Director: Jason Reitman

Starring: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Patrick Wilson, Collete Wolfe and Elizabeth Reaser

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Jason Reitman, of Juno and Up in the Air fame, serves up yet another intelligent comedy, full of witty dialogue and (semi-) relatable situations in this film about grown-ups that haven’t quite grown up yet, and are still holding onto their glory days.

Mavis Gary is a writer, best known for her work with young adult literature. Following her divorce, she becomes obsessed with an email from her high school sweetheart, Buddy Slade, informing everyone that he has just become a father. Convinced that she is destined to be with him, she heads off to her hometown in Minnesota in order to win him back.

Reitman has a knack for taking somewhat grim material, e.g. a teen pregnancy, and showing the lighter side of it, providing a generous portion of chuckles for the benefit of his audience. However, his films also tend to retain a hint of darkness, a malignant presence at its centre, around which the comedy can be carefully wrapped. This is especially true for Young Adult. Genuinely funny throughout, it never openly expresses the major issue at it’s centre. However, there are many hints, and it’s tone occasionally slips into bleaker territory.

Charlize Theron does excellent work with Mavis, making her a fascinating character. The film features her primarily, and she carries the weight of it well. Similar in many ways to Cameron Diaz’s character in last years Bad Teacher, she appears more confident, despite being in worse shape. People from her childhood do not view her in the same way she views herself, perpetually the most popular kid in school, and her reaction to this is the main focus of the film.

Casually slipped between important scenes, there are a number of shots showing Mavis either: A) getting herself made up, getting pedicures and having her hair done while she’s getting ready to go out or B) breaking herself down, eating junk food and drinking extremely potent alcohol after her plans begin to unravel. The result of this persisting lifestyle becomes all too apparent towards the films conclusion, when we see her character laid emotionally bare, aided with some quite iconic imagery.

Buddy, her high school sweetheart, has clearly moved on with his wife and daughter, and she mentally cannot accept this. Insisting that he is in fact unhappy, her attempts to win him back are often agonising to behold. Patrick Wilson is somewhat bland in this role, but manages well enough.

The other major star of the show is Patton Oswalt, who plays Matt Freehauf. A crippled geek from her school days, he befriends Mavis on her return and acts as a screen upon which she can rebound ideas off of in her scheme to win back Buddy. While his own side story is equally tragic, he lends himself well to some fantastic comedy scenes, which include alcohol, star wars and swearing. Also, a stand-out in the film, but sadly underused, is Matt’s unstable but somewhat endearing sister, Sandra, played by Colette Wolfe.

The major fault of the film is the fact that its conclusion is quite underwhelming. It feels as though it cuts off about five minutes before its natural conclusion. Very little feels resolved in the final scenes and this certainly adds to the darker tone of the film, more so than anything else. It remains a solid film despite this anti-climax. Less approachable than Reitmans previous entries, it is no less engaging or entertaining.

Score: 4/5