"Eighth Grade" Movie Review
Eighth grade is a challenging time for most teens. For Kayla, the main character of Bo Burnham's Eighth Grade, this is a time to learn more about what makes you, you, as she chronicles her observations and understanding about herself on Youtube, ending each video with the slang term, "gucciiii".
What Eighth Grade does a phenomenal job of is accurately capturing what eighth grade looks like now, inundated with teens taking selfies, watching Youtube tutorials, and vlogging. But in following Kayla's final week of middle school, the film tackles difficult subjects like body image, single parenting, and sex, without being crude or obnoxious. In fact, the film has a genuine and authentic nature to it.
Most of that authenticity can be attributed to Elsie Fisher's excellent performance. The way she stammers through her vlog videos, or how she interacts with the "cool kids", or even how she communicates with her dad feels so familiar with how the average teenager would engage in these situations.
Between Fisher's solid performance, and Burnham proving himself as a serious filmmaker, Eighth Grade is a film full of blossoming talent. This is a film teens and parents can both learn from and enjoy.
Until next time, Gucciiii.
Acting and Casting - 2 | Visual Effects and Editing - 2 | Story and Message - 2 | Entertainment Value - 2 | Music Score and Soundtrack - 1 | Reviewer's Preference - 2 | What does this mean?