*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*
Your early teen years can be the most awkward and difficult stage of your life. It's that age where you're too old to be a child but too young to be considered an adult, however, you're old enough to be making important decisions. Bo Burnham's directorial debut, Eighth Grade, captures the awkwardness of being a teenager and that's what makes it so appealing. I can imagine a lot of people relating to the main protagonist who experiences all the highs and lows of being 13 years old and transitioning from middle school to high school.
Thirteen-year-old Kayla (Elsie Fisher) endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school - the end of her thus far disastrous eighth grade year - before she begins high school.
Eighth Grade premiered at the Sundance Film Festival at the beginning of 2018, before being released in the United States in July the same year. Since then, it's received critical acclaim, mostly towards Burnham's direction and Fisher's impressive leading performance. After noticing the positive reception it was receiving, both from audiences and critics, I became interested in seeing in, unfortunately, I was disappointed when I discovered there was no release date for the UK. After waiting several months, Eighth Grade is finally being released later this month, however, I was lucky enough to watch it at a early preview screening and, fortunately, it was worth the wait.
Eighth Grade may be one of the best films about being a teenager. What I found most refreshing about Burnham's feature is how realistic it feels. Most films that are set before or during high school star actors who are significantly older than the appropriate age. For example, Rachel McAdams was in her mid-20s when portraying Regina George in the comedy, Mean Girls, and Olivia Newton-John was almost 30 when she performed as Sandy in the classic 1978 musical, Grease. While both actors gave solid performances in their roles, they were unconvincing as teenagers.
What I also liked about Eighth Grade was Burnham's decision to cast actors who were the appropriate age. At the time of filming, Fisher had just graduated from the eighth grade. Burnham cast Fisher because she "was the only one who felt like a shy kid pretending to be confident". I also admired the decision to not cover up Fisher's skin with makeup, with her acne being visible. One of the many things teenagers are insecure is about is their skin. While it's normal for teenagers to get spots on their face, it doesn't prevent them from feeling ugly and covering themselves in makeup. I think that seeing a character with acne on screen will hopefully help people with skin conditions feel less insecure about themselves and realise that spots are natural.
The stand-out aspect of Eighth Grade is Fisher and her portrayal of Kayla. She perfectly captures that of a individual experiencing her early teenage years. Throughout the film, she gives advice in her YouTube videos on topics such as confidence and self image. I really liked this concept because, in these videos, we are given an insight into Kayla's thoughts and opinions. YouTube has become increasingly popular recently, with a lot of people trying to become famous through the video-sharing website. While the supporting cast all give solid performances, it's Fisher who leaves a lasting impression as Kayla.
Eighth Grade captures society's obsession with social media. Burnham had originally intended for the characters to communicate through Facebook, however, Fisher said that "No one uses Facebook", which ended up being a line in the film. This lead to popular social media sites such as Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter being used frequently. While I don't think social media is necessarily a bad thing, I do think that our obsession with it has gotten out of control and Burnham shows this. In a scene where Kayla is having dinner with her father, Mark (Josh Hamilton), she has her headphones in and is scrolling endlessly through her phone. Mark tries to make conversation with her, however, Kayla keeps getting annoyed at being interrupted. Kayla and Mark's relationship is based on Burnham's relationship with his mother. I think that a lot of parents and their children will be able to relate to this scene. The heavy use of social media is explored in Eighth Grade and shows how it affects both children and their parents.
Another important topic Burnham includes in Eighth Grade is anxiety, which he has struggled with. I really respected him for featuring a character with anxiety as it's something that affects a lot of us. Unfortunately, there's a stigma surrounding mental health, with a lot of people feeling too ashamed to speak out about it. Many sufferers also feel alone in their struggles, however, I think that seeing a character experiencing an anxiety attack will reassure them and help them feel less alone.
Eighth Grade succeeds in capturing the realities of being a teenager and it’s really refreshing to see. Growing up, I watched films such as High School Musical, Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story, which, despite all being set in high school, set unrealistic expectations for me and what my teenage years were going to be like. I think that I would have love to seen a film like Eighth Grade that depicts middle/high school in a more realistic way. I’m sure that those who found their early teen years awkward will appreciate Eighth Grade and I can imagine those who are around the same age as Kayla will find her an easy character to relate to. It’s disappointing to see that Eighth Grade has received a 15 rating, meaning it can only be watched by those aged 15 and over, as the content isn’t explicit and doesn’t feature any content that younger viewers can’t already access on the Internet. Hopefully, despite the age restriction, those who are the same age as Kayla will be able to watch Eighth Grade when it’s released on DVD.
