Dreadfully Boring

Brilliant and touching

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

The movie runs out of plot and jokes well before the end of a two-hour running time, long for a light comedy.

Captures the 70's classic rock scene. Acting is superb, clothes/hair/stylization is very accurate. If you grew up during this decade, you'll relate to this movie easily.

What happened? I first saw this movie maybe 20-ish years ago. I loved it! I saw it again today, and I'm horrified! First off, let me say this is a well written and well directed movie. Richard Linklater is one of the best storytellers in the industry. He certainly knows how to capture and interpret the ebb and flow of real life. The different emotions his films bring out in those who not only watch, but act in them, are genuine. Clearly, Linklater can successfully reproduce the feelings and era in which his films take place. Dazed and Confused is set in 1976. I can't remember the clothes without looking at old family photos. I can't remember the music without YouTube and Spotify. Looking through some of the user reviews posted 10-plus years ago by those who went through high school in the 1970's comment on how accurate this movie is. Really?In short: Dazed and Confused (mostly) follows some high school freshmen as they try to escape getting paddled (spanked) by the seniors, and in some cases adults not even in school. A sort of "right-of-passage" to higher learning (hazing). There'll be guns, lots and lots of weed, and fights. There will be blood. Then there's Matthew McConaughey's character, Wooderson ("Alright, alright, alright."), a (much older) high school dropout who's looking to get back in. His intentions aren't all that noble, though. "That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age," he says while noticing a female freshman (9th grader). The boys flirt with teachers, and occasionally have a sexual remark about a fellow classmate, perhaps it accompanies a slap on the ass as they walk past. WTF?Am I really so old that this whole thing horrifies me?I know it's only movie. Certainly, Dazed and Confused is a little deeper than that, as my personal rating obviously reflects. It's about adolescence. It's about finding one's own way. It's about battling the trials and tribulations of growing up. It's all relative, and in this case, it's coming of age in 1976. Some of us lived through what this movie portrays, others, like me, went to high school in the mid-1980's and experienced a different culture. It was lame and boring. But in 20-years we'll be watching movies about high school life in the 2010's. How alarmed will we be then?Be afraid. Be very afraid.Two things you'll LIKE about Dazed and Confused: 1) The nostalgia. 2) The emotions this movie will stir up.Two things you'll DISLIKE: 1) The emotions this movie will stir up. 2) The thought of wondering what your own children are up to in school.

What's a hangout movie? It's the kind of film where all of the characters feel like you know them. They were your friends in high school, friends you haven't seen in a long time. Dazed and Confused is that kind of movie. It doesn't have a big story, and it's not something to overanalyze in a film school discussion, it's just an awesome movie. It's all about high school in the 70's, and their standing in the social hierarchy. The jocks, the popular girls, the nerds, the hippies, the stoners and right in between you have Matthew McConaughey in his first role. Alright, Alright, Alright. We even have Ben Affleck in his debut role as the creep with the paddle. It's never really explained why he has such a fetish for spanking freshman boys, but it's assumed that's what bullies did back then. Odd. Don't forget about that soundtrack. It's as amazing as most 70's period piece films are.

A story of the battle between authority and youth in the 80s, this movie has a sound track as bombastic as its story line. While Linklater creates an exciting world filled with the problems of high school and middle school students, the film lacks meaning with muddled conflicts and low stakes from beginning to end. Worth a watch just to feel the accurate representation of the party life in the 80s, if that is what you are seeking. The characters are well-developed and likable, although I felt sorry for the lives they led, being given little in the ways of a life worth living. The acting becomes hard to believe at points, and with the exception of Ben Affleck and Matthew McConaughey, much was left to be desired from the cast. This can be a common problem when working with such a young cast, but the issue remains.