The Beautiful Ordinary

So there was this woman who went to film school and saw "Dazed and Confused" and decided that she could make a movie just like it. And she tried. And she failed. But you can learn something about what makes a real film if you watch them one right after another. Oh wait IMDb thinks all movies deserve at least ten lines of text. This one doesn't but here goes.

The music was almost interesting. The young actors tried their best but unfortunately when there is no plot it is hard for the characters to develop. Many have gone on to act in real movies so I guess this was some kind of learning experience for them. Actually, the most impressive thing about this movie was the ability of the filmmaker to get so many talented and pretty young people to be in the film to begin with. Perhaps she has a future as a producer. She would be much better off if she let someone else write the script, direct the movie and come up with an better idea then let's rip off a mediocre Linkletter movie.

Remember the Daze reminded me a lot of Degrassi: The Next Generation, only with more emphasis on getting stoned. It probably isn't an accurate portrayal of most high school experiences in 1999, and certainly not of my high school when I graduated in 2005, but it walks the line between being realistic and unbelievable well enough to make it quite interesting to watch. It's also easier to take seriously because it takes on more of an indie film feel than a stoner flick. The cast members all showed great promise in their future acting careers and while they chose a few people who've been in big films before (Alexa Vega, Khleo Thomas), it was equally refreshing to see new faces and talent. The dynamic of the cast was superb, despite how many people were involved. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised, it was much better than I expected it to be based on its description.

This movie was phenomenal for the audience who can understand it on a deeper level (Think "The Fountain"). Yes, on the surface it seems like another "Dazed and Confused", but its very accurate to its 1999 time period, and the sex and drugs are a key element to what the movie's about, because the sexual desires and drugs are what bring everybody's different social groups together. The reason why some people might hate this movie is because it isn't plot driven. It's instead character driven, and the interesting thing about it is that it doesn't really have lead characters, it just has an outstanding ensemble cast of some rising stars like Khleo Thomas, Melonie Diaz, Lyndsy Fonseca, Amber Heard, Alexa Vega and Chris Marquette, and some newcomers like Charles Chen, Shahine Ezell, and Katrina Begin. I agree with the other commenter that they did an excellent job with the casting, which is very important in a character-driven film. I disagree however, with the comments that Jess Manafort's script tries too hard to be filled with "funny" stoner jokes. There's so much going on in this film, there's so many different characters leading different lifestyles that end up colliding, that for each thing you may hate about the film there will always be something you love. Amber Heard and Melonie Diaz stole the show for the female casting, and Chris Marquette and Charles Chen had to be my favorite male characters. Like I said in the beginning, if you watch this movie on the surface it may seem stupid and old. If you watch it with more concentration to find a deeper meaning, it becomes an excellent teenager film about the key to blending the high school cliques so everybody fits in. I highly recommend it.

I have to say, that when i started watching it, I was expecting a typical teenager film with a few laughs and meaningless ideas. However, i was completely surprised to find myself with a great cast with a lot of young upcoming actors and some new faces which i found were also good. The fact that this film is not centered only on one person's life and stories, but on a group of teenagers who are on the brink of becoming adults, is enthralling. It shows us how different groups, races and sexuality are not important in 1999, where drugs and alcohol are a big factor in teenager lives. Furthermore, i feel that, being a teenager myself, i can relate to the insecurities these teenagers feel and at the same time have a laugh at the film as it is kept pretty real. There really are some funny parts! This film takes in a lot of ideas and thoughts which can be reflected on. It is not just another teenager film. It is well written and well worth watching.

Remember the Daze is an authentic look at high school students on the brink of graduation. It reveals the trepidations and excitement that students feel at this very important juncture in their life. The middle class life style will connect to a large segment of the population, but some will see it as how the "rich" live, especially because they all seem to be driving cars. However, the class distinctions are minor in the film much as they were in "American Graffiti." One of the biggest differences in "Graffiti" was that the most daring thing a kid could do then was to get an adult to buy whiskey for him in a liquor store. Some parents may be shocked and horrified to see the promiscuous use of mind altering drugs. On the other hand, it might be healthy for them to get an authentic look at what's going on.