mid90s

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, vintage hip hop (Wu-Tang Clan, Tupac et al) and Goodfellas are just three examples of things from the 90’s we should be thankful for and all show up in Jonah Hill’s directorial debut: mid90s.

This is a long-in-the-works passion project for Hill, clearly long thought over and thoroughly and unashamedly independent.

Don’t expect any comedy cameos here or pandering to fans of his other work. This is the dramatic, coming-of-age tale of 13-year-old Stevie, whose life is flipped-turned-upside-down by skateboarding.

It’d be interesting to know just how autobiographical this story is but it’d certainly appear influenced by Hill’s life.

He shoots entirely in grainy 16mm and has a methodical eye, careful with shot selection and choosing his moments to impress with a more fancy piece of cinematography.

The script is, to be expected, razor-sharp with some astounding sequences (an early argument with a police officer being one example), some laugh-out-loud moments and poignant life lessons.

The five friends that make up Stevie’s group are thoroughly authentic with naturalised conversation (a fact helped by the hiring of skateboarders for these roles rather than actors.)

It’s a very relatable story detailing how one’s friends become your surrogate family, how a long summer can distract from things at home, how a vocation or a passion can lift you out of the gutter and literally save a life.

Any 90’s kid will find a lot of nostalgia to pour over from a soundtrack for the ages (props to Hill here and also to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross who embellish the film with original pieces), to the aforementioned Easter Eggs of classic 90’s media and to the plentiful skating scenes which will tickle anyone who’s attempted (badly) to stand atop a board without falling over, or whoever loaded up a copy of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater on their PlayStation 2.

It won’t be for everyone, it cuts hard and is surprisingly brutal at times. It’s unflinching, honest and Hill deserves great credit for telling this story the way he does.

Hopefully, a low-budget starting point for more to come.

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