea, she just does, it's time for them to reunite. All the while she's supposed to be writing the last edition of her book series for the publisher and somehow this punctuates the film as we see her pondering the plot and adapting her current predicament to her attempts at writing.
When she gets home she contacts Buddy, her ex and makes plans to meet with him, played by Patrick Wilson, or Nightowl from the Watchmen movie. She also encounters the 'hate crime guy' Patton Oswalt, as I recall, Remy's voice in Ratatouille. Patton Oswalt becomes the voice of reason as he interacts with Mavis striking an unlikely friendship with her and supporting her through he endeavours. He also stands in juxtaposition with Mavis's high school experience as someone who would rather forget what happened at school due to being permanently scarred.

Charlize Theron embodies the role of Mavis with fearless assurance as she hurtles through the film with a believable and frankly disturbing performance. It is not implicitly stated until about mid-way into the film when she mentions to her mother she'd been drunk since she arrived home, or perhaps the clue was when she quaffed Remy's home-brewed whiskey a little to heartily that it becomes apparent Mavis has a serious drinking problem. We watch as she excessively drinks and throws herself into bed waking up in a hungover stupor and stumbles through the next day until she drinks again only to brighten up, during this time choosing to exist on diet coke. The film doesn't use this as an excuse for Mavis's behaviour and doesn't ask us to forgive her, instead it just presents her as she is, with her distracted hair pulling and continuous need to present herself as a beautiful all together perfect human being to the outside world, we merely see Mavis as she is, a damaged selfish lost and lonely person. Not that she'd admit any of this to herself. I couldn't fault Charlize Theron's performance as there was not a moment in time where I didn't believe the person on the screen wasn't anything but real. This is a testament to Diablo Cody as well as the makers of the film for presenting an unflinching portrayal of a woman lost in the past. You always see those popular glamorous people in school and wonder what will become of them, it's not a given that they all end up like Mavis but it's clear that being the picture of perfection in high school is a difficult transition to make once you enter adult life.

Of course, as ever, I've rambled about the character and the emotional issues behind the film and not so much about the actual experience itself. As a film, it's hard to watch but it is an intriguing unflinching character study, something I believe should be applauded. If your opinion of cinema is that it should merely entertain then perhaps this isn't the film for you, unless you enjoy the prospect of Charlize Theron making rude remarks to people, and going through with a deplorable plan to steal a husband away from his wife and new-born child. To be fair it is Charlize Theron, and when she does get all gussied up she is quite a force to be reckoned with, what more is there to say?