Movie Review: "Booksmart"

"Booksmart": B-.  The night of high school graduation has served as the setting for several films over the years.  The action in Booksmart takes place the day and night before, when leading character Molly Davidson (Beanie Feldstein) and best friend Amy Antsler (Kaitlyn Dever) discover, however belatedly, that all through high school their classmates have deemed them dull and humorless book nerds.  Molly's acceptance into Yale and her role as student council president only fortify that reputation.  The truth is that these gals are truly comedic and fun to the core.  Unfortunately they have kept that side of themselves to themselves.  They still have a very limited amount of time to go out with a bang before graduation and prove to their would-be friends they've had the pair pegged incorrectly.

We movie viewers do not share the same mischaracterization of Molly and Amy as do their classmates.  From the opening scene in which the girls go into a mini-dance routine in front of Amy's car, it's apparent to us that they score an 11 on the Zany Meter.  Our first take on these chicks is that they must be the life of the party.  The problem is, they're never invited to parties.

With graduation only one day away, Molly and Amy have some catching up to do.  They get wind of a huge "let it all hang out" bash hosted by classmate Nick at a mansion owned by his aunt, who conveniently is out of town.  But where, exactly, is this place?  The girls' endeavors to locate the blowout take up the majority of Booksmart's run time.

Their quest includes a few side tracks and dead ends, including time aboard a yacht and crashing a murder mystery house party.  These scenes are mildly humorous but at least furnish opportunities for some of the supporting cast, particularly eccentric George (Noah Galvin), to have their moments.  One clever creation is the girls' use of the term "milala," which, when invoked by one, requires the other to accede to any request.

Speaking of the supporting cast, Jason Sudekis' turn as Principal Jordan Brown is nothing short of brilliant. The unshaven administrator can't wait for the school year to be over, and thus does not want to be bothered with what he brushes aside as mundane, petty issues which reach his desk during these final hours.  When he shows up later in the film as a Lyft driver, it is clearly a laugh-out-loud moment.  If Booksmart ever shows up on television, I plan to DVR it and then fast forward through everything except Principal Brown's scenes.  By the way, Sudekis is engaged to the film's director, Olivia Wilde.

When Booksmart first arrived in the Twin Cities in early June, most of the local critics raved about it.  I suspect their high praise may say more about the present dearth of well written comedies than it does about this film's merits standing alone.  There is no dispute here that Booksmart contains some chuckle-worthy moments.  And, Feldstein shows promise as a talented young actress -- with a name like "Beanie" the sky is the limit.  Nevertheless I can't join the ranks of those who gushed over this film.  I am not sorry I went to see it, but part of that feeling is due to my only having to spend $2.50 at the Hopkins Theater.