Booksmart
Published January 26, 2020
Film info
- Title Booksmart
- Director Olivia Wilde
- Year 2019
- Run time 1hr 42m
- Genre Comedy
- Tagline Getting straight A's, giving zero F's.
In this fresh, unfiltered modern comedy, best friends and academic overachievers Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein) realise they've missed out on pretty much all fun during high school. So, on the eve of graduation, they decide to make up for lost time with one wild adventure in this hilarious coming-of-age story about the meaningful bonds we create.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 2:00 | God, Volvo’s are so ugly! |
| 3:29 | “Are you closing the door on us, that’s not subtle, we will persist!” |
| 11:11 | Curious about the people full-on fencing in the background. |
| 13:49 | “It’s not Apple but…” It is Google, though. |
| 15:49 | Enjoying this sad realisation. |
| 18:39 | “I’m gonna experience a seminal anecdote.” I really like this chick. |
| 25:29 | Abso-fruitly. |
| 30:35 | I’m loving his dedication to the party though, his own deadmau5 helmet and everything. |
| 32:30 | “Swan-diving into the future!” |
| 48:46 | This friendship is to die for. |
| 53:37 | Yea, I need to up my Gilmore Girls game. |
| 1:01:38 | I’m loving a whole room dedicated to karaoke. |
| 1:04:11 | You can’t be half and half in Harry Potter houses. |
| 1:08:35 | “He knows I’m a Slytherin, he seems to like it.” |
| 1:11:19 | Okay, the friendship to die for is on the rocks. |
| 1:14:37 | “Airplanes and musicals.” |
| 1:20:07 | I like the way she says no. Like nope, not happening, even when she knows it has to. |
| 1:29:57 | “Things are never going to be the same, but it was perfect.” |
Thoughts
This was so what we needed for our first movie of 2020. It’s a fantastic teen movie that just celebrates those angst-filled times, where you’re feeling misunderstood and like the whole world is against you, but there’s still joy to be found if you look hard enough. It had echoes of Edge of Seventeen and Easy A, that kind of vibe.
Amy and Molly were brilliant together, incredible chemistry that meant they were totally in sync - able to riff of each other when required, but also be completely baffled by the new thing their best friend has come out with.
I liked that Amy’s sexual orientation was obviously part of the story but it wasn’t THE story, and I liked how many angles were touched upon in such a short film.
Also, Billie Lourd was just wonderful. Manic and restless and ever-present and hilarious. That face-plant into the pool was epic.
A brilliant film, with a great cast, fab soundtrack, and one that I’ll definitely be turning to again in the future.
Rating: 5 / 5