Good Kids (2016)

Good idea lost in the noise

An action-packed slog

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Teen movies have always been a "guilty pleasure" that with time I've learned to ditch the guilty, and genuinely enjoy them full on. So, when I found this film, it seemed like a good watch. Original? Not really, but it didn't matter. Obviously, my expectations weren't set up high, but Jesus Christ, this movie failed to even reach a certain point of quality. Alright, so, the goals they had set up for their "summer of yes" were fulfilled in the first half hour! Yes, conflicts ensued, but they were terribly timed. Film makers are allowed to do as they please, seeing that film making is a form of art, but in order for that "art" to be good, you do have to follow some rules of your craft. I just didn't see any of them being executed in this movie. The cinematography and screenplay were alright, but compared to other young adult films of the same year, it falls short. To me, the only redeemable thing were the characters. Nora, Lion, Spice, and Conch (yes, Conch) were fun to watch and seemed like cool people. Andy, on the other hand got a lot more screen time than he should have. He was not a nice person, and he was pretty selfish as well. Bad characteristics don't always make a bad character, but in this case, that doesn't apply. Moreover, the relationships that formed in the end were so artificial, and I want to say predictable, but I honestly didn't think they would dive straight into cliché dreamland, so I was a bit taken aback. And what kind of teen movie doesn't have a cool soundtrack?2/10

This movie was kind of a mess from all standpoints. The plot was uninteresting and incoherent. Like, what was the conflict/initial incident even supposed to be? Oh no, their summer of partying has been kind of mediocre...this is so riveting. None of the party scenes were interesting either, "Woah I made a soufflé", "Wow I'm catching food in my mouth" "Oh my, watching someone skinny dipping from a kilo meter away, this sure is scandalous!". And wtf was that dump party at the end? Running around with megaphones and doing mattress fights, no high schoolers do this. Not much was even accomplished in the end. One guy whored himself out and got a yeast infection and was fired from his job. The girl had an unsuccessful relationship where she was cheated on. The karate dude did a bunch of drugs and got fired from his job. And the last guy got a handjob. They only went to like three parties. Barely anything even happened and they're all celebrating at the end as if they just threw Project X. The characters were unlikable/dumb/underdeveloped. The main guy was insufferable, a hypocrite, and a moron. Talk about being controlling and jealous after he encouraged his female friend to get a boyfriend. Not to mention the irony in all of his criticisms of her relationship, has he ever heard of projection? And oh my god he actually spent over $2000 to fly some girl to his country when he has essentially no proof that she isn't a catfish and he has feelings for another girl...WAT! That literally makes no sense and the girl didn't really serve any purpose in the story, so I am not sure what the excuse is for that stupidity. Aren't these supposed to be the Harvard kids that are too smart for everyone? The karate guy was really annoying and I think was supposed to be the funny character, but that didn't seem to work out as he was just kinda cringey. The other two were more likable and less annoying, but of course they were pretty much the least developed, so there wasn't much to appreciate there. They're all really disruptive/obnoxious in public, and we see from the beginning that they're really recluse, yet they whine about not being invited places. Hmmm, I wonder why. The humour...ummm was it even meant to be a comedy? I don't even think I cracked a smile at anything that happened. I get that humour is subjective but I seriously cannot think of one joke/funny moment in the whole movie. Oops. Everyone in the movie acted stupidly unrealistic, I could not relate to any of them even though I am nearly the same age as most of them. That fight scene was one of the dumbest things I have every seen. The karate guy is somehow able to 1v6 a bunch of fully grown men who are twice his size. Like I get that he teaches tai chi or whatever but I am sorry this is not anime or Super Smash Bros, in real life he would get pummeled. And then the cops show up to see 6 unconscious men on the ground surrounded by a bunch of drunk teens and the extent to their investigation is just "They must've deserved it harharhar". Like the cops are just like "Want a ride home in a cop car?", uh okay never mind the guys that may or may not be dead on the ground or the hundred underage drinkers. What world do these people live in?Was not terrible, but at the same time it kind of was. 4/10

I can see what this movie was trying to do - a bright, fun and feel-good smart movie about a group of "nerds" graduating high school, who want to make up for all the experiences they missed in high school before they go to their respective ivy league colleges. Unfortunately, instead you got a 20% there movie that made me cringe more than it made me laugh. The characters were two dimensional, at best. It focused primarily on the least interesting character - in an attempt to give him some depth maybe? The two other guys, Lion and Spice, were completely overlooked - despite the fact that they both had a lot more potential than the main guy. As for the girl, her primarily role was that of a "woah she's actually hot!" nerd-girl-who-takes-her-glasses off. The plot was predictable, riddled with unrealistic and unnecessary moments, the dialogue didn't do anything. Most scenes were either cut too short for anything to be developed, or developed so far that it wasn't even satirical or funny; it was just overkill. "Good kids" treads on the coming-of-age, feel-good youth high school movie - only without any nuance, any likable characters, any ability to resonate with an audience.

Good Kids probably won't win any awards, but it's an entertaining way to avoid watching any number of mind numbing laugh track filled US TV sitcoms.With the exception of the rising star cute little Zoey Deutch and the now veteran Ashley Judd, the film features a no name cast in a mildly funny coming of age tale concerning four childhood friends who are set to go off to various colleges and individually embark on one last summer fling.Judd's rather brief scenes in this flick was a surprise. Either she had some spare time or starring roles are now few. No matter, she did her job well as a bored housewife who seduces the teenage tennis instructor.A Graduate it isn't. For one thing the good kids here haven't yet gone to college. But the pacing and story holds together with nice acting from an ensemble cast until the expected happy ending.