With so many coming of age films being released recently, including Moonlight, Lady Bird and Mid90s, it can be hard to create one that tells an original story and features an interesting protagonist. Fortunately, Eighth Grade succeeds with both, especially the latter. Fisher gives an authentic performance as Kayla. She understands what her character is going through and makes her a interesting individual.
Overall Eighth Grade captures the realities of life in your early teens and features a stand out performance from Elsie Fisher.
8/10
Eighth Grade may be one of the best films about being a teenager. What I found most refreshing about Burnham's feature is how realistic it feels. Most films that are set before or during high school star actors who are significantly older than the appropriate age. For example, Rachel McAdams was in her mid-20s when portraying Regina George in the comedy, Mean Girls, and Olivia Newton-John was almost 30 when she performed as Sandy in the classic 1978 musical, Grease. While both actors gave solid performances in their roles, they were unconvincing as teenagers.
What I also liked about Eighth Grade was Burnham's decision to cast actors who were the appropriate age. At the time of filming, Fisher had just graduated from the eighth grade. Burnham cast Fisher because she "was the only one who felt like a shy kid pretending to be confident". I also admired the decision to not cover up Fisher's skin with makeup, with her acne being visible. One of the many things teenagers are insecure is about is their skin. While it's normal for teenagers to get spots on their face, it doesn't prevent them from feeling ugly and covering themselves in makeup. I think that seeing a character with acne on screen will hopefully help people with skin conditions feel less insecure about themselves and realise that spots are natural.
The stand-out aspect of Eighth Grade is Fisher and her portrayal of Kayla. She perfectly captures that of a individual experiencing her early teenage years. Throughout the film, she gives advice in her YouTube videos on topics such as confidence and self image. I really liked this concept because, in these videos, we are given an insight into Kayla's thoughts and opinions. YouTube has become increasingly popular recently, with a lot of people trying to become famous through the video-sharing website. While the supporting cast all give solid performances, it's Fisher who leaves a lasting impression as Kayla.
Eighth Grade captures society's obsession with social media. Burnham had originally intended for the characters to communicate through Facebook, however, Fisher said that "No one uses Facebook", which ended up being a line in the film. This lead to popular social media sites such as Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter being used frequently. While I don't think social media is necessarily a bad thing, I do think that our obsession with it has gotten out of control and Burnham shows this. In a scene where Kayla is having dinner with her father, Mark (Josh Hamilton), she has her headphones in and is scrolling endlessly through her phone. Mark tries to make conversation with her, however, Kayla keeps getting annoyed at being interrupted. Kayla and Mark's relationship is based on Burnham's relationship with his mother. I think that a lot of parents and their children will be able to relate to this scene. The heavy use of social media is explored in Eighth Grade and shows how it affects both children and their parents.
Another important topic Burnham includes in Eighth Grade is anxiety, which he has struggled with. I really respected him for featuring a character with anxiety as it's something that affects a lot of us. Unfortunately, there's a stigma surrounding mental health, with a lot of people feeling too ashamed to speak out about it. Many sufferers also feel alone in their struggles, however, I think that seeing a character experiencing an anxiety attack will reassure them and help them feel less alone.
Eighth Grade succeeds in capturing the realities of being a teenager and it’s really refreshing to see. Growing up, I watched films such as High School Musical, Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story, which, despite all being set in high school, set unrealistic expectations for me and what my teenage years were going to be like. I think that I would have love to seen a film like Eighth Grade that depicts middle/high school in a more realistic way. I’m sure that those who found their early teen years awkward will appreciate Eighth Grade and I can imagine those who are around the same age as Kayla will find her an easy character to relate to. It’s disappointing to see that Eighth Grade has received a 15 rating, meaning it can only be watched by those aged 15 and over, as the content isn’t explicit and doesn’t feature any content that younger viewers can’t already access on the Internet. Hopefully, despite the age restriction, those who are the same age as Kayla will be able to watch Eighth Grade when it’s released on DVD.
With so many coming of age films being released recently, including Moonlight, Lady Bird and Mid90s, it can be hard to create one that tells an original story and features an interesting protagonist. Fortunately, Eighth Grade succeeds with both, especially the latter. Fisher gives an authentic performance as Kayla. She understands what her character is going through and makes her a interesting individual.
Overall Eighth Grade captures the realities of life in your early teens and features a stand out performance from Elsie Fisher.
8/10
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