Mid90s Movie Review

Mid90s (2018)

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Written by: Jonah Hill
Directed by: Jonah Hill
Starring: Sunny Suljic, Katherine Waterston, Lucas Hedges, Na-kel Smith
Rated: R
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Plot
Stevie, a thirteen-year-old in 1990s-era Los Angeles, spends his summer balancing his troubled home life and a group of new friends that he meets at a Motor Avenue skate shop.

Verdict
This reminds me a bit of Eighth Grade in that it must be inspired by the writer/director's life. Mid90s doesn't zero in on the anxiety of the age, but self confidence is a big factor as Stevie has to confront how he was raised/trained with wanting to fit in with his friends. There's this push-pull as he's figuring out life. This captures very real feelings and emotions.
Watch it.

Review
This is one of those movies that feels a bit like a documentary. This has to be based on Jonah Hills life.

Stevie is thirteen and befriends a group of sixteen year olds. He learns a lot very fast, and the gulf between thirteen and sixteen is huge. Stevie feels the push and pull as he does things he knows aren't right, but he wants to fit in with his new cool friends. He has a place in the world, and while that may seem minuscule, it feels huge for Stevie. Stevie has been raised to show appreciation and respect, but Ruben tells him not to, that's it's not cool. Stevie doesn't feel right about that, but doesn't want to miss out on his new friends.

What it comes down to is that Ruben lacks confidence. Ray later tells Stevie to of course thank people. That's just good manners. Ray is a good person. He may hang out with the group, but he has the confidence to do his own thing. He doesn't care what it looks like. That's how faint the line is. If Stevie follows Ruben he'll get bad advice, if he follows Ray he'll get good advice. Stevie was willing to follow anyone just to have friends. That's dangerous for Stevie. These choices can dictate his entire life.

Sunny Suljic plays Stevie.

This movie has a lot of heart. Watching it I get the feeling this is more autobiography than fiction. This is real, and while it's only about the ups and downs of a thirteen year old, these events are huge at that age. The world feels small because you feel so huge at that age. The minutia feels crucial. I'm surprised I hadn't heard of this movie earlier.