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The Spectacular Now (2013)

The Spectacular Now (2013)

Based on Tim Tharp's eponymous novel, this is high-school coming-of-age drama without the BS

The Very Best

8.9

Movie

United States of America
English
Comedy, Drama, Romance
2013
JAMES PONSOLDT
Alex D'Lerma, Andre Royo, Bob Odenkirk
95 min

What it's about

Sutter, a popular party animal, unexpectedly meets the introverted Aimee after waking up on a stranger's lawn. As Sutter deals with the problems in his life and Aimee plans for her future beyond school, an unexpected romance blossoms between them.

The take

Everybody loves a good coming-of-age movie, but they have their trappings. Their youthful characters are often cartoonish, or perfect, or insanely inept. This is where The Spectacular Now achieves something that is indeed spectacular: it feels incredibly real. The film features Miles Teller (from Whiplash) as a charming, but slightly lost, heavily partying high-school senior named Sutter Keely. After waking up on a strange lawn after a long night, he is awoken by Aimee, played by Shailene Woodley, whose performance is as spectacular as the depth of this movie's characters. What starts as a rebound fling for Keely eventually goes deeper and deeper, while his problems become more and more apparent to us, the viewers, to Aimee, and to his caring teacher, played by the incredible Andre Royo, who some of you might recognize as the iconic Bubbles from The Wire. If this premise sounds corny to you, think again, because this film has a deep respect for its characters and the journeys they must take. A sensitive drama with incredibly life-like performances.

Comments

Wuaaa, I haven’t seen something like this in a while; Well-carried long shots, turns you don’t see coming, a WTF moment that glued me to the screen again; hots, sweets, angry moments, a mix of everything: 8/10

Wuaaa, hace rato no veia algo asi; Tomas largas bien llevadas, giros que no te ves venir, un WTF moment que me volvio a pegar a la pantalla, momentos hots, tiernos, de enojo, un mix de todo: 8/10

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