Review of Dazed and Confused (1993) by Cameron J — 02 Apr 2012

I can't help but look at that title for this one big drug trip movie and think "Dazed and Confused in Las Vegas". Of course, then I read into this concept of a period piece coming-of-age film and can't help but think of "American Graffiti", but with the paint cans being sprayed in the kids' faces. Man, those little '70s punks and all of their crazy lust for psychedelic drugs and cruel pranks on freshmen really gave a bad name to young people; not like today's kids, what with their... more extreme drugs... and less cleverness... and more pregnancies, shootouts, gangs and, worst of all, a surrealistically abysmal taste in unpalatable-to-the-sensible music. Wow, even the teenagers in the '70s were relatively better, but I think that we can all agree that kids have always been little punks. Way back during the Stone Age, little Tong-Tong, Jr. was probably bumbling around with his loincloth sagging in the back while he was taking hits off of hallucinogenic plants and listening to rap. I know rap in the Stone Ages sounds anachronistic as all get-out, but rap is clearly some kind of descendant of caveman speak, so I'm just going ahead and bridging the generational gap. Seriously though, these punk kids don't appear to be worth anything, outside of subject matter for a good Richard Linklater film, which, make no mistake, this is, yet it's certainly not without its share of mistakes, though still not nearly as many mistakes as those made by real punk kids before lunch.

I'm glad I pulled back on my comparing this film to "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", because what that big acid trip montage film had over this one is that, while it got a little too noisy, it was never quiet and dull, as opposed to this film, which really slows down in a lot of spots, and all of that is made worse by nothing. No, I don't mean nothing, as in nothing could make things any worse; I mean nothing, as in what I've been complaining about in stories too much lately, yet will still continue to do, because this film limps quite often. Yeah, I know that, with all my praise of the aforementioned "Fear and Loathing", that film had virtually nothing going on, in the way of substance, in the least, but at least it was consistent about itself, whereas this film's slowness is broken up by story. Granted, it's not much of a story, but a story nevertheless, and those deal of moments where things are just dragging along, plagued by excess material and quiet dullness, give this film a good kick in the knees. However, after that leg blow, the film only limps, rather than gives up, and here and there, it really stands up and holds its ground, enough so that, in the end, it rewards. Now, the film is unrelentingly fun like a "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", but when the film wakes up from its being dazed and confused, things really kick in. For that, credit goes out to director-writer Richard Linklater, who may not be delivering as thoroughly here as he did with later-to-arrive projects, particularly his other big era nostalgia charmer, "Me and Orson Welles", but he does bring to life, he nails.

1970s town life was a charming one, even within the schools. True, these little punks were still defiant druggies that would hook up, toke up and mess up a lot of things for a lot of people, and man, I just do not like kids from then, but hey, I see worse plenty of times now, because what the '70s kids had going for them was relatively a bit more sense, charm and cleverness, something that Linklater nails. Linklater gives off a real feel for the '70s, so much so that it almost feels as though you're planted right back there from time to time, providing the charm, simplicity and cleverness of that time with subtlety in order to make the era a key part of the story - such as it is -, but without making it overbearing. That's hard to, especially when they keep reminding us of the time with that '70s soundtrack, which I still wouldn't mind even if it wasn't subtle, because the '70s was that big peak for quality mainstream music, and boy, do you get plenty of righteous '70s tunes in this film. From the soundtrack to the tone, the film is pumped with classic charm, and it's made all the stronger by the colorful cast of sparkling charismas. As much as I deem the teens of the '70s superior to the contemporary brats, they were still drunk, high, vulgar punks that beat each other around and lord knows what else, but they still had that one, small, key point of charm in them that could have been missed in this film that centers on teens and left it unrelentingly uncomfortable, but most every performer finds that key point and strikes it with ease and unrelenting charisma, assisted by down-to-earth, but still pretty clever dialogue and humor. The film is not at all without heavy missteps that keep it from killing dead, but Linklater and his colorful, broad cast of charmers all unite under authentic, charming tone and style that makes up for most every dull spot in the film and leave you walking away remembering only the fun parts, of which there are plenty.

At the end of this trip (I love how I keep referencing acid, when really these kids never graduate past dope and booze, but hey, it's the '70s, so how can I help myself?), the film takes a hit off of such major downers as dull spots, a lack of plot and long periods of just nothingness, leaving the film to slip up in a lot of places, but in many more regards, it stands its ground, supported by a charming 1970s feel nailed by Richard Linklater and his charming performers, and complimented by a pretty awesome soundtrack, ultimately leaving "Dazed and Confused" to, more often than not, entertain, satisfying and charm the audiences with fun and ultimately rewarding nostalgia.

3/5 - Good.