There were many ways “Good Boys” could go wrong, from over-reliance on the shock value of tweens dropping F-bombs, to kids who can’t act, to recycled “American Pie” gags. But this latest entry from writers Gene Stupnitsky (who also directs) and Lee Eisenberg – the writers of the underrated “Bad Teacher” (2011) – turns out to be both the raunchiest and cutest comedy of the year.
And most impressively, it’s something we hadn’t seen before. Granted, “Stand By Me” and “The Goonies” – and yes, “Stranger Things,” a term that an older kid insults this film’s tween trio with – are in this ballpark. But those are attempts to accurately portray middle-school life. “Good Boys” mixes in a layer of absurdity that alters the flavor into something spicier.
It’s about three best friends – Jacob Tremblay’s Max, Keith L. Williams’ Lucas and Brady Noon’s Thor – on the cusp of sixth grade. The film’s audience is adults, as the R rating attests, but Stupnitsky and Eisenberg haven’t forgotten what it’s like to be a tween. The trio, who calls themselves the Bean Bag Boys, are scared that if they go to the skate park, older kids will force them to do drugs.
Max, Lucas and Thor have half-knowledge of adult things and fill in the rest with assumptions and misunderstandings. To them, someone who drinks alcohol is “an alcoholic,” and it’s the coolest thing to be. If they sell their rare CCG card for $600, they’ll be “millionaires.” A dislocated shoulder can be cured by slamming it into a solid object, WWE style.
The trio’s lack of knowledge of sex toys, even as they use them for various other purposes, is hilarious and completely adorable.
Additionally, the writers know what it’s like to be a middle-schooler in 2019, maybe from asking the young actors. PC culture’s emphasis on consent in any act with a woman has filtered down to the kids, and has been morphed and twisted (“You shouldn’t call a woman ANYTHING!” Lucas tween-splains in horror). An anti-bullying patrol – full of the geekiest kids — roams the school grounds. The trio needs to get to the mall, which is a longer trek than they’ve ever made: 4 miles; pretty much unreachable.
“Good Boys” adopts many coming-of-age concepts from “American Graffiti” (1973) and the racy comedies that have defined the teen genre since “American Pie” (1999). By simply splicing those tropes into a movie about sixth-graders, it would’ve been funny but one-note.
The writers never forget that these kids are 12, and that their attempts at being cool could lead to tears at the flip of a switch. That’s why “Good Boys” clicks.
The movie is impeccably cast, with Tremblay (“Room”) as the experienced anchor of the Bean Bag Boys. Max has friends-since-kindergarten chemistry with his two buds: talented singer Thor, who worries about coming off as a “try-hard” if he signs up for the musical; and Lucas, who is sometimes mistaken for a college student but who is in the least hurry to grow up.
Max is experiencing “romantic” feelings toward Brixlee (Millie Davis), the “love of his life.” (Intentional or not, the film finds a subtle layer of humor with the kids’ names. See also cool kid Soren; bad boy beer-sipper Atticus; and another prospective girlfriend, Scout.)
Molly Gordon and Midori Francis, as “old girls” (they’re in high school) Hannah and Lily, are the comedic straightwomen; the more mature teens are baffled by the boys’ behavior even as they try to regain their drug stash. (Anti-drug Lucas refuses to return it.) Josh Caras makes a mark as Benji, the college drug dealer who we’d hate in a serious movie but who is spot-on ridiculous here. Reliable comedy veterans Will Forte, Lil Rel Howery and Retta play parents.
“Booksmart” got a lot of attention this year for putting girls in the traditional “young people behaving absurdly” roles, but I had seen that before and didn’t find it all that original or funny. By keeping the coming-of-age gags and lowering the ages – yet also remembering these sixth-graders are playing out of their league — “Good Boys” truly refreshes this genre.