Superbad (2007)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Seth	Jonah Hill	½
Evan	Michael Cera
Fogell	Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Officer Slater	Bill Hader
Officer Michaels	Seth Rogen	½
Becca	Martha MacIsaac
Jules	Emma Stone

Review

Written by the Seth Rogen who wrote 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, and modelled after the teenage/sex/alcohol subgenre, Superbad is a step up from the lesser entries of this genre in later years, but it still struggles with stereotypical representations of teen culture. One element that helps, however, is Michael Cera whose versatile and authentic appearance functions as a natural and pleasant hub for the more or less pin-pointed and funny people and situations we encounter throughout this film. Cera's best buddy, as played by Jonah Hill, is the familiar fat kid (pardon my superficial wording, but I believe it is in line with Superbad's classification) who struggles with girls, but gives it his best effort. Their friendship has warmth and understated humour, and the film is brilliant during the first half hour when their everyday life and school situations are portrayed. During this period, Superbad feels like a breath of fresh air and provides us with surprising, uncorrupted laughs. Unfortunately, it is all a bit too good to last, because when the two importunate police officers Slater and Michaels become the focus of attention, Superbad turns tiresome and increasingly irrelevant. The satire is vague, and the characters are excessive and largely unfunny. Towards the end, Superbad restores some of its integrity and Cera picks up the pieces in a fine finale. His first sexual experience is amusingly and upsettingly expounding.