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Superbad (2007)
In this Greg Mottola-directed
raunchy teen, coming-of-age, sex comedy (from producer Judd Apatow,
and with a semi-autobiographical script written by Seth Rogen and
Evan Goldberg when they were teens themselves) - it was regarded
as the Millennium's new American Pie
(1999). It paid homage to American Graffiti (1973) and Fast
Times at Ridgemont High (1982); it was a tremendously funny
and popular hit during the summer of 2007 (but without the
requisite nudity of this genre).
The film was similarly obsessed with male teen anxieties
and sexual obsessions, including being genitalia-focused, vulgar
and sex-crazed about getting laid before leaving for college.
- the two main characters-buddies were two outcast,
nerdy, inseparable, socially-awkward, best-friend high-school seniors
at Clark County's Secondary School, with only two weeks left in
school until graduation, who were still awkwardly growing-up:
- Seth (Jonah Hill), chubby, talkative and
assertive, overweight, porn-lover, with an obsession about
drawing penises or telling dirty jokes
- Evan (Michael Cera), slim and tall, more serious,
intellectual, and rational
- throughout much of the film, both Seth and Evan
were on a quest to give up their virginity to two female students,
Jules (Emma Stone) and Becca (Martha MacIsaac) respectively, to
impress them and get them drunk by providing the booze at Jules'
underaged graduation party
- in the opening sequence, the two talked with Evan's
mother Jane (Stacy Edwards), as she leaned forward and revealed
her chest to speak to them through the car window, about how they
would really miss each other next year by being split up. Evan
had been accepted to Dartmouth, while Seth would be attending the
local Junior college. As they drove off, Seth boldly noted to Evan: "I
am truly jealous that you got to suck on those tits when you were
a baby."
- the two unpopular guys often talked about scoring
with girls, and dreamed of sexual experiences in their future,
while usually going without dates, party invites or relationships
- in class, Evan was caught absent-mindedly staring
at classmate Becca's breasts - he was obviously infatuated with
her, but awkwardly avoided her questions about why he never seemed
to attend any parties
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In Class - Evan Caught Staring at Classmate Becca's
Breasts
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- in Seth's home economics class, when he was paired
up with Jules (Emma Stone), she invited Seth and Evan to her graduation
party that night at her house. When their nerdy and dorky friend
Fogell (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) met with them shortly later and
bragged about going to obtain a false identification card, Seth was
pleased: "You could buy us booze now."
- at the school lunch table, Seth explained to Evan
why he didn't have a good opinion of Evan's 'crush' Becca. In a flashback
to describe how he was traumatized at a young age, he embarrassingly
divulged to Evan his obsessive childhood habit of artfully drawing
male genitalia: "Here it comes. When I was a little kid, I kinda
had this problem. And it's not even that big of a deal. Something
like 8 percent of kids do it, but whatever. For some reason, I don't
know why, I would just kinda sit around all day and draw pictures
of dicks."
Seth as An Overweight 4th Grader Drawing Genitalia
Pictures
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- Seth told about how in 4th grade as a 10 year-old
young boy (Casey Margolis), his neighboring seatmate Becca (Laura
Marano) happened to see one of his pictures (a "real big,
veiny triumphant bastard" he called it) that he was finishing
up, when the drawing was knocked onto the floor (Evan was astonished
by the story: "You hit Becca's foot with your dick?").
She screamed, ran from her desk and out of the classroom, and reported
him to the school principal. The incident traumatized him with
the added revelation that his Ghostbusters lunch box was
a "treasure chest" full of a variety of dick drawings.
Seth recalled being disciplined by the school: "They literally
made me stop eating food that was shaped like dicks. No hot dogs,
no popsicles. Do you know how many foods are shaped like dicks?
The best kinds."
