Block Party

The movie Blockers is a new spin on an old premise. On the surface, it's stamped from the same mold as countless other teen sex comedies, with a plot spurred in motion by three high school students who make a pact with one another to lose their virginities. From there, it takes two big departures. First, the teens are all female instead of male. Second, the real focus of the movie is on the parents who learn about the prom night pact and set out to stop it.

The changes count for a lot. It's not just a balancing of the scales, "girls can like sex too" move to have teen girls make the pact. It actually lets the movie mine some new comedic ground that's largely untouched by the movies that came before. And it's an even bigger twist to not have the parents be clueless figures at the periphery of the story. Putting them front and center actually makes for an entirely different movie.

Blockers is a bit slow getting started, which is a little odd as there really isn't that complicated a story to set up here. But it does pay off later, as the characters do matter here. Each of the three teens has her own unique character arc: one is looking to "go to the next level" with a long time boyfriend, one is just looking for a warm body to check off a box on the schedule of her life, and one is going along with the group to remain closeted as a lesbian.

Similarly, the three parents chasing their daughters each have their own angle. One is a life-long single mom afraid she's losing her connection to her baby girl, one is an overprotective father (whose wife actually doesn't agree with his attitude on the pact), and one is a father trying to be there in a way he hasn't since a bitter divorce. It's actually a rather carefully constructed narrative when you take a look at it. The characters aren't a simple framework for delivering jokes, they're actually a well-stocked toolbox for offering a range of perspectives.

But soon the movie does get up to speed, and it is primarily a comedy. There are hits and misses, of course, but more hits overall. The cast is led by Leslie Mann, John Cena, and Ike Barinholtz, and they make an effective comic trio. Some other reliable comic actors pop up throughout, including Hannibal Buress, June Diane Raphael, and (cast rather against his past comedic roles) Gary Cole.

I wasn't quite as taken with Blockers as I was recently with another comedy from earlier this year, Game Night. Still, it was enjoyable and fun. I give Blockers a B-. It's worth checking out if you're in the mood for something light and silly.