GETTING STRAIGHT A’S. GIVING ZERO F’S.

Two high-school seniors (Beanie Feldstein, Kaitlyn Dever) are about to graduate when they realize that they’ve made a huge mistake; they should have enjoyed high school more and maybe a party will change that?

Olivia Wilde’s directing debut gave the genre’s expected stereotypes depth and actual human qualities. Much of the film is obviously familiar, not least having the lead characters spend a wild night on the town trying to find a graduation party they weren’t invited to. Expect the usual sex and drugs… but it’s a funny, disarming and thoughtful film that always hits the right tone.

The two leads provide much of the charm, right from their first scene together.

2019-U.S. 105 min. Color. Widescreen. Directed by Olivia Wilde. Screenplay: Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel, Katie Silberman. Cast: Beanie Feldstein (Molly Davidson), Kaitlyn Dever (Amy Antsler), Jessica Williams (Miss Fine), Lisa Kudrow, Will Forte, Jason Sudeikis, Billie Lourd. Voice of Maya Rudolph. 

Trivia: Co-executive produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. 

Last word: “I wanted to make this about judgment, and what can we do to flip the tropes on their back, and [Katie Silberman’s] very simple and brilliant answer was: What if all the other kids were smart, too? I’ll never forget that moment where I was like, ‘You’ve cracked it, that’s it.’ Everything else flows from that revelation. So, based on that first conversation, I knew that we had a really organic shorthand, and I knew that we understood each other’s styles really well, and the process was truly effortless.” (Wilde, Deadline)