Review: ‘The Myth of the American Sleepover’
On its surface, "The Myth of the American Sleepover" is such a familiar story that it might take a little while to realize how special it is, how much more real it is than its peers. A tale of a group of high school students coping with love and hormones in the last few days of summer before they have to go back to school, the debut of writer-director David Robert Mitchell recalls coming-of-age ensemble films like "Dazed and Confused" but is wonderfully gentle and well-observed in its own unique way. Not much happens in the movie's 93-minute running time, but I can't think of a recent film about adolescence that so resonated, not because of its nostalgia but because of its simple, honest truthfulness.
Set in suburban Michigan, the film looks at a large collection of teens, but soon it becomes clear that four in particular are of interest to Mitchell. Maggie (Claire Sloma) has a punk-ish exterior but a girlie center, Rob (Marlon Morton) is a nerdy guy who's never even kissed a girl but often exaggerates his romantic conquests to his friends, Claudia (Amanda Bauer) is the new girl, and Scott (Brett Jacobsen) is actually going into his senior year of college but doesn't know if he wants to go back after getting his heart broken by a longtime girlfriend. The events are set on the final weekend before school gets back in session, which means a series of parties and sleepovers that signal one last big hurrah of freedom.
In keeping with Mitchell's understated design, "The Myth of the American Sleepover" never quite spells out its time period. A scene involving a VCR is as close to an indicator as we get, which helps make the movie feel somewhat timeless. (Unlike "Dazed and Confused," "American Graffiti" or "Superbad," the movie doesn't contain multitudes of cultural references that lend themselves to easy jokes.) Likewise, Mitchell lets his storylines slowly assert themselves, moving from character to character without necessarily alerting us from the outset who will be the most crucial players in our drama. Similar to a Robert Altman movie, "The Myth of the American Sleepover" feels a bit like a tapestry, with the milieu just as important as any individual within it.
That's a good thing since the stories aren't exactly groundbreaking. Most of them involve the impermanence of teenage love, and a usual scenario is that one person pines for another person, who is either unaware or actually pining for somebody else entirely. But Mitchell isn't interested in wowing us with twisty narratives; instead, he wants to immerse us in the world of adolescence with a purity and sincerity that's constantly revealing. Too often, filmmakers can't help but display a certain amount of condescension when telling a story about the young -- they want to signal to the audience that it's OK to look down on the characters' juvenile foibles -- but Mitchell adamantly doesn't do that. "The Myth of the American Sleepover" has such a candid naivety to it that can sometimes border on awkwardness, but it's quietly riveting. It's as if the movie is holding a mirror to our own childhood, giving the narrative enough universality that we can all see ourselves in it, forcing us to recognize ourselves in the characters.
Along the same lines, Mitchell has cast his film with Michigan unknowns, and much like David Gordon Green's indie debut, "George Washington," there's a rawness to the acting in "The Myth of the American Sleepover" that gives it its uneven, lifelike rhythms. Some of the supporting characters are a bit wobbly, but Mitchell's main cast feels so natural that they don't seem to be either acting or consciously not acting. These young performers don't convince you that they're born actors, which is a compliment. They might as well be these characters; there's no sense that they're bringing anything to the proceedings other than themselves. (Also, unlike a lot of teen dramas, these people actually look young enough to be teens.)
There are no major revelations or surprises in "The Myth of the American Sleepover," and beyond a few cursory words about what it "means" to be a teenager, there's also no attempt on Mitchell's part to impart any wisdom or grand insights. But in its modest way, this is a sneaky little movie that feels like it came from the heart without being autobiographical in a way that makes you wonder if the filmmaker is trying to exorcise some demons or settle old scores. Everyone's high school experience is different, which makes it difficult for any one film to perfectly capture what that influential time is like in a person's life. (And when they do, they often try to pack the film with stereotypes -- the jock, the nerd, the cheerleader -- so that they hit all demographics.) By comparison, "The Myth of the American Sleepover" is just its own tiny story. This is a minor film, but it's done so well it feels somewhat major. Like the characters in Mitchell's movie, you wonder where the filmmaker will go from here. And in both cases, you hope for the best.
Grade: B+
