Dazed and Confused

Red = Spoilers 

So, I watched Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas to write a review for it, and the poster for the movie reminded me of the movie poster for Dazed and Confused. So, I decided to watch that and write a review for it to follow a very general “drug” theme for the day. Not so much for Dazed and Confused. I guess they’re smoking weed. But weed is hardly a drug. Maybe it was more dangerous way back then. Yet, everybody smoked, and they sold beer to 18-year-olds. It seems kind of ass-backwards, doesn’t it? 

What’s it about? Dazed and Confused is about the last day of school at Lee High School in Austin, Texas. There are numerous central characters that the plot threads together throughout the movie, interacting with each other at various times. The central theme is that there was a party at Kevin Pickford’s house, but due to the beer guy showing up early, the party got cancelled, and now all of the teenagers are out and about the town with nowhere to be on the last day of school. Meanwhile, some of the senior guys are out hunting some of the freshmen boys to spank them with paddles in a traditional hazing ritual. Eventually a bunch of people put together a big gathering and there’s a large party to replace the one that was supposed to happen at Pickford’s house so everyone can get wasted and have a good time. Just like high school is supposed to be.  

What’s good? It’s a good script. The dialogue is well-written. It doesn’t seem forced or fake. It seems like a casually spoken person wrote it. I think it’s a good cross-section of high school characters. The nerds, the jocks, the stoners, the geeks, the freshmen, the dicks, the unaffiliated. It has a good storyline, from front to back. It centers around just cruising around, looking for a party, but it’s a groovy time.  

What’s bad? It’s pretty generic, as far as movies go. Nothing really jumps out at you. Not that it isn’t funny. It’s alright. But I wouldn’t go out of my way to watch it.  

The acting? The acting is fine. I don’t see any problem with the acting. It’s not astounding or anything, but there’s nothing wrong with it. 

The effects? There are no effects. The only practical effects are when they poured some paint on Ben Affleck. And that was just pouring paint on Ben Affleck… 

The cast? This was an ensemble cast of people who weren’t stars yet. People like Matthew McConaughey, Milla Jovovich, Ben Affleck, Adam Goldberg, Parker Posey, and to a lesser extent Jason London and Joey Lauren Adams.  

The music? It’s a great soundtrack of 70s classic rock and funk. A great era for music in a movie.  

The era? It seems like so many movies and tv shows about the 70s were made in the 90s and later that you have to wonder where the content is coming from? Who’s view of the 70s is this? Were they there? How old were they when they were there? Is that how they remember it? Because, if you were born in 1974, the 70s aren’t really your decade, are they? 

So, watch Dazed and Confused once. It’s good for a laugh. You don’t have to watch it again. It’s got its moments and the parts that you should know for context. Like the famous Matthew McConaughey quote. “I keep getting older, they stay the same age”. That is clearly illegal. And he is clearly not a high school student. But he’s still hanging out with them, nonetheless. And as always, keep on watching, with a smile on your face…