True Adolescents (2009)

Lack of good storyline.

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

This quiet film stealthily approaches some rather profound questions about growing up, finding an identity, maturing, and developing a sense of responsibility—and it just kind of leaves them there, unanswered. That's not to say the film is without merit. Mark Duplass is perfectly cast as Sam, the 30something "true adolescent" who finds himself without a job, a girlfriend, or a home. While crashing at his aunt's place, he gets recruited to chaperone his cousin and his cousin's best friend on a camping trip. A silly prank in the middle of the trip accidentally uncovers a delicate moment, which propels much of the subsequent action of the film even as its importance remains marginalized and only tangentially alluded to as the movie progresses toward an inconclusive resolution. "True Adolescents" is what I would call a "problem film"—but one I enjoyed nonetheless (even though I still can't decide whether I actually like Mark Duplass).

Mark Duplass stars as Sam--a loser who, in his mid-30s, has no home and no job....but he is in a band! When he moves in with his aunt and her family, he mostly sits around doing nothing--that is, until he gets drafted into taking his 14 year-old cousin and his friend on a camping trip. Now considering all three have exactly the same maturity level, you know things can't go well with good 'ol Sam in charge! And, not surprisingly, that's exactly what happens. Can Sam somehow, for once, short some maturity and get them back safely? Or, will they be eaten by bears and squirrels and hippies in the Pacific Northwest? This is an unusual film in many ways. It is NOT formulaic but at the same time I am sure a lot of folks WON'T like it very much because it does not have a happy ending. I respect it, however, because it avoided formula and because the filmmakers did a good job of actually capturing the essence of 14 year-olds. Instead of the Hollywood way where you get a 20-something to play a 14 year-old, these really WERE kids that age. And, they talked like kids that age--not like Hollywood versions of kids! I only recently retired from teaching and know how 14 year-olds talk--and they DO talk like the boys in "True Adolescents". Worth seeing even if the film seems very incomplete by its conclusion.

I liked Mark Duplass quite a lot in "Humpday," and there are several moments in "True Adolescents" when you get a glimpse of what a good actor he has it in him to be. But what also struck me about his performance in this coming-of-age story was how unlikable he can be when paired with the wrong material.He plays an immature musician, drifting through life and pissing off just about anyone who might be willing to tolerate him, until, bottomed out and crashing in his aunt's house, he agrees to take her son and his best friend on a camping expedition when the kid's father bails on him (for what, we are to understand, is the umpteenth time). While on that trip, something happens between the two teenagers that jeopardizes, and perhaps with dangerous results, their trip and forces Duplass into the role of adult, a role for which he is not overly suited.We're supposed to think Duplass is a loser, and I suppose we're even supposed to get impatient with him, but I also think we're meant to find him funny and charming, and I just didn't. Some people have a knack for being snide and sarcastic while still being winning, and some don't. Guess which camp Duplass falls in for me? My viewing experience of "True Adolescents" wasn't at all helped by the fact that the Netflix streaming version I saw screwed up somewhere toward the end so that the picture and the soundtrack were operating entirely independently of one another, so maybe it's not fair of me to judge the film too harshly.The cast includes Melissa Leo as Duplass's aunt, and makes me start to wonder if Leo, an actress I usually like very much, has decided that her best career move is to appear in absolutely any movie someone offers to her.Grade: B-

First of all, this movie is an example how not to make a film. It absolutely lacks any story at all. You get a story like those you were writing in high school, not knowing how to end it and having no message to give. You keep watching and thinking what it's all about and what the point of this film is. Every time there's a glimpse of a meaning, it disappears right away.So you meet a middle-aged rock man Sam who pathetically forces himself to play cool and maybe he's supposed to be funny, but damn, he's not. His GF kicks him out of the house so he stays with his aunt. The aunt wants him to get a job but he's too cool for that, then he seems to feel guilty and he takes her son and his best friend to a camping trip to the middle of nowhere. Here's probably the only good point of this film - nice views.Generally when there's a trip involved in a film you suppose it should change something for the characters of the film, well, this one doesn't. There is no logic in the construction of the film, there are random scenes that have no continuation later on. You hope the guy will teach the kids something about the music, nope, they just stop at a motel and this bit ends. You hope the kids will learn something about their sexuality, nope, the bit ends with "Sorry I called you a fag". There is no message, nothing to hang on, the film ends up like there was no idea or money to finish it.I'm writing this because I'm angry I wasted my time on this. When I was a teenager and I was writing stories that had no point, I just burnt them or threw away after reading them. I wish the person who had made this film had done the same to the script. Really, try to watch some real good indie films first because in my opinion the makers of this one are like the main guy in this movie - forcing themselves to be cool while they are just pathetic. At least take some lessons from Xavier Dolan or Jonathan Caouette for example, if you want to limit yourself to North American film makers.