What Do The Critics Say?

"The movie is frequently amusing and occasionally uproarious. As with Borat, there are no sacred cows here. There are some hilarious one-liners, including one remark about health class that no one leaving the theater will forget. Through all of the mayhem, however, director Mottola never loses sight of his characters, and that's a key point to remember. While we laugh both with and at the protagonists, we also care about them." James Berardinelli REELREVIEWS "Imagine American Pie and South Park blending into one film. Seth Rogen (of Knocked Up) has written a picture with rolling dialogue that just doesn't quit. It's reality exaggerated. The direction is just as determined to keep the humor rumbling. Even at nearly two hours, the comedy just doesn't subside. Besides the comedy, the film does a good job of capturing that awkward teenage boy-girl energy." Ross Anthony HOLLYWOOD REPORT CARD "Super-vulgar, ridiculously sophomoric, horribly nasty and so hilarious you’ll probably squirt Diet Coke out of your nose within the first 20 minutes. Unstoppably funny, absolutely." Linda Stasi NEW YORK POST "2007: The Year Judd Apatow And Seth Rogen Saved Movie Comedy. So filthy, so naughty, so true, Superbad is simply a joy to behold. I laughed so hard I hurt myself. The most cutting and straightforward teen sex comedy since "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", it’s a dirty movie with an overabundance of empathy and heart." Sean Burns PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY "Superbad delivers some of the biggest laughs. When it’s funny, “Superbad” is really, really funny, usually in an I can’t believe they actually said that in a movie way." Robert W Butler KANSAS CITY STAR "Superbad is a four-letter raunch-a-rama with a heart. The movie reminded me a little of "National Lampoon's Animal House," except that it's more mature, as all movies are. It has that unchained air of getting away with something. In its very raunchiness, it finds truth, because if you know nothing about sex, how can you be tasteful and sophisticated on the subject?" Roger Ebert CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

"Former 'Ali G' writers Seth Rogen ("Knocked Up") and Evan Goldberg use a classic 24 hour approach following their odd couple together and apart with an amusing offshoot reserved for 'McLovin,' Fogell's twenty-five year-old persona. A teen sex comedy that finds funny in the low brow while being very smart about it." Laura Clifford REELING REVIEWS "Superbad is easily one of the funniest comedies of the year and one you wouldn't mind seeing again and again." Michael Ferraro FILM THREAT "This hormonal answer to Reefer Madness is good, wacked-out fun." Jack Mathews NEW YORK DAILY NEWS "The unlikely duo of Evan and Seth are two sides of the same coin and the young actors play their roles well. But, the real surprise is the debut performance of Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Fogell/McLovin. His part in "Superbad" frequently steals the show as he cruises the streets with his new cop buddies." Robin Clifford REELING REVIEWS "Who knew that a raunchy teen sex comedy could be one of the most rambunctious and glorious movies of the year?" N.V. Cooper E! ONLINE "For pure laughs, for the experience of just sitting in a chair and breaking up every minute or so, Superbad is 2007's most successful comedy." Mick LaSalle SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE "Absolutely filthy, but in an intelligent kind of way, "Superbad" storms onto the screen with chaos, profanity and hilarity. All the performances are terrific. They create characters we root for even though they're pretty unlikeable guys. Mintz-Plasse steals every scene he's in. You'll think of guys you used to know, or maybe know right now, when you see his character in action. Remember how everybody talked about the "hair gel" scene in "There's Something About Mary?" Well, there's a dance scene here that everybody will be talking about in a similar manner." Linda Cook QUAD CITY TIMES

