Southwest Messenger - June 2nd, 2019

PAGE 16 - SOUTHWEST MESSENGER - June 2, 2019
www.columbusmessenger.com
In Entertainment
“Booksmart” is a fresh and hilarious comedy
When I leave the theater with a smile on
my face, it is usually because I am so happy
to be free of some horrible movie I had just
watched. But in the case of “Booksmart,” a
coming-of-age comedy written and directed
by a team of women, I could not suppress
my grin because I had just seen a genuinely
great film.
If you had not heard of “Booksmart”
before reading this review, you are forgiven.
While it is not an obscure feature found
only through a streaming service, it was
not heavily marketed by its studio either.
This I consider a true shame as Annapurna
Pictures had a complete gem on its hands.
The film follows best friends Amy and
Molly (Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie
Feldstein) whose high school days are coming
to a close. As freshman, the duo made a
pact to put studying ahead of partying and
are rapidly become aware of all the good
times they may have missed with their
peers.
Wanting to do something out of the
norm, the two debate the merits of attending
a party but ultimately decide against it
after weighing the pros and cons. Then,
just as they have settled on plans for a solo
date night, Molly discovers that the peers
she deemed hard partying slackers are also
getting into elite universities and her world
comes crumbling down.
She laments the fact that she, the class
president, valedictorian and soon-to-be
Yale undergrad, has spent so much time
studying just to compete academically with
people who crush beer cans on their foreheads.
She decides something has to be
done and she and Amy must go to a party
for the “seminal high school moment.”
The problem they discover is that no one
will answer their calls when they ask for
the address to a shindig hosted by the popular
guy Nick (Mason Gooding). Though
not complete outcasts, they figure it is
because they would only call for academic
reasons thus the lack of response. Sporting
fake ID’s to access academic libraries, they
put their brains to good use and scour public
records for “Nick’s aunt’s house.”
With the possible match in their hands,
their plans to attend the last cool party of
the year are put to the test by a lonely student
looking for friends, a potential serial
killer, low phone batteries, and hidden
secrets related to post-high school plans
that come to light.
While comparisons have been made to
the 2007 coming-of-age comedy
“Superbad,” I found “Booksmart” to be
slightly more fun and realistic than its
genre counterpart. To be clear, neither
reinvent the wheel for high school debauchery
but there is a freshness and sincerity to
“Booksmart” that other similar themed
movies lack.
The Reel Deal
Dedra Cordle
Judging by opening
day box office
numbers, “Booksmart”
may not be
in theaters for long
but I would recommend
making an
attempt to see it
before its gone. Not only would you be supporting
something mid-budget and non-
Disney remake, but you also get the pleasure
of watching something that is both
hilarious and capable of lifting your mood.
Grade: B+
Dedra Cordle is a Messenger staff writer
and columnist.
Summer Scribbles Youth Writing and Poetry Contest at Southwest Public Libraries
Students in grades six through 12 are
invited to enter the 10th annual Summer
Scribbles Youth Writing and Poetry
Contest to be held at Southwest Public
Libraries beginning June 1. The contest,
sponsored by the Grove City Writers’
Group and Friends of the Library, is open
to any student in grades 6-12 who lives
within the boundaries of South-Western
City Schools. There are two divisions (6-8th
grade and high school) in two categories —
poetry and fiction. Prizes in all categories
will be: first place - $100; second place -
$50. Rules and entry forms will be available
in the Youth Section of both the Grove
City Library and the Westland Area
Library. Contest ends July 31. For more
information, email Diana Hannon
Forrester at dhannon55@aol.com.
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