21 And Over Review

Let’s put it out there from the start; 21 And Over is another formualic teen comedy that adds little to a tired genre. Surely no-one expects a comedy classic from a film such as this, and there are far better alternatives out there, but it is not without merit and those fond of watching three teens partaking in ridiculous coming of age antics will undoubtedly enjoy an hour and a half of toilet humour and more toilet humour. Once again we are introduced to a group of friends who get drunk and have an incredibly wild night, with each character given a loose story arc so that there is some kind of direction to the script. Channeling Vince Vaughan, Miles Teller plays Miller, a lazy dropout who intends to give his old friend Jeff Chang (Justin Chon) a night to remember on his 21st birthday. The only problem is Chang has a job interview the next day and it is down to Miller and his less outgoing buddy, Casey (Skylar Astin), to make sure that Chang is capable of waking up at 7am the following day to prepare for what could be a life-changing opportunity. None of the characters have the capacity to become anywhere near as iconic as say Stifler or Frank the Tank, but all actors involved do a commendable job considering some of the insipid dialogue their characters are forced to deliver. As derivative and formulaic as 21 And Over is there is still the occasional inspired humorous moment, such as a showdown between our protagonists and a group of American Jocks that completely reverts said stereotype, but these are unfortunately few and far between. Proudly proclaiming that the script was put together by the writers of The Hangover is great publicity but, when the end result appears to be cobbled together from rejected ideas that wouldn’t quite work in the soon to be trilogy, there is a possibility that audiences may feel cheated.  21 And Over cleverly sidesteps the usual setup for a sequel with a nice closing gag followed by an uplifting credit sequence that will inevitably leave audience members longing for a night as eventful as Miller & Co but hopefully more memorable. This does leave a pleasing aftertaste but ultimately isn’t enough to redeem what for the most parts is a watered down version of The Hangover with added college students and less jokes. Teen audiences are likely to lap it up but others would do well to steer clear from this disappointingly average picture unless they are particularly fond of the genre.

★★1/2☆☆

Tom Bielby

Rating:15 Release Date: 3rd May 2013 (UK) Director: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore Cast: Miles Teller, Justin Chon, Sarah Wright, Skylar Astin

About the Author

Tom Bielby

Long time film fan and aspiring film writer, Tom is a horror fanatic who wasted far too much time at University sitting through every film in the IMDB Top 250. He is partial to foreign films and cult cinema and would love to rid the world of people who rustle their popcorn during important scenes.

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