Good Boys

by Hans A. Carpenter

hans@freeburgtribune.com

Release Date: August 16

MPAA: R

Director: Gene Stupnitsky

Starring: Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams, and Brady Noon

Mister Marquee Says: Superbad Jr.

Number: 4/5

Max (Jacob Tremblay), Lucas (Keith L. Williams), and Thor (Brady Noon) are set to go to a kissing party with the popular kids, but none of them know how to kiss. They steal an expensive drone from Max’s dad to spy on neighbor girls, but when the girls capture the drone, the boys have to go on a wild chase to get it back.

Is Good Boys a little one-note? That’s a fair argument. It does tend to lean a little heavy on the novelty of having kids swearing, running into drug situations, and misunderstanding adult stuff. The sex toy joke is a bit overplayed, and some of the gross out stuff is gratuitous. Yes, it’s basically Superbad with middle school kids. That formula worked for high school kids, and it works here, too.

Most of the jokes land so the one-note nature is forgiveable. Easily the biggest strength of Good Boys is the boys themselves, as all three young leads are excellent, and each has a defined arc. The final message about growing up is poignant and packs a punch. Lucas is dealing with his parents divorcing, Max is dealing with romantic urges, and Thor is torn between what he loves and wanting to be cool. There’s a lot of heart in this movie.

If you don’t mind kids swearing, finding drugs, and mistaking sex toys, this is the movie for you. Humor is perhaps the most subjective of any art forms, but in this case, I think there’s a little more subjectivity due to the subject matter. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Your mileage may vary.