I was shocked when I saw Rebel Wilson, the once chubby Australian comedian from the Pitch Perfect movies, 100 pounds lighter and…glamorous! Rebel Wilson plays a high school senior named Stephanie whose goal is to become Prom Queen. But, a cheerleading accident puts Stephenie into 20 year coma.
When Stephenie wakes up, she’s confronted by a completely different world. Like a modern Rip Van Winkle, Stephenie has to deal with the Future by learning about cell phones, social media, and social changes. Even though Stephenie is 37, she’s developmentally a 17-year-old. That causes a lot of Senior Year’s humor.
Stephenie decides she wants to return to high school and finish out her senior year. She still wants to be Prom Queen, but learns this 2022 school has eliminated competitions. No more sexy cheerleader dance routines either. Stephenie informs the Principal (who used to be her best friend in high school): “I had more fun in a coma.”
Alex Hardcastle, director of Senior Year, specializes in contrasting life in 2002 with 2022. Songs from 20 years ago rub shoulders with contemporary music. Stephenie’s father left Stephenie’s room exactly as it was in 2002 when she went into a coma. On the bedroom wall there’s a movie poster of Clueless. That enters into Stephenie’s decisions later in the movie.
Senior Year follows a predictable trajectory, but there were enough surprises to entertain me. Humor, silliness, and a drop of sadness. That’s a formula that works for me. How was your High School experience? GRADE: B.
SOUNDTRACK:
- The Bad Touch – The Bloodhound Gang
- Only You (And You Alone) – The Platters
- Sk8er Boi – Avril Lavgne
- Candy – Mandy Moore
- She’s So High – Tal Bachman
- Hot in Here – Nelly
- Come on Over (All I Want Is You) – Christina Aguilera
- We Are The Bull Dogs – Performed by Cast of Senior Year
- A Moment Like This – Kelly Clarkson
- Come Get a Hummer From Balbo
- Remember the Name – Fort Minor featuring Styles of Beyond
- Fallin – Joshua Radin
- Girls Stars – Jok a Face
- Aeroplane – Stella Project featuring Casey Carlson
- U Drive Me Crazy (The Stop Remix!) – Britney Spears
- Fast (Motion) – Saweetie
- Strike It Up – Black Box
- Launch Scene from the Motion Picture Deep Impact – James Horner
- Man! I Feel Like a Woman – Shania Twain
- Summer Love – Jonathan Sharp
- We Don’t Stop – David Veith
- It’s My Time – Randall Cooke and Mia Bojanic
- The Power of Love – Jennifer Rush
- Body Rock – Regulus Red
- Satisfy My Love – Nicholas Pesci
- Bossed Up – KC Carter
- Ridin’ the Wave
- Winter – Joshua Radin
- Drive – Leslie Hayes McCann
- C’est La Vie – B*Witched
- Grow As We Go – Ben Platt
- So Strong – Olivier Bibeau
- Outta Patience
Class of 75. I had a good time and a great group of friends (several of whom are still dear friends). I now work in a high school and I can tell you that even the students who were the highest-achievers 47 years ago had nowhere near the amount of academic stress put on them as our students do today with standardized tests (in our state, every grade, starting at 2nd, takes annual standardized tests and all 11th graders, whether they plan to attend college or not, have to take the ACT). I may be wearing rose-colored nostalgia glasses, but it seems there were places & jobs for every level of high school graduate back then. Yes, some went to college, but others went directly to work and learned trades. Now, we define success as going to college—and not everyone needs, wants, or is a good fit for that.
Deb, I taught at a community college for nearly 40 years. I saw the results of students who arrived unprepared for college-level work. Over 40% of our students required remedial courses in England and mathematics. About 10% needed to take remedial Reading…because they couldn’t read! As you might suspect, my College was an “Open Admissions” school which meant EVERYONE who applied was accepted.
How could they afford to go to England for those courses?!
Bob, it’s just a movie Mystery…
You got spell-checked, George.
Todd, WORDPRESS’s spellchecker torments me every day!
I need something to get me past the bloated, chaotic 4th season of STRANGER THINGS, which still has two more episodes coming in July. Could this be it? Not being a Rebel Wilson fan, I doubt it, but I may give it a try anyway.
That soundtrack makes me wonder where the hell I was in 2002. All I recognize is “Only You”, which goes all the way back to my high school days.
Michael, once you hear some of that 2002 music in SENIOR YEAR, you’ll recognize it. Set the bar low for SENIOR YEAR and you’ll be mildly entertained.
Jackie likes Rebel Wilson so might watch this, but sounds… not really for me.
