Young Adult

Jason Reitman reteams with Diablo Cody in this intriguing dramedy starring Charlize Theron.

Mavis Gary is a bitchy, entitled slob stuck in her high school glory days. She is so convinced she is better than the world she left that she’s blinded.

Although in this day and age, what’s wrong with that?

“Young Adult” presents us with a character so unlikeable and progressively horrible that from its first moments it challenges us to even feel pity for this woman. It’s a deliciously intriguing black comedy that considers leaps and bounds about nostalgia, cynicism and happiness in the 21st Century.

Mavis’s (Charlize Theron) goal is to return to her small, hick hometown and win back the love of her high school flame Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson) by breaking up Buddy’s happy marriage and newly formed family.

We’ve maybe heard this story, but you’re wrong if you think she’ll warm to her quaint hometown. You’re wrong if you think she’ll grow up and catch the difference between never leaving home and living in the past. You’re wrong if you think she’ll ultimately fall for the old high school nerd she always ignored. You’re wrong if you even think she’ll leave a better person.

Because you’re wrong is what makes “Young Adult” so right. Continue reading “Young Adult”