August Movie Recap: Good Boys, Ready or Not, Blinded by the Light

I watched a slew of movies in August but failed to write about most of them as laying out in the last vestiges of summer sunshine took precedence over blogging indoors. However, as fall weather arrives, here’s a quick recap of three movies I watched that were quite delightful and which you may enjoy before the onslaught of more prestigious Oscar bait.

Good Boys: The common one-line summary of this film is that it’s Superbad for tweens. This is highly accurate but it doesn’t capture the movie’s inherent sweetness. The trailer already gives away the most ridiculous gags and jokes in the film, which is about a trio of middle school boys who have been invited to their first kissing party and must go through various trials (one of which involves replacing a drone and purchasing molly from a frat house – I swear it makes some sort of sense when you watch the movie) and are navigating all their pre-pubescent urges alongside the challenges of adolescent friendship. 

This moves captures how complicated it can be to be a kid, where you and your friends are maturing at different rates and facing the dawning notion that just because you have all been friends since you were born, you will not necessarily be friends until you die. There’s also a lot of talk about consent, and while this is played for laughs, it is still refreshing to watch the evolution of teen movies where the boys are worried and confused about how the girls will feel instead of just leaning in to their desires. Is this still a filthy romp, made all the more delightful by watching young children swear like pirates? Sure. But does it contain a lot of heart? You bet. One of the kids is played by Jacob Tremblay, the baby-faced innocent who was heralded at the age of eight for his captivating performance in Room. If this is the kind of thing he’s going to do as part of his transition from child actor to full-fledged star, I’m all for it. Keith L. Williams and Brady Noon who co-star in the film are just as wonderful, and I would happily bankroll a series of 7 Up-style films where we watch these kids grow up into adults and all the gross but heartfelt shenanigans they get into along the way.

Ready or Not: Readers of the blog are well aware that I don’t like horror movies but I have a soft spot for funny horror. If it’s scary but punctuated by jokes, I will watch any bloodbath. Therefore, this film was right up my alley. Starring Samara Weaving as Grace, this is a movie about a woman who marries into a wealthy family and gets roped into playing a deadly game of Hide and Seek on her wedding night as part of an ancient family tradition. Is it utterly bonkers? Yes. Is it utterly brilliant? Yup. 

I won’t go into the details as to why this family thinks they have to kill Grace before dawn as she attempts to hide and escape from their creaky old mansion. Let’s just say there are reasons, which seem weird and wacky and come to fruition in fabulous fashion at the end of the film. But what is fun is watching a family of wealthy privileged folk collectively lose their minds in hapless bloodlust while Grace, a former foster child who thought she was so lucky to be getting a family at last, fights back and decides that she was probably better off without a family after all. The cast consists of some wonderful actors, chiefly Andie MacDowell as Grace’s new mother-in-law, and you have not lived until you’ve seen that woman wield a crossbow and tell her adult children to try not to kill any more of the help. It’s a fun, blood-soaked romp, and it is everything you want from a summer movie. Not remotely serious, but endlessly entertaining.

Blinded by the Light: Directed and co-written by Gurinder Chadha (the woman who blessed us with Bend It Like Beckham), this film is the story of Javed Khan (played by the very charming and imminent star Viveik Kalra), a Pakistani teenager growing up in the UK in 1987, who discovers the music of Bruce Springsteen, leading him to pursue a career as a writer. This is based on the true story of journalist Sarfraz Mansoor (who also co-wrote the script with Chadha and Paul Mayeda Berges) and it’s an earnest and charming tale about the global and transformative power of music. Javed is just a gangly kid in Luton who sees no future for himself, but listening to Springsteen’s lyrics, he finds a kindred spirit, and all of those feelings he has bottled up inside himself start to pour out in his writing. Spotted by an encouraging English teacher (because what would we be without kind English teachers?) his talents are nurtured, and he builds a community of friends around him to support his wildest dreams. 

Of course, writerly ambitions are not going to be supported by South Asian parents, and you get the expected tussle with the strict father and timid mother, but what’s refreshing about this movie is that it properly represents the brown immigrant experience. Are brown parents all about getting a “proper” job and being hopelessly overbearing? Sure. But do they come from a place of love and caring and eventually capitulate because they want their kids to be happy? Yes. Now, I did find myself wondering what happened to Javed’s two sisters – they did not seem like they had as much agency to live out their dreams (because: patriarchy), but there is an interlude where we see Javed’s younger sister also engaging in her own bit of rebellion, so at least some fun is being had. We also see the horrific racism South Asians were subjected to during the Thatcher era, which is very reminiscent of the current rise of white nationalism across the globe, so it seems we are doomed to repeat history. However, this is ultimately an uplifting story about the immigrant experience, overcoming the awkwardness of adolescence to pursue your passions, and finding your own path despite all the people clamoring to foist their own paths onto you. It is a sweet and earnest movie, and if you love Bruce Springsteen, be prepared to sing your heart out for two hours straight.