Youth In Revolt

TIFF: A hysterically twisted coming-of-age tale chronicling the awkward tribulations of a Camus-spouting, Godard-loving teenaged boy who is cursed with trailer-trash parents and a terminal case of virginity, Youth in Revolt is a wickedly ironic treat. The fact that it stars comedic royalty Michael Cera, Zach Galifianakis, Jean Smart and Steve Buscemi under the direction of the man responsible for some of the funniest episodes of Ugly Betty, The Office, Six Feet Under and Freaks and Geeks makes it pure gold.

Filled with intellectual pretensions and raging hormones, Nick Twisp (Cera) lives a dull life with his cougar mother, Estelle (Smart), and her truck-driving, loutish boyfriend, Jerry (Galifianakis). When Jerry sells a group of strapping young sailors a lemon Chevy Nova, they want revenge. In true heroic fashion, Jerry takes the family to hide out in a trailer park until the coast is clear. Nick is sorely out of place, thinking himself condemned to slum it with his barbaric family, until he meets Sheeni (newcomer Portia Doubleday), the precocious Ozu-loving dilettante in the nearby two-storey trailer. It's love at first sight, further cemented when Sheeni plays him French crooners on vinyl. But Nick's romanticized vision is shattered when he discovers that Sheeni is dating Trent (Jonathan B. Wright), a sickeningly handsome fop in tennis shoes and a cream-coloured sweater. With the stakes raised, Nick goes to hilarious lengths to secure Sheeni's love, including buying her a puppy named Albert (after Camus, of course) and even creating an alter ego for himself, François Dillinger. A chain-smoking Frenchman sporting a devil-may-care moustache, François gets Nick into disaster after disaster in his quest for Sheeni's attention.

Based on C. D. Payne's cult-hit novel of the same name, Youth in Revolt is as smart as it is funny, combining classic black comedy with fresh new interpretations by its terrific young cast. No one plays the comedy of embarrassment better than Michael Cera, and in pitting a familiar Cera character against his dangerous French doppelganger, director Miguel Arteta has found a perfect new take on the genre.

--Cameron Bailey

Miguel Arteta was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and studied documentary at Harvard University before graduating from Wesleyan University. His short film Every Day Is a Beautiful Day (89) was nominated for a Student Academy Award®, after which he earned his M.F.A. at the American Film Institute. He has directed episodes of Freaks and Geeks, Six Feet Under, The Office and Ugly Betty, in addition to the features Star Maps (97), Chuck & Buck (00), The Good Girl (02) and Youth in Revolt (09).
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Larry Richman: My day began in a long line at Scotiabank 1 for the World Premiere of Youth in Revolt, the latest Michael Cera film. It guaranteed a late start. Every seat was taken.

Youth in Revolt has one of the funniest scripts of all the films I've seen here. The audience was rolling in the aisles. And what a cast. M. Emmett Walsh, Mary Kay Place, Steve Buscemi, Ray Liotta, Fred Willard, Justin Long, and Jean Smart, all in one film. But Youth in Revolt is clearly a vehicle for Michael Cera. He portrays a wimpy teen (the appropriately named Nick Twisp) who, in order to win the girl of his dreams (Portia Doubleday, in a breakout role) must become a "bad boy" and break all the rules. Fans will not be disappointed. It's an all-around excellent comedy. Production values are top-notch and the film is sure to clean up at the box office.

There was no Q&A but director Miguel Arteta came onstage beforehand with several stars, including Michael Cera. This was my only screening of 20 so far at which the stars came and introduced the film but did not stay for a Q&A.