Superbad
by Robbo
Posted on 6 August 2021
Rating -
Superbad is a 2007 American coming-of-age teen comedy film directed by Greg Mottola and produced by Judd Apatow.
The film stars Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as Seth and Evan, two teenagers about to graduate from high school. Before graduating, the boys want to party and lose their virginity, but their plan proves harder than expected.
Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the script began development when they were 13 years old, and was loosely based on their experience in Grade 12 at Point Grey Secondary School in Vancouver during the 1990s; the main characters have the same given names as the two writers.
Rogen was also initially intended to play Seth, but due to age and physical size this was changed, and Hill went on to portray Seth, while Rogen portrayed the irresponsible Officer Michaels, opposite Saturday Night Live star Bill Hader as Officer Slater.
Seth and Evan are two high school seniors who have been best friends since childhood. They are about to go off to different colleges. After Seth is paired with Jules during home economics class, she invites him to a party at her house that night. Their friend Fogell reveals his plans to obtain a fake ID, so Seth promises to buy alcohol for Jules’ party with money she gives him.
Despite Fogell’s fake ID having only one name, “McLovin”, Fogell successfully buys the liquor, but is knocked out at the last second by a robber. When police officers Slater and Michaels arrive, Seth and Evan believe that Fogell is being arrested. In reality, the officers agree to give Fogell a ride to the party.
Evan and Seth argue about the fact that Evan is going to a different college from Seth and will be rooming with Fogell instead, before Seth is once again hit by a car – the police cruiser driven by Slater and Michaels. They plan to arrest Seth and Evan, but when Fogell comes out of the car, Evan makes a run for it, while Seth and Fogell escape with the alcohol. Eventually all three make their way to Jules’ party.
Slater and Michaels bust the party. Slater interrupts Fogell and Nicola, who runs off. Slater is angry at Fogell for ditching them, but Michaels points out they have just “cock-blocked” him, and they apologize, reconcile, and reveal they knew all along that Fogell was not 25. They played along, wanting to show cops can have fun. To make it up to him, they pretend to arrest Fogell to make him look “badass.” They resume their bonding, eventually destroying their car with a Molotov cocktail while Fogell shoots it with Slater’s pistol.
Seth and Evan return to Evan’s, where Evan admits he does not want to room with Fogell at college next year but is afraid to live with strangers. They apologize to each other before reconciling.
Superbad is not just another teen comedy. It’s raucous, its vulgar but it is also sincere and quite sophisticated.
At it’s heart, Superbad is a film about friendship and the High School experience. But overall, Superbad is extremely funny.
The characters are fully formed and familiar, we all knew or were these kids in school, and as most teenaged boys are, desperate to lose their virginity.
The script is good but it is the obvious chemistry between the three main protagonists which is the highlight of the film.
Superbad isn’t perfect, but comes close.
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