Way back in the 1980s, there were multitudes of R-rated comedies. CADDYSHACK, PORKY’S and STRIPES all came from the early part of that decade, and were all made for an adult audience drawing in millions at the box office. This was back in the day when the box office numbers were for ‘industry only’ and didn’t make national network news. They also set the tone for comedies in that decade. In the first part of the 21st Century, the cinema has been going back to his R-rated formula with such works as DEADPOOL and TROPIC THUNDER, both of which proved that R-rated comedies could bring in a big audience. It is with that idea that EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! comes into being. It is a loving homage to the early 1980s in both tone and substance.
The movie opens with “My Sharona” playing on the tape deck as Jake (Blake Jenner) pulls into his new life, college in central Texas. He is assigned a house with a portion of the baseball team. Jake is the new pitcher, a high school standout, but finds that he is just another member of an outstanding team. The film centers on the weekend before the first day of college. We get the quick meet of most of the members of the house and the rest of the baseball team. Many of the guys are fielders who do not like pitchers and all the guys are into hazing the fish. The three days are filled with the guys bonding and checking out different women. In this way, the film feels like Linklater’s much-praised DAZED AND CONFUSED. This is not specifically a follow-up to that film but it does keep many of the same senses and vibes. It is not a sequel and it is not an equal… and no, it does not have the same cast. But all women in the story save but one are treated as objects to conquer for a night and not a character.
Anyway, Jake sees another freshman named Beverly (Zoey Deutch) and the two are mutually attracted to one another. But before we get to the romance, there has to be male bonding over beer and boobs. Every night, these guys go drinking at different clubs from discos to country joints. They always adapt to every situation because everyone loves the baseball team. The place overflows with young female flesh. The guys are winners and have brought championships to the school. There is also a raucous party along the lines of something out of ANIMAL HOUSE. We also get to see the guys practicing without coaches due to collegiate rules. One of the fellas is a transfer from Detroit and possesses a 95 mph fastball. He brags about being recruited by the majors and is, in two words, very insane.
Looking for a plot? Well you won’t find one here. Like SLACKER and BEFORE SUNRISE it is more about a time and a place than a story. There are funny moments and crazy characters but little in the way of an actual narrative during the account of events. In that way, it feels exactly like DAZED AND CONFUSED. Also like the aforementioned flick, the production is chocked with sweet-looking classic rides. No one goes to college here in a hand-me-down auto.
This is a very large cast, with many speaking roles, so it makes it very hard to shine above the rest. Blake Jenner is the fish out of water, the only sane person in a house full of lunatics. One gets the feeling that by year’s end, he will be the new leader of the team and guiding the boys to yet another championship. One also gets the idea that by the end of the term, he will be the head instigator of hazing for the next generation of freshman ball players.
Many years ago, everyone was just crazy for Jennifer Jason Lee, the girl from FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH. Zoey Deutch is just as pretty and just as talented. Every moment she is on screen, the film gets a shade lighter. By the end, everyone wishes Zoey would have played a more central role that just the desired female. There is much promise in her charming acting. In the secondary cast of baseball players Glen Powell is a true standout. He delivers the greatest share of the funny lines and brings a much needed humanity to the group. His character is a player in every sense of the word but he is also a lot smarter than he lets on. This is not just another dumb jock.
Truly, the single best part of the film is the soundtrack. It just leaps off the screen with songs from the late 1970s. It has The Knack, Dire Straits and Devo mixed into the fabric of the story. It is probably the best soundtrack of 2016 and will make just about every person dance in the aisles.
EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! is a baseball movie like THE BREAKFAST CLUB is a high school movie. Both are set in their own arenas but both are about living in those times. That said, make no mistake, EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! is no THE BREAKFAST CLUB. Richard Linklater-written films have never been about something, meaning that they have never had much of a plot. He does much better plot-wise by directing scripts from another. What this lacks in plot, it makes up for in sheer attitude. It is not BOYHOOD (his most personal film) but it is probably one of his more honest films about his own life.
