Wackness, The Review

"Wackness, The" reviews

Movie

Wackness, The

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2008-08-13 23:04:55

Rating

3/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

Pot, hip hop and coming of age in the '90s fuel this surprisingly effective and bittersweet Sundance winner.

Story

The Wackness, winner of Sundance Film Festival's Audience Award, compares favorably with some of the best teen angst movies of the past. It could have been just another stoner slack-fest but instead finds much to say and should resonate with not only those who also came of age in the '90s but anyone who ever crossed that frightening threshold. Set in the summer of 1994, when N.A.S, Notorious B.I.G. and Outkast ruled the airwaves, Luke Shapiro (Josh Peck) is spending his last summer peddling marijuana out of an ice cart and trading it for free therapy sessions with his aging pot-smoking psychiatrist Dr. Squires (Ben Kingsley), who seems to be trying desperately to hang onto his own youth. Although the advice ("you need to get laid") he hands out probably wouldn't pass muster in most medical circles, the two strike up an unusual relationship. Luke takes his first tentative steps into manhood, courtesy of his shrink's stepdaughter Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby), while Squires must deal with a fading marriage to his much-younger wife (Famke Janssen).

Acting

Peck--best known for Nickelodeon's bubblegum sitcom Drake and Josh--exhibits great promise with his low-key, simple performance as a messed-up, pot-dealing teenager on the verge of adulthood. He could have played this as a straight stoner but instead is remarkably three dimensional, offering a portrait of a young man in transition. He's a guy whose problems with his parents, friends and girls are just the tip of the iceberg in his own coming-of-age drama. As the other half of this very odd couple, Kingsley seems to be relishing his role as an aging hippie therapist whose lifelong obsession with pot has clearly rattled his brain. Squires own confusion leads him to a hilarious "romantic" encounter with a dreadlocked little tramp, played amusingly by Mary-Kate Olsen, who is probably STILL talking about her make-out scene with the Oscar-winning actor. Also along for Luke's quirky ride into manhood is Thirlby, who showed great promise in Juno and confirms it here as a very confident young woman, who deflowers the awkward Luke in a wonderfully understated bedroom scene. Janssen has little to do but look lovely, while Talia Balsam and David Wohl are in for some brief moments as Luke's difficult parents. And look for nice bits from Jane Adams as a new wave keyboard player, Disturbia's Aaron Yoo and Method Man as Luke's supplier.

Direction

It's probably no coincidence young writer/director Jonathan Levine graduated from high school in 1994--the same year he has set for The Wackness. Clearly, he knows the era and particularly the music, which plays such a key role in setting the mood of this picture. Levine has passion for the hip hop sounds of the era and has effortlessly incorporated them directly into his storyline. Where The Wackness really departs from your average slacker epic, however, is in its seriousness of tone. At its core, the film is not unlike classic teen movies such as Risky Business and Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Levine creates flawed, almost tragic figures we can identify with in one way or another. That's what holds this somewhat meandering tale together so well. We come to like these characters and wish them well as their lives are hovering at a crossroads. Levine's filmmaking style is slightly awkward and the movie is unattractively lit, but with The Wackness, Levine captures a moment in time with great skill and heart.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 stars.

Copyright © CinemaSource 2008.

Movie

The Wackness

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2008-08-23 12:00:32

Provider

MRIB

Review

It's mid-90s New York and hip hop is ruling the streets. A bunch of school graduates have their summer vacation to deal with. For one of them this is a more than a bit of a challenge!

Luke's a slacker graduate of high school. He splits his time between his bedroom and as a dealer of dope across New York to friends, allies and acquaintances. He also funds his therapy with small bags of hash whilst Dr Squires is trying (and failing) to get to the root of Luke's inhibitions and problems - that's when he's not spliffed up. The main one Luke has, however, he's woefully unaware of: A crush on the Doctor's daughter. And the Doc has his own problems too with a failing marriage and underlying feelings of failure and inadequacy.

Luke does hook up with Stephanie Squires, though, largely as her hip boyfriend has left town. A friendship develops into a romance and an interlude of a night on the tiles with the Doctor spins Luke further into confusion and indecision... and the Doctor into a night in the cells!

This film is hot and cool! First off, it looks brilliant. A toned down spectrum of colour and hazy shots of the city makes the heat pour off the screen. Everyone's slightly lazy and hazy attitude further enhances the heat of each scene and emphasises the cool attitude of the players. Josh Peck as Luke and Ben Kingsley as the Doctor make for a great team, both are experts in their craft at opposite ends of the spectrum. Keep 'em peeled for Peck in the future (as it seems impossible to not come across Kingsley these days!). He seems to completely live his character and you're 100 per cent behind him in the denouement.

It's refreshingly good to see quality drama for modern people played out without any pomp and circumstance. Plus it's a contemplative film addressing growing up, and thankfully free of any CGI nonsense seen as de rigeur for so much of the younger moviegoing audience. The soundtrack's a killer too, with the greatest of hip hop almost casually thrown in. So relaxing, so stimulating!

Take time out to see this and you'll be richly rewarded.

Copyright © MRIB 2008.