Freeview film of the day : thursday 22nd of october

Dazed And Confused (1993 98min.) [Film4 1.25am friday &+1}

Comedy drama. Texas 1976: at the end of the summer term, high-school seniors and freshmen get ready for a big party in the woods later that night.

Among the innumerable US High School movies made down the years there's a long tradition of the "one last night" sub-genre : the best known of these being George Lucas' American Graffiti (1973).
It's not too much of an overstatement to say that Dazed And Confused deserves to be as popular, as widely known and as highly thought of as its illustrious predecessor.

It's time frame is a single night as the senior year celebrate/fret about leaving school, the new intake worry about what the future holds for them and various hangers-on and siblings interfere with the plans of all of the characters.

It's written and directed by Richard Linklater, hot from the success of his debut feature Slacker. If you've seen any of his later work (School Of Rock, Before Sunrise/Sunset, Boyhood etc.) you'll already know what a talented screenwriter and director he is.

Here he marshals a large ensemble cast and moves them around the story with skill and ease. Like Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982) this is no rosy, nostalgic look back at a recent school year - in among the laughs and chuckles (and there are plenty of those) there are real moments of pathos and drama, especially as the Seniors realise the reality of their changed circumstances.

The terrific young cast is lead by Jason London and Rory Cochrane, neither of whom really fulfilled the potential they show here; both are outstanding, handling the changing emotions of their evening with charm, wit and real depth.
They're supported by a large catch from the young Hollywood talent pool of the time : Milla Jovovich, Matthew McConaughey, Parker Posey, Ben Affleck and Adam Goldberg all pop up at various points and the whole thing is soundtracked by some great examples of seventies pop-rock (Alice Cooper, Kiss, War, Dylan's Hurricane etc.)

Brittle and fragile in places, laugh out loud funny in others this is a tremendously well made and acted film that deserves a much, much wider audience and a critical re-evauation to match.

Wonderful.