Booksmart (2019)

[Robert Crawford]

Title: Booksmart

Tagline: Getting straight A's. Giving zero F's.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Director: Olivia Wilde

Cast: Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Mason Gooding, Skyler Gisondo, Victoria Ruesga, Billie Lourd, Molly Gordon, Jason Sudeikis, Lisa Kudrow, Will Forte, Michael Patrick O'Brien, Noah Galvin, Austin Crute, Diana Silvers, Maya Rudolph, Eduardo Franco, Nico Hiraga, Jessica Williams

Release: 2019-05-24

Runtime: 105

Plot: Two academic teenage superstars realize, on the eve of their high school graduation, that they should have worked less and played more. Determined to never fall short of their peers, the girls set out on a mission to cram four years of fun into one night.

 

[Robert Crawford]

After seeing Lady Bird, I keep thinking this young actress looks like a female Jonah Hill. Am I a dumb ass or what?

 

[Robert Crawford]

By the way, I'm looking forward to seeing this film, even though, I'm obviously not the demographic this film is made for.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

By the way, I'm looking forward to seeing this film, even though, I'm obviously not the demographic this film is made for.

At your age, is there any film made for your demographic?

 

[Robert Crawford]

At your age, is there any film made for your demographic?

Poms?

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Poms?

I thought you'd be too male for that one!

I guess you can rock out to stuff like "Bucket List" and "Going In Style" or "Last Vegas" - basically anything Morgan Freeman's in these days!

 

[Robert Crawford]

I thought you'd be too male for that one!

I guess you can rock out to stuff like "Bucket List" and "Going In Style" or "Last Vegas" - basically anything Morgan Freeman's in these days!

Well, I haven't seen it yet so what does that tell you with it being available via A-List.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Well, I haven't seen it yet so what does that tell you with it being available via A-List.

Though I'm the wrong gender and age demo for "Poms", I would've seen it if it'd gotten decent reviews.

However, it was largely panned. I'll see movies with crap reviews if they really interest me, but "Poms" was as borderline as could be, so sans glowing reviews, it wasn't gonna happen!

"Booksmart" is the opposite. The trailers really don't make it look especially interesting - like I said, it seems like "Superbad" with females - but the reviews are so good that I'll almost certainly see it!

A-List does make me more open to seeing movies I otherwise would've skipped - but there are limits. I still don't wanna waste my time on movies I doubt I'll enjoy...

 

[Robert Crawford]

Though I'm the wrong gender and age demo for "Poms", I would've seen it if it'd gotten decent reviews.

However, it was largely panned. I'll see movies with crap reviews if they really interest me, but "Poms" was as borderline as could be, so sans glowing reviews, it wasn't gonna happen!

"Booksmart" is the opposite. The trailers really don't make it look especially interesting - like I said, it seems like "Superbad" with females - but the reviews are so good that I'll almost certainly see it!

TBH, the reviews are holding me back from "Poms" as I like Diane Keaton. My interest in "Booksmart" is due to the premise from a female perspective and the good reviews so far about it.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

TBH, the reviews are holding me back from "Poms" as I like Diane Keaton. My interest in "Booksmart" is due to the premise from a female perspective and the good reviews so far about it.

Out of curiosity, I looked at Keaton's filmography.

I don't think she's made a movie I liked since 1981's "Reds"!

(I like 1987's "Radio Days" but she just has a cameo in that...)

 

[Robert Crawford]

Out of curiosity, I looked at Keaton's filmography.

I don't think she's made a movie I liked since 1981's "Reds"!

(I like 1987's "Radio Days" but she just has a cameo in that...)

Shocking!

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Shocking!

Okay - you tell me what post-1981 Diane Keaton gems I've unfairly maligned...

 

[Robert Crawford]

Okay - you tell me what post-1981 Diane Keaton gems I've unfairly maligned...

You said there wasn't a Keaton movie you liked since 1981. I sarcastically stated that your comment was "shocking" because even though I liked some of her films since 1981, I wouldn't call any of them "gems". I liked "Baby Boom" and "5 Flights Up", but I can see somebody like you, a much more critical film buff than I am, not liking those films as examples of her film output since 1981.

 

[Jeff Adkins]

Okay - you tell me what post-1981 Diane Keaton gems I've unfairly maligned...

Manhattan Murder Mystery.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

You said there wasn't a Keaton movie you liked since 1981. I sarcastically stated that your comment was "shocking" because even though I liked some of her films since 1981, I wouldn't call any of them "gems". I liked "Baby Boom" and "5 Flights Up", but I can see somebody like you, a much more critical film buff than I, not liking those films as examples of her film output since 1981.

Okay - sorry for the misinterpretation. You and Tino like to razz me because you think I hate all movies, so I thought "shocking" was a comment about what a tough audience I am, not about Keaton's output!

And FWIW, I might've liked "Baby Boom" but I've not seen it in 30 years! I don't remember liking it or disliking it, honestly...

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Manhattan Murder Mystery.

Had to re-read my review to remember what I thought of that one!

I thought it was okay. Better than a lot of 90s Woody Allen but pretty mediocre in general...

 

[Jeffrey D]

I liked Something’s Gotta Give- her and Nicholson had pretty good chemistry, I thought.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I liked Something’s Gotta Give- her and Nicholson had pretty good chemistry, I thought.

Okay, I stand corrected. I re-read my review and while I didn't love "SGG", I thought it was entertaining enough.

I get all of Keaton's "post-menopause" roles confused and remember them all as awful, but I remember wrong!

 

[Robert Crawford]

Getting back to "Booksmart", I saw it tonight as an A-List selection. I enjoyed it and laughed several times during the course of the film. Feldstein has some of her brother's mannerisms that I picked up on during the movie. Dever was really good as I forgot how good she was in "Justified" as Loretta McCready.

 

[mattCR]

I was pleasantly surprised at how smart, funny and well acted this film was... I think a lot of people are going to assume this is just another teen-sex romp type film, but this is far more about friendships than that. This is also a film that just works. There are some VERY funny moments in this film.

Strong recommend: Solid B+