SUPERBAD

"I am McLovin"

With their time at High School coming to an end and both of them going to different colleges, best friends Seth (Hill) and Evan (Cera) plan to make the most of their last summer together. Their plan is to get invited to a graduation party and hook up with a hot drunk girl but with Evan really liking Becca (MacIsaac) but he's too shy to talk to her and Jules (Stone) only talking to Seth because she thinks he can get her alcohol for her party, the odds of anything happing all rest on them been able to get booze. The problem is that they have to rely on their friend Fogell's (Mintz-Plasse) new fake ID, which says he is a twenty-five year old organ donor from Hawaii named simply McLovin.

When it comes to naming he defining teen movie, titles like 'The Breakfast Club', 'Clueless', 'Mean Girls' and 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' are bound to be mentioned but there is a new film that will soon be on everyone's list and that is 'Superbad'.

Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen can't seem to do no wrong. Their last two collaborations have produced two of the best comedies to come out of Hollywood in a very long time, '40 Year-Old Virgin' and 'Knocked Up' and their latest is just as good. With Rogen on both writing and acting duties and Apatow producing, the movie follows the pattern of their two previous outings by mixing hysterical adult humour with heartfelt plotlines that are touching as well as funny. This mix is why these films work and set the standard for every comedy movie that Hollywood is producing at the moment.

The teen comedy has produced many a cult movie that has endured over the decades but every now and again a film comes along that becomes the defining film of a generation, one that you will adore all of your life. Like 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' in the 80s and 'Dazed and Confused' in the 90s, 'Superbad' could well become the definition of the teen movie in the 00s, making the 'American Pie' movies pale in comparison.

The story of best friends Seth and Evan has classic written all over it. These are two friends that are about to go their separate ways when they head to college and they want their last summer together to be the best of their lives. That means going to all the best parties and getting together with some hot, drunk women. Unfortunately neither of them are very popular at school and when you throw in uber-geek Fogell into the mix and they have no chance. That is until Jules discovers that they have a fake ID and she asks Seth if he can get some drinks for her party. Of course he agrees but they have to rely on Fogell's fake ID and he has transformed himself into a twenty-five year-old, Hawaiian with a single name, McLovin. The chances are not good. Taking place over the period of a day, we see the ups and downs of high school and teenage lives they try desperately to kick start their summer.

This premise sets up a roller coaster ride of storylines and hilarity. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera are brilliant as Seth and Evan. The pair is extremely natural together and compliment each other superbly, making the characters believeable and easy to get behind. As well as Seth and Evan's quest to find booze for Jules' party, we have Fogell's journey as McLovin and his adventure with two Clark County cops, Officer Slater and Michaels, played by Bill Hader and Seth Rogen. This is the highlight of the movie with Christopher Mintz-Plasse stealing the film as the extremely geeky Fogell but the uber-cool McLovin.

While the film maybe be crude and very, very rude, it has a huge heart and characters you care about. With so many quotable lines and many scenes that will have you almost crying with laughter, the adventures of Seth, Evan and Fogell/McLovin will stay with you for a very long time and will have you hoping that this isn't the last we see of them.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 with a Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Commentary with filmmakers and cast
Director Greg Mottola, producer Judd Apatow, co-writer/executive producer Evan Goldberg, star/co-writer/executive producer Seth Rogen and stars Jonah Hill, Michael Cera and Christopher Mintz-Plasse come together to provide an extremely funny commentary track for 'Superbad'. The group talk about how the idea for the film came about, how they wanted to reflect how kids actually spoke and produce another comedy with balls. With cast, characters and behind the scenes stories from the set, this is another great comedy for a very funny movie.

Deleted/Extended Scenes (12.19 mins)
Entitled 'Evan's House', 'Izen', 'Slater talks about his wives', 'Party dudes make Evan dance', 'Jules Party', 'What do you guys want anyway?', 'Semen convention', these deleted or extended scenes suffer from the lack of a commentary track to explain why they were removed.

The Making of Superbad (13.06 mins)
Director Greg Mottola, producer Judd Apatow, co-writer/executive producer Evan Goldberg, star/co-writer/executive producer Seth Rogen and stars Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Bill Hader, Martha MacIsaac and Emma Stone talk about bringing 'Superbad' to the silver screen. The group chat about the script, the characters and how they became involved in this brilliant teen flick for the 00s.

Dancing Title Sequence (3.18 mins)
Co-Writer/Executive producer Evan Goldberg and stars Michael Cera and Jonah Hill take you behind the scenes of the opening dance sequence.

Trailers
Watch previews of 'Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story', 'The Brother's Solomon', 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind: 30th Anniversary Edition', 'Life of Brian' and 'Vantage Point'

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for the single disc version of 'Superbad' is good, especially when this isn't really made for the hardcore fans of the film. The commentary track is extremely good and the deleted scenes are very funny. While huge fans of the film will buy either the Blu-Ray version or the double disc set, this is still good value for those who liked the film.

DVD

Animal House

Knocked Up

The 40 Year-Old Virgin

---

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2007