'Everybody Wants Some!!' A Review

Everybody Wants Some!! is a comedy set in 1980 on a Texas college campus. The film revolves around the baseball team in the three days prior to the first day of class. The audience and Linklater surrogate is freshman pitcher Jake(Blake Jenner) who slowly befriends his teammates, adjusts to college life, and tries to get laid.

The cast is serviceable enough, broish charm utilized as well as can be expected. Jenner as the lead isn't terribly successful or believable as the nostalgic personification of Linklater's college experience but the rest of the ensemble don't suffer as much. Glen Powell, Tyler Hoechlin, and Wyatt Russell especially offer energy and humor if not a ton of depth but that fault, and much of the films fault, lies with the script.

Plain and simple Everybody Wants Some!! is sophomoric and misogynistic. The first third of the film is dedicated to this group of manchildren incessantly talking about pussy and single-mindedly going after it. All the women in the film are treated and talked about as objects, no time or attention is given, by the film or the characters within it, to women as actual humans. Jake's romance with the "quirky" performing arts major shoehorned in towards the end is totally contrived and incongruous with everything we've been shown about his character. The casual narcissism and sexism on display is astonishing doubly so given the film seemingly expects us to view this behavior as "normal" or acceptable even compelling. The juxtaposition of how these characters view and talk about women versus how we're seemingly suppose to view them as engaging is insulting. The argument of "that's how it was then" does not carry any weight, that's not how it is now and filmmakers are responsible for the messages in their films. And in truth I don't believe men actually behave this way, this tenacious and predatory skirt chasing is more cinematic construct than reflection of reality. These characters ultimately do no respect women, this is shown time and time again, and that is a huge, virtually insurmountable, problem.

The production design, the costumes, the music are all pleasingly potent. Visually and auditorily the film evokes the 80's which is wonderful. But the humor and perspectives also evoke the 80's. It evokes the now disturbing sexual aggression and presumptive sexism common to raunch 80's comedies, which in 2016 is dated if not outright offensive.

If you're looking for a more "laid back" Animal House with the same degenerative gender humor and exploitation Everybody Wants Some!! is for you.

Don't See It.