[yasr_overall_rating]
Jessie and Angela, high school dropouts, are taking a week off to chill at the beach. Too bad their house got robbed, rent’s due, they’re about to get fired, and they’re broke.
It’s Oak Cliff Film Festival time and this year, like every year, I tell myself I’m going to volunteer or get a VIP pass and that never happens. Instead, I settle on a centerpiece screening: one of the really popular films that people might sleep on if they didn’t’ screen at a festival. As always the Texas Theater’s beautiful architecture hyped me up to catch a movie by a Dallas local set to premiere across the nation in a little over a month. Augustin Frizzell’s “Never Goin’ Back” is a true love story to lady love, poop jokes, and sheer teenage rebellion.
Open on two teenage girls: Jessie and Angela. Two high school dropouts who decide to blow some money and take a beach vacation. Of course, nothing goes as planned as they get robbed, the rent is due, they’re about to get fired, and they’re broke. So, how are they gonna make it through? By holding each other’s hands and raising a middle finger to the world.
For a movie about sisterhood, it’s got all the trappings of your typical boy coming-of-age movie: drugs, cops, angry old people, beer, older brothers, and then some. I want to call it the female “Superbad” but that’s doing this movie a disservice. “Never Goin’ Back” highlights the teenage drama of two lower class high school dropouts. Frizzell named it when she spoke after the screening: “All those movies about boys coming of age were all middle-class white boys. None of these movies, even the ones with girls, really showed where I came from, which is a lower class. I wanted to show this side of the world but not to, like, dwell on it. Cause that’s not what this is about.” True, instead of exploring the limits of this lifestyle it focuses on these two girls just trying to get by and constantly messing up.
You can’t get a better lady-mance than Maia Mitchell and Camilla Morrone. They carry the movie with all the wit, charisma, and defiance of everyone’s grumpy teenage sister. Backing the two up is Kyle Mooney off the “SNL” stage and as much a burnout as the older brother and his three friends. Every cast member ad-libs some incredible one-liners. We spend a good long time getting to love these misfits and rejects as their dilemma increases.
Pressure builds around these two charismatic and bold young women as they try to dig themselves out of the hole. Half the joy of this movie is watching them dig a deeper hole either through their own machinations or through the sheer stupidity of Angela’s older brother. The antics of Joel Allen’s Dustin and his two friends supply not only a tangible subplot but also some of the funniest one-liners present. As a sideshow goes they’re VERY watchable.
Ultimately, this movie lands on its feet for trying something that feels so fresh and new. With all the female poop jokes you never knew you needed, it’s got laughs aplenty but the standout element of the entire movie is its soundtrack. Carefully curated and lovingly crafted for the film the music in this movie stands out from beginning to end. I’m anxiously awaiting for the release of the soundtrack on Spotify so I can bump it day and night.
In summation: Come for the feminist story (the movie’s an exemplary Bechdel test) and stay for the joy. Nothing about this movie feels introspective or saddening. Instead, it’s a vision of joy crafted by a unique voice in cinema with all the love and endearment only girls can have for each other. Be rebellious with these two girls and find the joy in everything. I heartily recommend this movie to anyone looking for a summer comedy!
In theaters August 3rd
