Many people view turning 21 as one of the last steps to becoming an adult. It’s that gleeful moment of being able to order your first drink without any legal ramifications that leads many to eagerly await their 21st birthday. Unfortunately, “21 and Over” fails to capture the excitement that usually surrounds such an occasion, but still manages to breath new life into the tired genre.
The film starts with the reunion of two high school best friends Miller (Miles Teller) and Casey (Skylar Astin), who are heading out to celebrate their friend Jeff Chang’s (Justin Chon) 21st birthday. Their plans get turned around when they learn of Chang’s important med-school interview the following morning at 8 a.m. The decision to only have one drink quickly escalates a night of absolute chaos, leaving Casey and Miller stumbling around town running into a series of absurd situations.
The movie draws clear inspiration from “The Hangover” series, and if you enjoy those movies then you’ll probably find a lot to love out of “21 and Over”. Coming from the same writers as “The Hangover” (Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, who also have their directorial debut with this film) the atmosphere of the film is instantly familiar. The movie is perfectly aware of what it wants to do and that’s for the better.
The movie has plenty of crazy moments and offensive jokes, but the problem is they come too fast. The audience is not given enough time for the joke to settle in before the movie is already setting up the next one. While some of the jokes are funny they lack creativity or intelligence. This type of comedy certainly has its moments, but that means it lacks the originality of other recent comedies.
All of the roles are acted well enough. Teller gives a fantastic performance as Miller, the group’s slacker whose primary interest is himself. And he has good chemistry with Astin’s Casey, who is the serious counterpart to Miller. Sadly, Chon fails to deliver as Jeff Chang. His on-screen romance with Nicole (Sarah Wright) just feels forced in this film. At first these characters seemed like simple archetypes, they had no depth and for the first 45 minutes I cared very little for them. Then something weird happened.
The movie has a very good sense of arc for the characters, with a dark “twist” happening halfway through the movie completely changing the way the characters react towards each other. It really feels like the characters grow by the end. This helps as the movie takes a tonal shift in the last act, focusing less on comedy and more on character drama. The characters really help make the movie stand out, and are easily the best part of the film.
The jokes in “21 and Over” get eclipsed by the movies it draws its inspiration from. While a small handful stand out, you won’t remember most by the time you leave the theater. Still, the movie manages to create its own identity thanks to a nice twist and strong characterization. Some will love it for this, and some will hate it because of this.
