“Youth in Revolt” isn’t breaking any new ground; then again, it’s fun to watch. The movie is based on the cult novel with more or less the same title (officially it’s “Youth in Revolt: The Journals of Nick Twisp”) by C. D. Payne. Michael Cera plays (surprise) a skinny, awkward, virgin teenager with divorced and slightly dysfunctional parents. While he, his mom (Jean Smart) and her ne’er-do-well boyfriend (Zach Galifanakis) hide out in a trailer park for the summer until threats against the boyfriend subside, he meets the beautiful Francophile Sheeni Saunders (newcomer Portia Doubleday). There are a few problems: for one, Sheeni already has a boyfriend and furthermore, Nick must head back to Oakland when the summer concludes. Nevertheless, like most hopeless romantics, Nick gets it in his head that he will do anything for love. Sheeni tells Nick he must be very bad if he wants them to be together. Thus enters perhaps the most interesting character of the movie, Nick’s self-created alternate persona, Francois Dillinger (also played by Cera).
The movie really takes off once Francois enters the equation. In fact, the movie probably would have been more entertaining and unpredictable if Francois had had a more prominent role. Not to say that Nick Twisp isn’t a compelling character, but Francois is so much more dynamic. His entrance involves him throwing LPs at Nick and spouting obscenities unfit to print here. Later, at the breakfast table with his mother and her new boyfriend (Ray Liotta), Francois puffs on a cigarette while airing his grievances with Nick’s mom. When he leaves, he rudely knocks over his cereal bowl and spits in contempt. One of the funniest scenes in the movie involves Francois talking dirty to Sheeni while Nick looks on.
Francois represents something every adolescent can relate to: wanting desperately to be in control, to be in a better place. At some point, we all want to be something better, someone cooler than who we are. We may not create a separate persona, but we might look to other people with admiration or in some cases, envy. We also look to others for direction. In the same way, Nick looks to Francois to be cool in tough situations, to loudly speak his mind, and to confidently take action.
Francois is a fun character to watch because his actions are so unpredictable. This is why so many actors are said to prefer playing villains: the roles are more fun because of their unpredictable nature. It remains to be seen whether Michael Cera will be able to break away from being typecast as the soft-spoken, yet articulate, skinny nerd, but playing Francois at least gives him somewhat of a departure. If he continues to play these roles they will get old pretty fast, but it must be said that he plays the part well.
“Youth in Revolt” is fun to watch because we see a running string of absurd, comical situations until the movie unravels a little near the end. The script is full of witty, sometimes sarcastic lines. The puzzling animation interludes could have been cut, as they’re more distracting than anything else. Also, it was a shame to see Steve Buscemi, one of the great contemporary character actors, wasted for the most part. His screen time is minimal; his impact on the story, even less. We’ve seen coming-of-age stories like this before, but having the alternate persona of Francois Dillinger makes “Youth in Revolt” fun to watch.
3 out of 4 stars
