BREAKING NEWS, Y’ALL: I have a new YA boyfriend. And his name is Sutter Keely.
Unfortunately for me, I can’t keep him all to myself. Fortunately for you, he will be totally available to everyone starting August 9th with the release of The Spectacular Now.
Based on the YA novel by Tim Tharp, this film is one of the most authentic portrayals of adolescence that I’ve ever seen. It’s amazing and funny and raw and messy and tingly and ALL OF THE THINGS. Here, watch the trailer while I take a minute to calm down:
AM I RIGHT OR AM I RIGHT?
I don’t even know why I’m bothering to write anything further in this post, because if that trailer doesn’t convince you, I think you need to get to a hospital immediately because YOUR HEART IS NO LONGER BEATING.
For those of you who don’t require emergency medical attention, allow me to gush further about The Spectacular Now.
First of all, Miles Teller. MILES TELLER! The dude is just… awesome. He was the best part of the Footloose remake, and I can’t wait to see him take a walk on the dark side as Peter in Divergent. There’s just something about him– that off-kilter charm, that killer grin, that Danny McBride-esque voice–that completely and irrevocably disarms you. As Sutter, Miles is absolutely magnetic, and even when he’s making a bad decision, you can’t help but love him anyway.
His dynamic performance is further magnified by an acting partner equal to his talents. Shailene Woodley (who will also be in Divergent as Tris) is luminous, yet incredibly believable as a high school nobody. This isn’t one of those movies where they put a pair of glasses on a beautiful girl and call her a nerd. The character of Aimee is sweet and earnest but never a cliché, and while that’s partly due to the script (from the writers of 500 Days of Summer), Shailene’s wonderfully layered portrayal transforms Aimee into someone so familiar, you start to wonder if you, like Sutter, have actually been going to school with her this whole time.
Plus, COACH TAYLOR IS IN THIS MOVIE, Y’ALL! But he’s definitely NOT Coach Taylor. (Tami would never put up with that shizz.) I was also incredibly excited to see FYA casting faves Brie Larson and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who both manage to be pitch perfect in everything they do. Seriously, Hollywood, GET ON THAT. Larson plays the hot, popular ex-girlfriend without being The Hot, Popular Ex-Girlfriend, while Winstead is delightful as the older, wiser but still slightly ridiculous older sister.
The entire cast really knocks it out of the park, and it helps that they have such compelling material to work with. The story of Sutter is a gripping journey through the highs and lows of adolescence, and the best (and most realistic) part is that you’re never sure if the highs are actually low, and the lows are actually high.
It’s also a film about first love, from butterflies in stomachs to awkward attempts at sex. Without ever going over the top, The Spectacular Now quietly infuses a romantic magic into your bloodstream that races through your heart and leaves your body feeling electric and alive.
When I saw this film for the first time, it only took about 15 minutes for me to know that it would land in my top five movies of 2013. It’s THAT good, you guys. So do yourself a favor and buy your tickets now, then come back and tell me what you thought so that I can say TOLD YA and YOU’RE WELCOME.
