Dazed and Confused (1993) *****

 

I've been catching up on some classic horror films lately, and the lesson from those is that teenagers hang out, get drunk, get high, get laid, and then get killed. It's nice to revisit a movie about teens doing the first four, without having to get slaughtered. Richard Linklater's coming-of-age story is a classic slice of life, full of classic lines and classic rock.

The film takes place on the last day of school, in Austin, TX, 1976. A varied collection of students prepare for their summer. For the rising Seniors who happen to be jocks and cheerleaders, this means hazing the incoming Freshman, a time-honored process that will continue all summer. On the receiving end of this abuse are Mitch and Sabrina, who tolerate the hazing and are rewarded by getting to hang out and party all night with the older kids. Rising Senior Randall “Pink” Floyd is the star quarterback, and he takes part in the hazing halfheartedly. Pink basically gets along with everyone, including the stoners at his school, and he lacks the sadism of his fellow athletes. He spends the night debating whether he should continue playing football, which will involve signing a hypocritical, “voluntary” pledge to avoid alcohol and drugs.

Not everyone in the film is a popular jock or cheerleader. The story includes stoners, thugs, and nerds, including a trio of intellectuals who cruise around overthinking everything, trying to find a literal party and trying to find the party in themselves.

The most memorable character in “Dazed and Confused” was almost a footnote. David Wooderson is one of those guys in his early 20s who still hangs around high school kids, leching on the girls, and trying to act cool and wise. In the original script, Wooderson was just an extra. The legend goes that Matthew McConaughey, a film student at the time, spotted casting director Don Phillips in an Austin bar, and introduced himself. The two hit it off, and Phillips offered him the small part. Once McConaughey got on set and started bringing the character to life, everyone was blown away, the part was expanded, and Wooderson became a classic character with lines like “That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older; they stay the same age.”

More lighthearted than “Fast Times at Ridgemont High, “ and without the obligatory tragedy of “American Graffiti,” “Dazed and Confused” is much closer to a slice of real teenage life, although a bit idealized. Belying its title, the film depicts teens who are much cooler and more self-aware than my friends and I ever were. It's a reasonable fantasy, though, about a perfect party night, hanging with friends and making new friends, meeting a guy or girl, and feeling cool.

5 stars out of 5