The Inside Story Sony Pictures hilarious new comedy "Superbad began in the most unlikely of places: the brains of the then-teenage neophyte screenwriters, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. After watching movies they felt weren’t accurate (or even funny) portrayals of high school life, Rogen and Goldberg decided to give it a try themselves. "We tapped into the mind of a desperate high schooler in a way that very few films do," Rogen explained. And why not? After all, the first piece of advice many young writers receive is 'write what you know'. Rogen and Goldberg had written a screenplay with characters inspired by themselves and the people around them. They event went so far as to name the main characters Seth and Evan. The movie focuses on a shared experience, "that one night in which everything that can go wrong goes wrong," says Jonah Hill, who plays Seth in the film. "Everything in the movie is just like high school in real life," says Christopher Mintz-Plasse, the first-time actor plucked from his Los Angeles high school to play the role of McLovin in "Superbad". "I mean, I never got arrested and hung out with the cops, but the parties and guys trying to get with girls; that’s just like everyone’s high school experience. That’s how Seth and Evan wrote it; they wanted it to be realistic." "Superbad doesn’t have the traditional high school hierarchy that you see in movies," adds Michael Cera who plays Evan. "Jonah had a good point; high school isn’t divided into the jocks and the losers. You might not be hanging out with the popular girls, but you know them, say hi to them, and are passing friends with them. You slip under the radar." A few years after beginning the screenplay, Rogen made his way from Canada to Los Angeles, where he came under the wing of producer Judd Apatow. "It became clear I wasn’t going to graduate high school, so I needed some kind of avenue of making money for myself," the writer-actor relates. Rogen audtioned for and was cast in "Freaks and Geeks". When it ended, he transitioned to both the cast and writing team of Apatow's next show, "Undeclared". Rogen decided to give the screenplay to producer Judd Apatow. "I wrote a script with my friend Evan from Canada. It’s called "Superbad". Will you read it?", Rogen asked. Apatow did. His reaction? "I thought it was hilarious, but there weren’t any other movies like it out there. At its heart, "Superbad" is a movie about being terrified to move on," he notes. "The characters are terrified to go to different colleges and be apart for the first time. There’s nothing more painful than separating from your high school friends. That’s how you know you’re growing up; you don’t have those people to depend on anymore. That fear and pain turns into an obsession of accomplishing this goal; getting with these girls. To me, that makes this a sweet movie, despite the fact that all of the comedy is really far out." Apatow took the opportunity to guide the screenwriters, pumping up the emotion at the center of the outrageous story. With the movie now on the 'fast track', finding a director was the first issue of business. It would only take one phone call. "I was in a cafe with my wife in Brooklyn, where I live, procrastinating because I was supposed to be writing a script, and my cell phone rang. It was Judd," Greg Mottola remembers. "Hey, Greg, it’s Judd. Remember "Superbad"? Do you want to do it?" "I started to say, 'Well, you know, actually, it is one of the few scripts I've read.' And Judd’s like, ‘Yeah, fine, okay. I’ll call you in a week. We’re making it.' He called me in a week and said, 'Okay, you gotta fly to L.A.' I didn’t realize it could be that easy. I wasted eight or nine years of my life thinking it was much harder than that." Mottola it seems, had been familiar with the screenplay for some time. "I went to a reading of "Superbad" a couple of years earlier. What I liked about it the most was the jokes were behavioral; not just people telling jokes. A lot of it came out of some kind of ridiculous teenage psychology. The fact that it all takes place in one night really appealed to me. That kind of story has a ticking clock," he notes. Next up was to cast the film. Rogen and Goldberg had written the characters Seth and Evan as extensions of themselves. For Rogen, it once seemed natural that he would play the part that bears his name. So what stopped him? "Evan never wanted to be in it and the real Fogell was never interested in acting, but I wanted to play Seth," he says. "My inability to look young has destroyed everything," he says. "The fact is, when I was sixteen I looked thirty. Now, I look like I’ve been dead for four years." Finding the right person to play Seth would prove very difficult. "It was difficult to find somebody who had the combination of personality quirks and the hilarity to make that character palatable, tolerable. In the auditions, everyone was a little bit hateful, not through any fault of their own. It’s a very hard character to pull off," Mottola