A Revolting Development

I missed it in the theater earlier this year, but I had some curiosity about the movie Youth in Revolt. It's the latest to star Michael Cera, Hollywood's go-to "gawky teen," but has a plot that (from the sound of it) was going to require him to stretch a little.

After meeting a soul mate who lives a long distance from the house where he lives with his mother, a teenage boy must rebel enough to get kicked out to go live with his father so that the two can be together. To accomplish this goal, he imagines up an alter ego -- a snooty, smoking Frenchman with a bad boy streak.

Michael Cera does play both roles, and I honestly can't decide if it's a brilliant performance, or if it underscores just how limited his range as an actor really is. This bad boy character he plays doesn't really come off as truly dangerous (even for the given context of a comedy film). He seems more like a really geeky kid's idea of what a bad boy would be like. And of course, that's exactly what the character is. So, like I said, I can't decide if this is wonderfully subtle acting from Michael Cera, or the limits of how "different" he can actually appear on screen.

What I am sure of is that there are a lot of other brilliant comic actors in the film. I had no idea just how deep the bench went until the opening credits were rolling. There's Jean Smart, Zach Galifianakis, Steve Buscemi, Fred Willard, Ray Liotta, and Justin Long. And not only do all of them bring the funny in their scenes, but the newcomer who plays the love interest, Portia Doubleday, is very funny and likable as well.

It's not a tears-streaming-down-your-face laugh riot, but I did like it. I rate it a B.