Review of Dazed and Confused (1993) by Luka O — 18 Jun 2016

Definitely bizarre and satisfying to see where today's middle-aged movie legends got their start. In past years, I've developed a respectful though sometimes lukewarm liking of Linklater's existential walky talk, and I feared that a movie about high school stoners would feel sophomoric and the filmmaking skills raw, as evidenced by what I assumed to be clumsy editing of the same floppy-haired dude into nearly every scene of the opening montage.

However, upon subsequent reflection, I found the movie deeper than its billing and iconic catchphrases and realized that the editing was to show how protagonist Pink gets along with every clique. The characters go through a shared odyssey of sorts.

In the course of one day, they walk the line between cool and not, ultimately finding the selves to which they wish to be true - a fitting tribute to all the seminal summer breaks before the best years of our lives.