states. "I was getting really frustrated," says Apatow. "At that time I was directing "Knocked Up", another film in which Jonah Hill was acting." Mottola recalls walking with Rogen when he looked over at Hill and said, "I guess Jonah will do it." Co-writer Evan Goldberg wasn't all that convinced. His reaction? "Like hell it’s Jonah. He looks twenty seven. You’re all crazy. You’ve all lost your minds." Rogen says, "Jonah was our dead last choice." "Jonah was just someone we forgot to consider because I don’t like to admit that he’s that young. He’s one of my wisest friends, so I keep forgetting that he’s not a fourty three year old man," says Producer Shauna Robertson. "The minute Jonah opened his mouth on the audition tape, I knew we had the guy," says director Mottola. "I felt really lucky, because I knew I didn’t really have to work that hard. Jonah would make me look good, no matter what." "It’s one of those crazy Hollywood stories that you hear sometimes," says Hill. "You think stuff like that just doesn’t happen and then it happens. I’m lucky." "It's funny," says Apatow. "Jonah is only a year or two younger than Seth. I don’t know why, but Jonah was able to pull off the illusion of being an eighteen year old high school student." Casting someone to play the role Evan had already proved to be a much easier task. Mottola had directed a couple of episodes of "Arrested Development" and was a big fan of Michael Cera. "I’d seen what he was capable of. That show was filled with a lot of funny, talented people, and Michael completely held his own. Sometimes, he was the best in the room." Cera was the first actor cast. When Jonah fell into the mix, the filmmakers, were totally unaware that the two already knew each other socially. Mottola notes that Cera and Hill make a perfect combination: "Michael makes being sweet and dorky incredibly hilarious. Jonah makes being a vulgar loudmouth into something really kind of sweet." "We did a lot of rehearsals and read-throughs before shooting," says Cera. "Jonah and I hung out a lot." "There’s something just naturally funny about Michael and I together," says Hill. "I think Judd put us together because there’s something weird about it. I’m brash and angry, while Michael is quieter, softer." A task even easier than casting Cera, was casting the films two Patrol Officers. "As soon as it became clear that I was too bloated to play a high schooler, I thought, 'Oh, at least I can be one of the cops.' It was an instantaneous decision," says Rogen. So how did they find cop two? Within five minutes of meeting Seth and Evan, "Saturday Night Live’s" Bill Hader recalls Evan saying, "You know what he’d be really good as? The cop in Superbad." Those who see "Superbad" will agree that the two actors are wickedly funny as the two cops. Now all they has to do was find someone capable of playing 'third guy', Fogell (a.k.a McLovin). "The Fogell character always ran the danger of just being a stock nerd guy," Mottola says. "One of the things I’ve always liked about the script is that the character that you assume is going to be the third wheel turns out to have his own entire storyline." Rogen admits he had his own concerns. "I knew most of my scenes were with the Fogell character. As a selfish actor, I really wanted there to be a funny guy in that role." The search began. And went on. And on. "I feel like we saw five hundred actors and they all just were great in their own way but really not nailing it," Robertson offered. Emmy Award winning Casting Director Alison Jones ("Sky High" & "Borat") started to bring in non-pros. It was then that Christopher Mintz-Plasse came on the scene. "Chris was one of the last ones we saw," Mottola said. "Chris was the first person to play him as the arrogant nerd; the guy who thinks he’s Frank Sinatra, even though he looks like Truman Capote. It was hilarious." "Chris is one of those wonderful little miracles," says Apatow. "You’re looking for a hilarious young person, someone hears about your movie, comes in for a short audition and is instantly great; during the shoot, he gets even better than you ever hoped he could have been." "I’ve worked with just about everybody in the cast before except for Chris," adds Robertson. "Chris came into that atmosphere, where everything is very free and loose, and he just knocked it out of the park." "I never thought I would act in my life," says Mintz-Plasse. "I went with two of my friends, we auditioned, I got called back three times, and I finally got the part. It was my first audition, my first acting role; the first anything I’ve ever done" It's a glorious debut for Mintz-Plasse whose character McLovin deserves to become a cult figure for "Superbad" film fans. "It’s weird to say that Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill are my friends now," says Mintz-Plasse. "Just a few months ago I was just a regular kid. As we were finishing filming on "Superbad", I was just so sad. Hopefully, they’ll be able to use me for more movies. We’ll see." Synopsis