- Evan called Seth's obsession "really messed up...super
gay!" and left the table. In the school hallway, Seth bragged
to Jules about how he was getting a fake ID, and went ahead to promise
that he would bring alcohol to her party. Jules was pleased and half-joked:
"You scratch our backs, we'll scratch yours." Seth inappropriately
joked back: "Well, Jules, the funny thing about my back is that
it's located on my cock." Seth felt he had scored and was already
anticipating sleeping and having sex with Jules. Following Seth's lead,
Evan further boasted to Becca that he could provide her with a bottle
of Goldslick Vodka (with gold flakes in it) at the party
- that afternoon, after Fogell acquired a fake ID (for
Hawaii) to purchase alcohol, he explained to his pals why he had
changed his name to "McLovin", and they derided him about
how awful his ID was: "It was between that or Muhammed.... Muhammed
is the most commonly used name on Earth"; Seth vehemently complained: "You
look like a future pedophile in this picture, number 1. Number 2:
it doesn't even have a first name, it just says McLovin!...Fogell,
this ID says that you're 25 years old. Why wouldn't you just put
21, man?...No one's McLovin. McLovin's never existed because that's
a made up dumb F--KIN' FAIRY TALE NAME, YOU F--K!"
- Seth believed that Fogell would fail to be able to
buy liquor for the party with his fake ID, so he determinedly took
drastic measures by entering a Good Shopper Store to steal bottles
of booze. He experienced a number of fantasy scenarios (success when
posing as 22 years old to buy $80 dollars worth of liquor, help from
an elderly lady, and a confrontation with a security guard who slashed
his throat) before leaving empty-handed. It was now Fogell's turn
to enter TJ's Liquor Store and test out his false ID.
- outside as they waited, Seth chastised Evan for being
prepared by bringing a condom and spermicidal lube ("That wasn't
the plan! We had a plan! I can't believe you did that without even
consulting me about it!"). They also spotted a classmate Carey
Hutchins who had switched schools. Reportedly, she had breast reduction
surgery, to Seth's amazement: "What?! Making her tits smaller?
That's like slapping God across the face for giving you a gorgeous
gift"; Evan explained: "She had back problems, man. And
it's not just making them smaller. They completely reshape them.
They make 'em more supple and symmetrical... now that she can jog
comfortably, she's in the best shape she's ever..."
- meanwhile, Fogell/McLovin succeeded in illegally purchasing
alcohol from clerk Mindy (Erica Vittina Phillips), but became involved
in a store hold-up and was punched in the face by the hooded robber,
who grabbed cash from the register and fled. When a pair of humorous
but inept and talkative cops arrived: Officer Slater (Bill Hader)
and Officer Michaels (Seth Rogen), Seth and Even feared that Fogell
was going to be arrested. They were unaware that the cops agreed
to drive him to the party - and proceeded for much of the evening
to do a "ride-along" while blasting the police siren to
barrel through red lights, drinking after a call to Bailey's Bar & Grill,
taking breathalyzer tests, and practice target-shooting at a stop sign
- in the store's parking lot, Seth panicked with Evan
about their lost money and was hit (but uninjured) by a car backing
up and driven by Francis (Joe Lo Truglio). In exchange for not reporting
the accident to the police, they agreed to be taken to another house
party with alcohol, where the angry home owner Mark (Kevin Corrigan)
beat up Francis outdoors. Seth ended up 'dirty dancing' with Mark's
drunken, menstruating fiancee Jacinda (Carla Gallo), causing a "period
blood" stain on his pants, while Evan was cornered in a room
with frightening cocaine-snorting thugs, where he was forced to sing
The Guess Who's "These Eyes." Before Seth could escape with two laundry detergent
jugs from the basement filled with beer, the jealous Mark confronted
him with the blood stain, and a brawl broke out.
- as the two ran from the party, Seth accused Evan of "bailing"
on him. They experienced an intense falling out when Seth complained
about how they weren't going to the same college together. Evan
hurt Seth's feelings by accusing him of wasting his time for three
years: "I'm not going to let you slow me down any more, Seth....I've
wasted the last three years of my life sitting around talking bulls--t
with you, man. Instead of chasing girls and making friends, I've just
sat around wasting all my time with you. And now, because of you, I'm
going to college a f--king friendless virgin." And then coincidentally
as they argued on a deserted street, the cruiser with the two officers
and McLovin' drove by and Seth was hit again. When McLovin' recognized
his two friends, they all took off on foot, ended up on a bus, but
were thrown out by the bus driver after accidentally shattering the
bottle on Goldslick Vodka on the floor of the bus
Intense Falling-Out Between Seth and Evan
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Three Guys Reunited With Booze - Heading Toward
the Party
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- the trio walked three blocks to Jules' party - with
some of the stolen beer and the booze purchased by Fogell. As they
walked up to the party house, Fogell and Evan admitted to Seth
that they were going to be roommates at Dartmouth, upsetting Seth
even further: ("...because you're a backstabber and you lied
to your best friend, and you only want to hang out with Fogell,
and you just don't care anymore?")
