Youth in Revolt - B-

On DVD. Rated R, 89 minutes. Trailer.

Michael Cera has got to be close to the record for portraying alienated and awkward teens. In Youth in Revolt he plays his normal sensitive/smarmy character, but adds a bad boy alter ego named Francois to the repertoire. Cera stars as Nick Twisp, a lonely virginal teenager in California. His mother is an aging beauty shacked up with an idiotic truck driver played (underwhelmingly) by Zack Galifinakis. On a chance trip to the beach, Nick meets Sheeni and falls in love immediately only to have several obstacles thrown up between the two. He develops an alter ego named Francois that prods Nick to be more aggressive and reckless to achieve his goals. Click below for more on YIR:

As Nick starts breaking the law and his own conventions, he gets closer to Sheeni, but further from reality. Steve Buscemi, M. Emmett Walsh and Justin Long make quality appearances along the way, each providing decent support to the film.

There are several funny sequences and smart lines in the film (I laughed out loud at the reference to John Muir). The film also does a decent job capturing what it is to be an adolescent male. The film is extremely uneven, ranging from hilarious to boring to unbelievable. It felt like it was written by 5 people.

Skip it unless you can find a Francois highlight reel.