Dazed and Confused (1993) directed by Richard Linklater
Dazed and Confused is essentially a poor man's American Graffiti. It is about high school kids on the last day of school in 1976 which means lots of partying, cruising, chasing girls, smoking weed, drinking beer and something missing from my generation, hazing. It is hard to describe a plot with so many characters and so many episodes, but just imagine it as a sort of coming of age story about kids being kids. There is a definite feel of nostalgia to the film and you don't have to be from the 70's to understand it. All you need is to have been a high school kid once yourself to make its story nearly universal and accessible to all. What separates it from George Lucas's classic is its heart. In American Graffiti we grow attached the kids in their night out. Here in Dazed and Confused the story is a little goofier focusing more on comedy than heart, but it still gets all the details right. The awkward first kiss, the last school dance, the first time getting drunk, late night shenanigans with friends, boys being boys will always be the same. The only thing that changes are the haircuts and the music.
Grade: B
Dazed and Confused is essentially a poor man's American Graffiti. It is about high school kids on the last day of school in 1976 which means lots of partying, cruising, chasing girls, smoking weed, drinking beer and something missing from my generation, hazing. It is hard to describe a plot with so many characters and so many episodes, but just imagine it as a sort of coming of age story about kids being kids. There is a definite feel of nostalgia to the film and you don't have to be from the 70's to understand it. All you need is to have been a high school kid once yourself to make its story nearly universal and accessible to all. What separates it from George Lucas's classic is its heart. In American Graffiti we grow attached the kids in their night out. Here in Dazed and Confused the story is a little goofier focusing more on comedy than heart, but it still gets all the details right. The awkward first kiss, the last school dance, the first time getting drunk, late night shenanigans with friends, boys being boys will always be the same. The only thing that changes are the haircuts and the music.
Grade: B
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