Cast: Jason London, Wiley Wiggins, Rory Cochrane, Michelle Burke, Sasha Jenson
Director: Richard Linklater
Producers: James Jacks, Sean Daniel, and Richard Linklater
Screenplay: Richard Linklater
Cinematography: Lee Daniel
U.S. Distributor: Gramercy Pictures
At one time or another, a movie is made about every generation. Dazed and Confused is for the survivors of the 1970s: that group of Americans who came of age when bellbottoms, love beads, mantras, and marijuana were the fashion, drinking and driving hadn't become taboo, and safe sex was used only to avoid pregnancy or VD. As the United States reached her bicentennial, Vietnam was over -- if the memories still lingered -- and the short-lived disco craze was building to a frenzy that Saturday Night Fever would both exploit and exacerbate.
This movie begins on the last day of the 1975-76 school year, and finishes less than twenty-four hours later. For Randy "Pink" Floyd (Jason London) and his friends, it's the end of their tenure as high school juniors, and with the final bell of the last period, they have reached the ultimate goal for teenagers -- they are seniors. At the local junior high school, Mitch Kramer (Wiley Wiggins) and his cohorts have a serious problem to consider. They are members of the incoming freshman class and, as part of a time-honored tradition, they are about to be totally and painfully humiliated by the new seniors.
Dazed and Confused explores the beginning of the 1976 summer from the varying perspectives of an unusual group of characters. Just about every type is represented: the timid nerd looking for a way to break out of his shell, the mindless jock, the overaged twentysomething guy who likes hanging out with teenagers, the blond bombshell, the stoned-out-of-his mind pot addict, and the timid newcomer. Writer/director Richard Linklater (Slackers) is only partially successful in his attempts to avoid making his characters into caricatures. Most of what works with the youthful population of Dazed and Confused is due more to the performances of a fine cast than the writing.
There isn't much to this picture. The storyline is minimal and the characters' personalities are as hazy as the marijuana-drenched atmosphere. What Linklater does exceptionally well is open the door on an era seventeen years in the past. This is 1976, from the music and cars (which combined cost a huge chunk of the $6 million budget), to the people and their attitudes. You'd have to climb into a time machine to get a better view.
Comparisons with American Graffiti are warranted, remembering, of course, that this is the next generation. Both have similar aims, but while Graffiti's plot may have been no less insignificant than that of Dazed and Confused, its characters are better defined. At times, Linklater seems too wrapped up in getting everything right about the time period. While the directors of both films care about their protagonists, George Lucas does a better job of transferring that feeling to the audience.
The cast is one of new or barely-recognizable names and face (Michelle Burke, who went on to do Coneheads, is among the few who might tweak the memory). None of the principals can have a clear memory of 1976 (unless they're a lot older than they look), yet they play their roles like they lived through it. Most memorable of all is Wiley Wiggins' Mitch, who performs almost every scene (including one where he buys his first six-pack) with an affecting blend of charm and realism.
Dazed and Confused is irresponsible and politically incorrect, and almost worth applauding on those grounds alone. Overall, however, this is light entertainment -- nothing groundbreaking or even especially noteworthy. This film was made to celebrate a dead culture, and those who were part of it, or are merely curious, will find a path into the past through it. Unfortunately, due to the weakness of the script, they won't find anything substantial there.
© 1993 James Berardinelli