Booksmart (2019)
The American high school comedy has been declared dead so many times that its survival at this point feels almost rebellious. From the anarchic spirit of Ferris Bueller's Day Off to the laddish chaos of Superbad, the genre has repeatedly found ways to reinvent its own formula while recycling the same basic ingredients: social anxiety, hormones, and one very bad night. By 2019, though, the space had grown noticeably crowded with diminishing returns, which made Booksmart feel like something of a breath of fresh air when it landed. Produced by Annapurna Pictures and Gloria Sanchez Productions, two outfits not especially shy about backing films with a distinct point of view, the film centres on a pair of high-achieving best friends who spend the final night before their high school graduation attempting to cram in every party, every social experience, and every piece of teenage recklessness they previously denied themselves. It is a premise with obvious comic potential, and the film, to its credit, does not squander it.
What gives Booksmart an additional layer of interest beyond its logline is the identity of the person behind the camera. Olivia Wilde had built a solid and varied acting career across television and film, but this was her first feature as a director, and the industry was watching with some curiosity. She brought on screenwriters Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel, and Katie Silberman to shape the material, and the collaborative, female-centred creative energy is evident throughout. For a film operating on a relatively modest budget within the mid-range comedy space, the technical execution is polished but unremarkable in the best possible way: the craft serves the story without drawing attention to itself. Those familiar with Macca's review of Wonder (2017) will recognise a similar dynamic here, where a film's emotional intelligence tends to do heavier lifting than its visual ambition.
The casting is, frankly, where the film earns a lot of its goodwill before a single joke lands. Beanie Feldstein, who had already shown considerable charm in Lady Bird, and Kaitlyn Dever, whose quieter, more internalised work on the television series Justified had long suggested she was capable of considerable things, form a central pairing that feels genuinely lived-in. Their chemistry is the kind that is difficult to manufacture and almost impossible to fake. The supporting cast fills out the film's social landscape with real personality: Jessica Williams brings warmth and a wry authority to a brief but memorable role, Lisa Kudrow is reliably knowing in the way only Lisa Kudrow can be, and Jason Sudeikis has a sequence that, by most accounts, became one of the more talked-about moments of the film's release. For fans of ensemble comedies who also enjoyed Macca's thoughts on What We Do in the Shadows (2014), there is a similar pleasure here in watching a tight, well-chosen group of performers elevate material that lesser casts might have rendered merely functional.
Booksmart (2019), Olivia Wilde’s directorial debut, wears its influences proudly (often described as a female-led answer to Superbad) but quickly carves out its own distinct, empathetic voice. The film follows two academically driven best friends who, on the eve of graduation, realise they’ve traded their entire teenage years for straight A’s and set out on a chaotic, single-night quest to finally cut loose. From the opening frame, the film leans into awkward, cringe-inducing situations not as missteps, but as deliberate storytelling tools, capturing the messy, hyper-self-conscious reality of late adolescence with sharp wit and zero condescension.
While it doesn’t quite match Superbad’s relentless, joke-a-minute rhythm, Booksmart lands its best moments with genuine, laugh-out-loud precision. The Lyft scene with Jason Sudeikis is a standout, but the comedy thrives just as much in the quiet character beats and painfully relatable social misfires. Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever are perfectly cast, delivering performances that balance razor-sharp timing with raw vulnerability, and the supporting ensemble adds layers of charm that make every interaction feel lived-in. The humour isn’t consistent throughout, but when it hits, it truly lands.
What ultimately elevates the film is its emotional core: a touching, surprisingly mature exploration of female friendship, self-discovery, and the bittersweet realization that growing up means letting go of who you thought you’d be. Wilde handles the tonal shifts deftly, weaving heartfelt moments between the raucous set pieces without ever losing momentum.
Booksmart is a refreshingly smart, deeply affectionate coming-of-age story that understands its own cringe, celebrates its characters, and earns its laughs without sacrificing its heart. It may not be as relentlessly funny as the classics it echoes, but it’s a standout debut that proves high school comedies still have plenty of room to evolve.
Booksmart arrived at a moment when the coming-of-age comedy was badly in need of someone willing to treat the form with both affection and a degree of rigour, and on that score it largely delivers. A 3.5 out of 5 feels an honest assessment of a film that is genuinely good without being quite the generational classic some of the more excitable early reviews suggested. What it does well, it does with real confidence, and as a statement of directorial intent from Wilde, it opened a conversation about what this kind of film can do when it takes its characters seriously. Whether the genre has more room to grow is a question that keeps coming back, much like the films themselves. The answer, for now at least, appears to be yes.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2019 | Watched: 2026-05-20
Where to watch (UK)
Stream: Netflix · Netflix Standard with Ads · Lionsgate+ Amazon Channels
Rent: Apple TV Store · Rakuten TV · Amazon Video · Sky Store
Buy: Apple TV Store · Rakuten TV · Amazon Video · Sky Store
Physical: Amazon UK
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