Evan is sweet, smart, and generally terrified by the opposite sex. Seth on the other hand, is foul-mouthed, volatile, and totally consumed with the opposite sex. Both are hoping to end high school on a high note by finally getting laid. When one of their crushes invites them to a graduation party, the boys are ecstatic. That is, until they become responsible for supplying the party with alcohol. They hurriedly concoct a scheme to use their friend Fogell's horrendously fake Hawaii ID to purchase liquor. But trouble arises when Fogell becomes the victim of, and reluctant witness to a liquor store robbery. Two cops, Officers Slater and Michaels arrive on the scene and after taking statements offer to drop McLovin (a.k.a Fogell) off at the party he was to attend. The cops see a lot of themselves in McLovin. During the course of attending call-outs they share beers with him, allow him to use one of their guns and, impress him with their driving skills. In a twist of fate the three high school buddies are reunited when Seth is run over by the patrol car. With the cops on their tail, the guys head for the party, hoping to rendezvous with the girls and still get laid.

The Verdict "I have to admit that I did approach this film with a good dose of trepidation, I mean, let's face it, with a name like "Superbad" who at my age wouldn't. You see, "Superbad" is another in the 'coming of age teen flick' genre, unashamedly aimed squarely at those who enjoy the goofy sort of humour associated with obsessive sexual tension, crazy antics, booze and, every teenagers dream, getting laid. Those who loved the "American Pie" trilogy, "Van Wilder: Party Liason", "Road Trip", even "Old School", will find "Superbad" both outrageously funny and more importantly, highly entertaining. What makes "Superbad" such a standout in the comedy arena is its cast. Young actors Jonah Hill, Michael Cera and (in his feature debut role) Christopher Mintz-Plasse will truly endear themselves to audiences as will Bill Hader and Seth Rogen who play Patrol Officers Slater and Michaels respectively. Clever as and funny as "Superbad" is, the film isn't everyones cup of tea. If you are easily offended, don't even think of going to see it. On the other hand, if you fall within the scale of the films target audience, you will get 100 cents in the dollar value for your ticket price. I must confess that personally, I found "Superbad" extremely funny, as did the 'young' audience who roared with laughter at the onscreen antics. It's clever, filthy, outrageous and hormonally driven, but don't let that stand in the way of you seeing the funniest 'teen flick' in a long, long, while. 4 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "SUPERBAD" stars .......
Jonah Hill ["I Heart Huckabees", "Knocked Up" and "Evan Almighty"]; Michael Cera ["Frequency", "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind", "Darling Darling" and "Parental Guidance Suggested"]; Christopher Mintz-Plasse ["Superbad"]; Martha MacIsaac ["Ice Princess"]; Erica Vittina Phillips ["How High", "Friday After Next" and "The 40 Year Old Virgin"]; Joe Lo Truglio ["Naked in the Cold Sun", "The Station Agent" and "Hitch"]; Emma Stone [TV'S "Medium", "Malcolm in the Middle" and "Drive"]; Joe Nunez ["The 40 Year Old Virgin", "School for Scoundrels" and "The Pursuit of Happyness"]; Bill Hader ["Hallway", "You, Me and Dupree" and "Knocked Up"] and Seth Rogen ["The 40 Year Old Virgin", "You, Me and Dupree" and "Knocked Up"] as Officer Michaels.
"SUPERBAD" was .......
directed by Greg Mottola ["Swingin' in the Painter's Room", "The Daytrippers" and TV'S "Arrested Developement"]; screenplay by Seth Rogen ["Da Ali G Show"] and Evan Goldberg ["Da Ali G Show"]; costume design by Debra McGuire ["Just Married", "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy", "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up"]; production design by Chris L Spellman ["The Big Lebowski", "Anger Management", "Daddy Day Care" and "Knocked Up"]; edited by William Kerr ["Nutty Professor II: The Klumps", "Undercover Brother" and "Along Came Polly"]; cinematography by Rus T Alsobrook ["The Dark Side of the Moon", "The Good Daughter" and "Man About Town"]; original music by Lyle Workman ["Made" and "The 40 Year Old Virgin"]; produced by Judd Apatow ["Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy", "The 40 Year Old Virgin", "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" and "Knocked Up"] and Shauna Robertson ["Meet the Parents", "Elf", "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy", "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up"]. Who's Who?

Jonah Hill Michael Cera Christopher Mintz-Plasse Bill Hader Seth Rogen Martha MacIsaac Emma Stone Aviva Farber Joe Lo Truglio Kevin Corrigan Clement E Blake Erica Vittina Phillips Joseph A Nunez Dave Franco Marcella Lentz-Pope Scottie Gerbacia Laura Seay Roger Iwata Clint Mabry Stacy Edwards

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Seth Evan Fogell Officer Slater Officer Michaels Becca Jules Nicola Francis the Driver Mark Homeless Guy Mindy the Liquor Store Cashier Liquor Store Clerk Greg the Soccer Player Gabby Jesse Shirley Miroki Prosthetic Leg Kid Evan's Mom

Run Time 113 minutes Rated MA 15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2007 - Sony Pictures - All Rights Reserved ©2007 All Rights Reserved - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian & International Copyright. Trademark Laws Apply.