Big Time Adolescence (2020)
Written and Directed by: Jason Orley
Premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2019
It's a coming-of-age film. I use this term very loosely. I call almost anything coming-of-age, because almost anything we watch probably is coming-of-age (okay except Fast & Furious - wait, even that is). This film is coming-of-age in the exact sense of the term. We see young adults fuck up. We see adults fuck up. This film reminded of Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused. Even though we don't see big epiphanies amongst the characters - we see them realize simple things - like how they are fucking up in life. And that is coming-of-age. There's a beautiful realization the dad has, he asks Zeke if Mo became friends with Zeke just because he let him smoke and drink? I wondered how would life have been for everyone if the dad asked himself this question a couple of years back. Imposing authority always leads to rebellion.
This film though doesn't back doing drugs, it doesn't say that that's how life is. Unlike Another Round, which unapologetically celebrates alcoholism. It says that it's a phase in everybody's life. And that you got to move on. The girlfriend breaking up with him, sort of pulls him from the imaginary world he lives in - to the reality. She defines what's acceptable, what's not, what's cool, what's not - because she isn't his mom. She is someone who he's trying to impress, and get laid with. Her telling him that there is much more to life than this, reiterates what he's been hearing his entire life - it confirms all the doubts he's been having. The beautiful part though is that, the film doesn't condemn Zeke - that's his way of looking at life - he's content. He'll probably come-of-age later. Or should he?
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