Youth in Revolt

2009 romantic comedy

Rating: 15/20

Plot: An awkward but intelligent teenager deals with life and sexual frustrations. He develops an alter ego who is a little more uninhibited and mustached to help him win the heart of a new love interest.

You want to know the only thing better than one Michael Cera in a movie? Two Michael Ceras in a movie! And when he gets lines like "Not until you sink your dick into this filthy tomato" or "I want to tickle your belly button. . .from the inside," you're very likely to have yourself an overdose on Michael Cera. And trust me, people--that's definitely possible. This movie actually begins with the sound of Michael Cera vigorously masturbating, and I'd be interested in meeting the man who can keep his shit together after experiencing that. I was immediately won over at that point, literally 5 seconds into the movie, and I feel the need to point out that this was before the claymation fun during the opening credits. Nick Twisp (and, I guess, Francois Dillinger) is a likable enough character although he's the type of whimsically angst-ridden character who can only exist in a movie or a book written just after the turn of the millennium. You know the type. And this movie is beyond quirky, with unrealistic dialogue and an almost magically-realistic set of actions that could only exist in the little world created for these characters, coincidentally the only type of world that could survive narration by Cera. For me at least, that makes the whole thing endlessly likable although I could definitely understand if some people found this sort of thing appalling. There's a great cast inhabiting this little world though, the exact type of performers you'd expect to see there. Zach Galifianakis plays it calm even though at one point he's wearing a shirt with at least five wolves on it and says (probably ad-libbing) "Shit on a Goddamn dick!" at one point. Ray Liotta plays a funny cop character, Fred Willard (ironically, not masturbating) gets some topless scenes, and Steve Buscemi makes his eyes bulge. Oh, and Justin Long's in there, too. Justin Long and Michael Cera. I think that's referenced in Revelation as a sign of the apocalypse, but it's been a while since I read that. Portia Doubleday is fine as the love interest, the other titular youth in revolt. This movie made me laugh and want to read the books. And there are two Michael Ceras on screen at the same time, one with a mustache. Come on!