Profanely Wonderful

8/27/2007

TUESDAY

6 AM

I took my 17-year-old daughter to the movies the other night. At her request, we went to see this summer s blockbuster ($18 million box office last weekend) raunchy teen comedy, "Superbad."

It was the most profane, vulgar, coarse, graphic, sex-obsessed, crude movie I ve seen in a long time. And it was absolutely GREAT.

Yeah, OK. I can guess what you re thinking:

Why would any sane parent bring a teen to such a movie?!

To which I would have to reply:

Are you kidding me? I can t think of a BETTER movie to see with a teenager!

As the comfortingly unhysterical Web site Common Sense Media explains:

Parents need to know that this high school comedy has been marketed squarely at teens (the wide online circulation of an R-rated "red band" trailer helped a lot). Heralded as an instant-classic teen comedy on the level of Dazed and Confused or Fast Times at Ridgemont High, it seems destined to be a hit. But parents should know that, like many real teenagers, the characters are obsessed with losing their virginity and talking about sex. Sex and, to a lesser extent, booze fuel every conversation, with very graphic dialogue about genitalia, sex acts, and pornography. [The F word] (and many derivations thereof) is used almost nonstop, and there's also a lot of underage drinking and a scene of adults smoking marijuana and snorting cocaine. American Pie seems PG-rated by comparison.

Aside from the fact that this was a movie I wanted to see regardless, and aside from the fact that I just loved it, this is an especially terrific movie to watch with an older teen. (Mine said: Mom, don t sweat it. I didn t hear anything I don t hear at school all the time. Having myself walked through hallways of high school students, I know she speaks the truth -- whether I like it or not.)

"Superbad" is a veritable crowbar for good conversation. This movie gave us yet another context for still more talk about allll the Big Topics teen friendships, teen sex, teen drinking and drug use. That s worth the price of admission right there