Screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber have carved out a niche by making movies in familiar genres but with a fresh perspective. “(500) Days of Summer” (2009) was a romance movie with two rare traits: It captured the heartbreak from the guy’s perspective, and it didn’t end with the couple living happily ever after. Their new movie, “The Spectacular Now,” is a teen romance that tries to avoid clichés and tell it the way it really goes.
It achieves its overarching goal — sort of. Director James Ponsoldt shoots Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller without a lot of makeup. They often look slightly unkempt, sometimes even sweaty. They’re not as fresh-scrubbed as a CW or ABC Family couple. However, Woodley — who actually stars in an ABC Family series for her day job — is naturally pretty, and Teller looks like a stereotypical high school stud. They aren’t exactly plucked from an average-looking batch of young people.
But that’s OK; I’m accustomed to Hollywood casting gorgeous people in the roles of troubled outcasts — it’s a running insanity that society has agreed to play along with because we’d rather look at attractive people. What matters more is that the performances are great. We already knew Woodley from her breakthrough in “The Descendants.” Here, she plays a sci-fi and manga-loving high schooler who doesn’t see herself as the type of girl that guys notice (ugh; but like I say, I’ll go with it). Teller is an alcoholic and a natural Casanova; however, he’s actually a nice guy rather than someone who just learned the rules of the game but is emotionally deadened (even though he tries to deaden himself through booze).
While the film — based on a young-adult novel by Tim Tharp — starts off dangerously close to Nicholas Sparks territory, it ultimately finds its identity in the “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” and “Perks of Being a Wallflower” class. It’s delicately paced, it looks great (it’s shot in Athens, Ga., and I think the film is supposed to be set in that vicinity), and it’s all backed by soothing indie music strains (unfortunately, there was no soundtrack compiled for purchase).
The film focuses tightly on the connection between Sutter and Aimee, with some wonderfully intimate scenes (and one uncomfortably long sex scene where I half expected my parents to walk into the theater at any moment). They’re both sheltered in many ways, but they learn from each other to become more well-rounded. He tells her to go to college in Philly and not let her mother hold her back. She tells him to go visit his estranged dad and not let his mom stop him.
But the supporting cast provides the benchmarks. Kyle Chandler devastatingly plays against our Coach Taylor expectations as Sutter’s alcoholic dad. Jennifer Jason Leigh plays Sutter’s mom; Bob Odenkirk is his boss at a men’s clothing store; and Brie Larson (“21 Jump Street”) is his on-again, off-again girlfriend. Ultimately, “The Spectacular Now” is about how these positive influences in Sutter’s life battle against the shadow and mythology of his absent father.
“The Spectacular Now” isn’t as thematically layered as “(500) Days of Summer,” as adventurous as “Nick and Norah” or as stylized as “Perks.” It’s more of a straightforward, intimate character piece, but thanks to the stellar performances, it’s certainly one worth seeing.