Good Boys

Drug deals, sex dolls, attacks on frat boys, sex swings, beer theft and sex toys are just some of the things you can expect to see in Good Boys, a comedy detailing a few days in the life of some sixth-grade 12 year olds.

That might seem like an odd concoction until you look at the team behind this movie which features various 'The Office US' alumni as well as Jonah Hill and the creators of Superbad: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.

Pitching Good Boys as a younger Superbad is a good descriptor and it hits with a high gag rate balancing both visual and written humour. Skewing younger does not mean we get any less of the X-rated stuff, with gross-out gags and swears galore, but it does enable a shuffle of the usual jokes with our lead trio (the adorably named Beanbag Boys) hilariously getting a few important facts wrong about the opposite sex as well as a great recurring joke about those pesky child-safe caps we get on things.

We get thrust straight into the action with little to no build up and the film plays out almost as an extended scene as the boys get into increasingly heightened scenarios as they ostensibly attempt to replace a drone and learn about kissing. It’s a largely scattergun approach which sticks the landing for the most part, although it feels a little fast-paced and zippy and, perhaps, could have benefited from a longer edit and opening character intro’.

Jacob Trembley (yes, that’s the same sweet kid we saw in Room effing and blinding) channels Michael Cera and Brady Noon and Keith L Williams ably support him in three of the best child actor performances you’ll see. The lead trio are funny and sweet which is a winning combination but the film is missing that wildcard, extra, element of a McLovin.

There are some winning cameos unfortunately not giving the screen time they deserve. Will Forte and, particularly, Stephen Merchant are excellent and hilarious but their sequences don’t last nearly long enough. Instead, too much time is given to a drug-based subplot which, whilst relevant to the wider story and featuring the excellent Midori Francis and Molly Gordon, feels a tad extreme and far-fetched.

Everything ties together nicely in the end though with a brilliant last quarter. It sits with other recent school-age comedies like Eighth Grade (and Stranger Things, which gets lovingly referenced here) in being more aware, broader and more poignant than before but, crucially, still retaining the funnies.

There’s some cracking music, which adds to the comedy in parts, a hilarious scary little sister and a break up montage for the ages in a film that, despite the rudeness, feels wholesome and eminently lovable.

It’s not super bad then, but isn't quite Superbad.

3 stars ***