Young Adult (2011)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Let's be realistic.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

This was described as a comedy. I didn't see many laughs. Overall, this movie was actually quite depressing, but because Charlize Theron is such a good actress, it wasn't all that bad. And Patton Oswalt added a lot as a likeable loser. I know him best as the "Goldbergs" narrator but I may soon see much more of him as a loser of a principal in "A.P. Bio". I liked him there too. Yes, he plays losers very well.One example of how good Charlize Theron is in this movie is the fact that, to me, she seemed sane but troubled. Could she have been mentally ill? Possibly. Really going off the deep end might have been another way to go, and she's good enough as an actress that would have worked. That's just not how this movie was done, and it may have been more enjoyable for me personally as a result. What appealed to me most was how good-looking she is. It is true that in the early, depressing scenes in the Minneapolis high-rise, with the Kardashians (I know this from the credits) on the TV, I didn't know who she was since I hadn't seen the credits, and I didn't think she was pretty either. Later, when she made an effort to look good and put on a sexy dress, Mavis looked amazing.It added something to hear Mavis narrate her book. And we could see her writing process as she listened to actual girls talk and started typing. For a mentally unbalanced girl going after her ex, though, you can't do better than the CW series "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend", and that show is actually funny.Let me add more about Matt. He was sort of the voice of reason here. He had many logical things to say, and despite Mavis' reaction to him, he was actually doing pretty well with his life. Not a success by most definitions, but he wasn't really using his disabilities to keep from facing life either.On the other hand, I found his sister's behavior surprising at the end.The actors playing the Slades also did a good job and their characters reacted well to the presence of this possible troublemaker. They could have acted in the expected way but didn't. Buddy was generally pleasant to Mavis.I suppose it goes without saying this isn't family-friendly. The language was obviously cleaned up in several scenes and I was grateful.I find it curious that Hampton Inn was willing to be identified by name and yet be represented by a clerk with the attitude "What-EVER. I'm just here until I get through with college and then I'm OUTTA here." Not a good image for a real hotel chain, but a good if brief performance.The music must have been what Charlize Theron liked, or possibly her fans. It did not appeal to me, and that's probably to be expected. That's not to say all the music was bad. There was a girl singing "We've Only Just Begun" by The Carpenters. And my favorite music was played on acoustic guitar. It was simply background music used several times with the action going from one location to another with no dialogue. Each time, Mavis was having her nails done at one point, although the third time, a stand-up bass was playing in the nail salon and a piano was added after that.There are plenty of people, I'm sure, who would enjoy this type of movie. It just wasn't as good for someone with my taste as other movies.

Charlize Theron has never been better as Mavis Gary, a depressed alcoholic ghost writer of a young adult book series who finds her career opportunities drying up as the end of the series draws near. To make matters worse, she receives word that, Buddy, her former flame, has invited her to a baby shower for his newborn child. Thinking this is a cry for help, Mavis heads back home to rescue Buddy from a world of suburban anguish.You can't help but feel bad for Mavis and she gets herself into cringe-worthy scene after scene. It's a testament to Theron's gifts as an actress that we should care about this destructive monster one iota. Theron, with writer Diablo Cody, creates a monster so real, so raw, and so vulnerable that you won't be able to stop thinking about her for weeks afterwards.Also excellent is Patton Oswald as Matt, a former classmate of Mavis, who was beaten up for being gay (he wasn't) and now has to walk with braces. In many ways, Matt is the eyes of the audience - drawn to a revolted by Mavis at the same time.The ending does away with typical morality and lessons found in Hollywood films and is all the better for it. Some people never will change.Young Adult is a fresh, funny, disturbing, and raw comedy that's sure to become a cult favorite in the years to come.

Charlize Theron was very good in this. The movie itself is quirky, weird and darkly funny. One of those feel-bad movies. with a nothing sort of story that follows a (YA) author who returns to her hometown to try and relive her glory days and seduce her happily married ex. Along the way she (drinks heavily) and forms an unusual friendship with a former classmate who hasn't quite gotten over high school either.This has been simply filmed, showing raw honesty on the part of 'Mavis', and Theron is excellent, fascinating and almost excruciating at times to watch as she goes about sabotaging her life. This is a woman in pain. Patton Oswalt also puts in a touching performance. I was left a bit worried about that dog though. 11/18/15

What a wonderful movie, the entire cast is marvelous and lead by the standout performance by Charlize Theron who plays the lead character Mavis with a wonderful unabashed way. The interaction of Charlize and Patton Oswalt character is the strength of this movie as they are both two broken 30 something adults and their love scene is how they are one as Charlize is broken emotionally and mentally while Oswalt is physically broken. I found it refreshing with the love scene which unlike Julianne Moore constant nudity in her films it was more moving than shocking. I also love the scene at the baby naming where Charlenes character tells of her miscarriage and possibly the reason why the picture of the baby many have started this ill fated quest to reunite with her former love Buddy. I love this movie because of the rawness and the story and would highly recommend it.