Teenage Kicks

I could not stop watching it. The story line was incredible, the acting remarkable and very true to the reality of a struggling 17 year old trying to find where he fits in the world.

EXPLOSIVE AND HARD MASTERY OF RESILIENCE IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY... WITH TOUGH AND STRONG LOVE INCLUDED.

The poster fooled me. I thought it was just another ordinary film, from any director, from any country... but what a pleasant surprise I got!

This is an Australian film that shows us the daily life of a 17-year-old boy from an immigrant family living in Sydney, where he has his best friend. The same one he's secretly in love with. Okay. Anyone would say this is something super recycled in independent cinema worldwide, and I agree. But despite that, the way this overused subject was handled is what made the difference.

Larry Clark, are you there? Did you know that the Australian director of this film, Craig Borenham, paid tribute to you here? And what a tremendous tribute!

When I saw the film, I never doubted its foundation: the brutal and raw work of controversial American director Larry Clark. It's as if his entire body of work were summed up in this film. Of course, we have a free version of his work; the sordid, uncensored social explicitness of which he's so often accused, but here it was interpreted with respect and a unique and unrepeatable cadence.

The performances were sublime! Especially that of its protagonist: Miles Szanto. It was spectacular how he shaped a 17-year-old boy, marginalized by the society around him, crippled by so much romantic misunderstanding, who wanders the city lost, without light or determination, addicted to the physical, chemical, sexual, and romantic drug that, of all his addictions, is the chemical one he handles best. Something atypical that was achieved very well in this film.

I can already imagine that casting: finding someone to portray those characteristics must have been a titanic task. It's very similar to what the great Gus Van Sant did with River Phoenix in his operatic masterpiece My Own Private Idaho (USA, 1993), where the director drew inspiration for the character of Phoenix from Henry IV. This fact seemed obvious to me.

Australia hides hidden gems, such as the more contemporary Sunflowers (2023) and this film: Teenage Kicks. This proves that Australia has a lot to tell the world, but the experimental (bordering on arthouse) cinema that the film's director created isn't for everyone. Uncomfortable, visceral, raw (sometimes even indigestible) cinema is complex to make, but above all, to understand. And even more so if filmmakers are inspired by the work of unusual directors like Clark. This type of cinema, which avoids stereotypes and clichés so common today, is exotic, but worth seeing. Because it shows reality as it is. Without embellishments or sugarcoating (the film's ending won't be pleasant for many), this film, unlike the work being honored here, tells us that, despite all the dark and bitter circumstances, there is hope. The same hope that could be seen in another fantasy film, the German-Austrian film Die Mitte der Welt (2016; interestingly, the poster is similar to that of this film), and that there will always be good.

The title of my review is taken from the song "Antídoto y Veneno" by Eddie Santiago.

Now this is a movie that makes me proud to be an Aussie. I can not fault any actor in this movie from the main characters to support characters, even location shoots and cinematography. It is s a superb script, well written and directed however even with a great story and director if the cast were mediocre, so would the movie be however the actors in this gave 100%, one would wonder how they can score higher in their art. Special mentions to the two main characters, Miles Szanto and Daniel Webber, again I mention just two however all cast deserve a big 10 stars for their part as the whole movie rolls on with no pregnant pauses because of the support cast. Also the location people deserve a 10 as well. No this does not have wild and spectacular CGI but it needs none of it. It is a raw and gritty movie of the turbulence of Milos and his best friend Dan who is pulled into a world spiraling out of control and with little skill or worldly knowledge to deal with his best mate's issue. It is sad, happy and just a fantastic movie made so also because Aussie film makers find it hard to get funding and for a movie with Gay tendencies, even harder. I think I have given one 10 and that was because it deserved a higher ranking which I stated so in my write up, this deserves better than a 10. Congratulations to everyone involved.

The title "Teenage kicks" seems a strange choice for the kind of movie that this is, it sounds cheap and suggestive, something like a Larry Clark movie, while in fact it's an extremely serious, sincere and touching movie that really grabs you by the throat. It's about Mik, a young Australian boy from immigrant background, who has a very strained relationship with his parents, which deteriorates even more when his older brother is killed by a traffic-accident for which the father holds Mik responsible. Mik also has to cope with the fact that his best friend Dan, for whom Mik has a secret crush, gets involved with a girl, so Mik feels suddenly excluded and alone, and he starts a chaotic quest for recognition and affection.

It's basically a coming-of-age story: dealing with guilt, with confusing sexual feelings, and with conflicts among family and friends. Actor Miles Szanto is excellent and totally convincing as the tormented Mik. In spite of Mik's at times bad choices and his impulsive tantrums, you team up with him from the start and at many points in the movie his forlornness breaks your heart. There are harsh moments, but also moments of haunting beauty, like the sexual encounter that Mik has with an anonymous guy, where he for the first time experiences the glory of sexual fulfillment. It's a lot to divulge, but Boreham brings it all with great feeling and compassion.

In the end I would have liked to see some sort of positive conclusion or catharsis for Mik, especially concerning the relationship with his father. Well, maybe Boreham didn't intend any conclusions, it's simply life, where conclusions are not guaranteed.

Anyway: highly recommended.

Not worthy of only positive reviews. I thought it was boring with dreary plot, poorly acted, cinematography & directorship both very average. I don't recommend it and wouldn't dream of watching it again.