Checked out the indie film Eighth Grade which just went wide this weekend. This is a very good film that shares some basic DNA with Napoleon Dynamite, though the lead is far more likable, less snide, and has 100% fewer bowhunting skills. But Eighty Grade IS an honest movie about being awkward and unsure of yourself in junior high.
The film uses – get this – kids who are actually in junior high to play junior high kids. Elsie Fisher – all of 14 – plays the lead as a warts (zits) and all, not particularly fit, awkward, quiet jr. high school student and she kills it. It’s basically a star-making performance, though she also played the voice of the youngest daughter in the Despicable Me movies.
Fisher’s character is shy to the point of painful at school. She tries to talk to others but is that special kind of awkward where you can see she understands the concept of communicating with others but isn’t good at it. At home, she is much more outgoing and communicative as a YouTuber, providing life and relationship advice she only wishes she lived by in real life.
The film understands kids – not just her – and her awkward dad and dabbing teachers who struggle to understand these jr. high creatures with their social medias. Her dad is played by Josh Hamilton and he’s great. Their relationship as father and daughter is believable and he has this killer monologue to his daughter at the end that makes you want hug both of them.
Ultimately there’s not a lot “plot’ in this film. It’s basically a coming-of-age flick where the pawn only moves just enough to let us know she’ll be alright. There are a few scenes that will remind you of other movies but how they play out avoids the usual cliches. This is a very smart script that understands kids.
It’s written and directed by Bo Burnham who was himself a YouTuber as a teenager and is a stand-up comedian on Netflix now. I read an interview with him where he said writing dialog for modern teens is easy because all you have to do is research their social media (which is a bit stalkery but also believable). Between his own life experience and this research, he’s crafted a very believable set of characters and events.
I highly recommend this movie. It’s full of award and uncomfortable moments but that just makes you root for the main character all the more. Elsie Fisher, if I didn’t see a more confident version of herself in interviews, inhabits this character to the point of distraction. I’d believe the actress was really this socially awkward… but that’s what acting is for. So, yeah, check this one out if its showing near you.
Score: 89