As for high school, while I did great academically (graduated in the top 5% of my class of 1206) I wouldn’t say that I had a great time. I graduated at 16 and was just not ready for college in so many ways. Working two years in the city was one of the best things I’ve ever done.
Jeff, I spent most of my time in High school reading ACE Doubles in the back of the classroom. I did win a Regents Scholarship–which surprised most of my teachers since I was ranked 64 out of 430 seniors. Most of the Top Ten students didn’t win a Regents Scholarship.
Hated High School-class of 66. I did well but was bored most of the time. Doubt I will watch this. I know a few of the songs and dislike everyone-esp Shania Twain, The Platters, Brittany Spears, Mandy Moore, Kelly Clarkson.
Steve, there was a heavy emphasis in SENIOR YEAR on female rock stars from the early 2000s.
There are no female rockstars on the soundtrack, only pop stars.
The only songs I recognise besides ONLY YOU (huh??) are Twain’s and Clarkson’s. Both played interminably on MOR radio during rush hour commute. It’s sobering when a series positions 2002 as the distant past.
Fred, I had the same feeling! For me, 2002 seems like yesterday!
Hm. Well, I made some good friends in junior hs and then in hs, and became a fiction-magazines addict and began collecting recordings beyond dubbing library copies, but both the Londonderry NH and Honolulu hses were on balance pretty miserable; my experience in Kailua’s HS, for summer Driver’s Ed, was pretty mediocre (I was impressed unfavorably by the armed cop on the campus back when). In Londonderry from `76-’79 and at Punahou Academy from ’79-’82, and Kailua HS in ’82 after being graduated. 40th gatherings loom. I doubt I’ll attend any. Though some of the nicest people I knew in Londonderry are apparently putting it together up there. I simply don’t remember most of the organizers of the Honolulu gathering, though some I do remember as nice people.
I blew the doors off standardized tests, and had mediocre grades till senior year, with several AP courses and AP-oriented English courses (but I had taken the AP English exam in my junior year, and did well enough without studying, much as I did on the three I took senior year). Took the NEDT in 9th grade, a now-obscure test I think, 99th percentile. Took the NMSQT (Merit Scholarship test) as a junior, probably (not definitely, but definitely probably) had the highest score in the state of Hawaii in 1981…definitely in Punahou. My SAT scores that year slightly less good, but not much. The admins of both schools apparently not too thrilled with me, which they made clear through the admin’s most direct reps I had to deal with. Fuck ’em. Particularly considering how much my parents were coughing up for the tuition at the latter. Of which I was consistently reminded. My subsequent college career, paid for by a combo of my parents and myself and spent in three different public institutions, was in every term less expensive than my private hs. Went into elite programs and dean’s list at uni/colleges, Have never fit in too terribly well in most environments, but did help TV GUIDE win the PBS contract among others for their listings service in the 17 years I took care of the network’s (and associated networks’) listings and related work. Enough from me.
Todd, you’ve lived a colorful Life!
Thanks, George, though some of it…too much, in fact…has been in gray scales. I don’t think it would be fair to you if we traded.
Todd, I have few regrets in my Life. Right now, my health is good, Diane takes good care of me, and the kids are doing all right. What more could I ask for?
That’s a lot of the key things. I might well have things better than I deserve, as well. For a youth without material deprivation, I did have a hell of a time, particularly in New England, with various sorts of ugly incident. And not a few ongoing for years, not to do with my workaholic parents, but they, having survived ugly incident And material deprivation in their youth, they had little useful advice. Nor did anyone else.
Todd, my parents were very supportive of me, my brother, and my three sisters. But, they insisted that we all work so at the age of 12 I was mowing lawns and my sisters were baby sitting. My father used to tell us: “Work is therapy.”
I dug ditches and babysat a little for neighbors in New Hampshire, age 13 or so. Mostly mowed our house’s half acre, somewhat hilly yard, much as I had the acre yard (gratifyingly flat) in Connecticut beginning when I was 8yo. Particularly the latter/earlier chore tend to take up a big chunk of Saturdays for me. Exhaustion wasn’t all that therapeutic at the time, but it seemed like a thing to do, particularly during the months my father was living in Boston while the rest of us were in Hazardville, CT. Reading was more therapeutic.
Todd, all the money from my lawn mowing got divided: half went into my bank account for College and the other half went to buy paperback books, mostly ACE Doubles! Like you, I found reading therapeutic…and fun!
(“As well” not in the sense that you, too, have better than you deserve so much as I might have more than deserve, atop all the deficits.)
Todd, I consider myself a lucky guy. I have a wonderful wife, two great kids, and despite various surgeries, I’m feeling good and I’m still active into my 70s.