The Edge of Seventeen (15)
Dir. Kelly Fremon Craig
Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)
“When I get mad I get really quiet and really still and I say to myself: ‘Everyone in the world is as miserable as you are. They’re just better at pretending'”.
Meet Nadine (Hailee ‘Enders Game’ Steinfeld) a super awkward teenager whose life is a cringe-em-up writ large on the big screen. Everything is wrong for this young lady – her specialist subject is making bad life choices unlike her much cooler brother Darian (Blake Jenner) who gets all the attention and love. So much love in fact that even Nadine’s best / only pal Krista (Haley Lu ‘Mortal Kombat X: Generations’ Richardson) falls for him which leaves our heroine all alone in the world.
BFFs?
Mocked by her favourite teacher, the sarcastic Mr. Bruner (Woody ‘Triple 9’ Harrelson) – who delivers most of the best lines and some awesome laughs, Nadine’s only chance of salvation is shy fellow student Erwin (Hayden Szeto) who gives her a glimmer of hope that things just might not be quite so terrible after all.
Director Kelly Fremon Craig makes her debut with Edge of Seventeen and scores a direct hit with this coming of age heartbreaking comedy which is like a super-charged modern day John Hughes film. The character of Nadine is an iconic champion for awkward teens everywhere (and the inner teens of us all). There’s so much heart and just as much brains packed into this pure joy of a movie.
See me after class...
Steinfeld is superb as nerdy Nadine who deals with having a crush on Nick (Alexander Calvert) – an older chap who she bumped into in the local pet store by stalking his social media. But the heart of the film is her relationship with Mr. Bruner who despite his off handed way of dealing with her dramas is actually there for her if she needs it. Nobody is perfect though it transpires – and when Nadine gets her heart mangled it falls to the outsider Erwin to offer a possible way to re-engagee with everyone around her.
If you enjoyed films like Juno or Mean Girls, this is necessary viewing, it’s the best big screen teenage angst for years. The Edge of Seventeen is just a great film which will make you laugh, cry and feel all the pain of being young and unsure of yourself again.
Argh the horror!
Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:
ööööö
(5 - You're only young once... is it over yet?)...
Awesomeness öööö – You'll feel the feels
Laughs öööö – Some cracking sarcastic funnies
Horror ö – Slightly tense moments
Spiritual Enlightenment öööö - Be true to yourself
Miss Steinfeld in her more glam 'pop singer' guise
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