Was I an arsonist in my previous life?

It’s Thursday. After coming home from school (yes school, where I teach though), I ran the risk of wilting into a mush of laziness by flopping down on my bed, and closing my eyes and pondering the risk of this current generation of 3-6year olds (who’s minds I have the profound and daunting task of helping to shape), being our future leaders. (Not to say our generation is any better – but I haven’t seen anyone my age dig their nose, inspect the booger and find it so tempting that they had to eat it...yet).

I decided thereafter, not to bring my work home with me. It seemed like the logical and sanity-saving thing to do. So I unearthed my stash of chocolate and curled up on the sofa to enjoy Michael Cera in the role of Nick Twisp in Youth in Revolt.

Wonder: Has anyone else noticed his repetitive choice in the roles of hormonally driven teenagers? (Superbad; Nick & Nora’s Infinite Playlist; Juno…Youth in Revolt).

He reminds me of a beanstalk. It’s the truth. A really talented beanstalk – because (and no one can argue with me on this point), he is, talented in the art of delivering his lines with the perfect balance of irony and sincerity. He’s not just mocking the guy in the cashmere crème sweater who’s about to beat him up, he’s mocking his character, he’s mocking you, he’s mocking our whole gosh-damned generation. Whether you love him or hate him, he still seems to be laughing at you.

But anyway, this post isn’t about Cera, it’s about the movie. Put it on your must-see list. True to form of his sex-crazed adolescent roles, Nick Twisp, is obsessed with losing his virginity. Of course, he’s the mousy, sensible guy who’s intelligently witty but at the same time so monumentally boring to the A-lists in his world that no one spends more than 3minutes of their lives talking to him – thus his true social  potential  is never discovered. I say, righteous dude (I watched Finding Nemo again the other day) – I’d rather the guy who was being punched by the guy in the cashmere crème sweater, than the guy in the cashmere crème sweater. So, Nick creates this alter-ego: Francoise.

With the help of Francoise, our wimpy guy morphs into a suave, ciggi-junki, everything-French-loving charmer - whipping out one liners that are enough to buy him a place under the sheets of the girl he turns rebel for. 


Wonder: Does anyone else think that Cera is brilliant to be able to play someone who is ultra cool and bad-ass, while at the same time ridiculous with a ludicrous dress sense? And then at the turn of a head turn back into the uncool albeit intelligent master character?


One of my friends described the flick as wierd, I couldn't agree more. See though, that's what I admire about it. It's so real while being monumentally surreal. It's like Fight Club minus the combined good looks of Brad Pitt and Edward Norton (and the beating-yourself-up). Its full of wit and warped humour, good acting and a non-conforming plot.