- the drunken Seth was the hit of the party-goers with
the booze and stories of the night's adventures. He approached non-drinker
Jules for kisses and sex, but she rejected him due to his alcoholic
stupor. Meanwhile, a "smashed" Becca offered a b-job and
sex to Evan in Jules' bedroom ("I want you to be my first, I
want you inside me, just go with it"), but he respectfully declined
due to her physical condition - and then she threw up. The only one
to semi-succeed with a partner was Fogell who spent time with attractive,
red-haired foreign exchange student Nicola (Aviva Farber). Later,
a saddened Seth confessed to Jules that his dream was to have her
as his "girlfriend" in the summer, but he had failed. And
then he accidentally passed out, fell forward and head-butted Jules,
giving her a black eye.
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Drunken Becca's Seduction of Evan Before Throwing
Up
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- the party ended due to the arrival of Fogell's two
cop friends due to a noise complaint about the underage drinking
party. To save his passed-out friend Evan, Seth carried him out
of the house. Upstairs, the cops interrupted Fogell in a bedroom
having sex with Nicola (he was technically no longer a virgin!),
and confessed that they had played along with him the entire time
- "We know you're not 25, man. We're not idiots, McLovin." They
also apologized for 'blocking his c--k' - and to make it up to
him, the cops 'fake'-arrested Fogell to increase his 'bad-ass'
reputation with his schoolmates, who witnessed him being dragged
away. After driving off, they did wheelies and donuts with the
cruiser and eventually destroyed the car by crashing it and setting
it on fire with a flaming alcohol bottle (Molotov cocktail) - and
Fogell was allowed to take gun shots at the burning vehicle. Later,
they would claim that a crack-head stole the cruiser.
- Seth and Evan returned to Evan's house, where they
had an old-fashioned sleep-over with sleeping bags. Seth admitted
that he had actually known three weeks earlier that Evan and Fogell
were going to be college roommates. Evan confessed: "I don't
wanna live with Fogell. I never wanted to live with him....I'm afraid
to live with strangers. I can't do it." The two unabashedly
stated their lasting love for each other, and reconciled as best
friends.
- the next day, Seth and Evan met up with Jules and
Becca at the mall, where they all remained friends and went shopping
together. Seth joined Jules to buy cover-up for her black-eye, while
Evan and Becca joined up to buy comforters
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(l to r): Evan (Michael Cera) and Seth (Jonah Hill)
Evan's Mother Jane (Stacy Edwards)
In Home Economics Class, Seth Paired with Classmate Jules
(Emma Stone)
Seth's Confession to Evan at Lunchtime About Why He Hated
Becca - Due to His Revealed Obsession with Drawing Male Genitalia
Becca's Shock at Seth's Obsessive Drawings of Male Genitalia
Dressed Up to Attend Jules' Party
Seth's Fantasy: A Slashed Throat When Attempting to Steal Booze
Suspicious Liquor Store Clerk Mindy (Erica Vittina Phillips)
Fogell's Nervous Purchase of Booze - Showing His ID
Officers in Liquor Store - Evan and Seth Assumed Fogell Was Being Arrested
Officers and McLovin/Fogell Drinking at Bar
House-Party: Seth 'Dirty Dancing' at House Party with Menstruating Jacinda
House-Party: Evan Cornered in a Room with Cocaine-Snorting Bad Guys -
Forced to Sing "These Eyes"
Drunken Seth Attempting Kiss with Resistant Jules
Fogell with Nicola in Bedroom
Cops With Fogell Admitting They Were Playing Along With Him
Evan and Seth Professing Their Best-Friend Love For Each Other
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