Everybody Wants Some!! is a Spiritual 1980s sequel

Left to right: Blake Jenner plays Jake and Zoey Deutch plays Beverly in Everybody Wants Some from Paramount Pictures and Annapurna Pictures.

Writer-drector Richard Linklater returns to the big screen in the form of Everybody Wants Some!!, a spiritual sequel of sorts to his 1993 film, Dazed and Confused.

Set during the 1980s on a college campus, Linklater brings together a cast that includes Will Brittain, Zoey Deutch, Ryan Guzman, Tyler Hoechlin, Blake Jenner, J. Quinton Johnson, Glen Powell, Wyatt Russell, Austin Amelio, Temple Baker, Tanner Kalina, Juston Street, and Forrest Vickery.

Jenner stars as Jake, a pitcher who is starting his freshman year at the Texas school. He moves into campus as the film begins and we follow his caveats during his first weekend as a college student.

It’s a nice change of pace from the past few Linklater films, which have tended to fall along the dramatic lines more so than the comedy. It’s a sports comedy that’s more along the lines of Animal House than the typical Will Ferrell sports comedy. It works so well between the college setting and the baseball focus.

We’re introduced early on to Deutch’s Beverly but it’s not until an hour into the film in which we see what becomes of her character. It’s not that she’s underused but it would have been interesting to see what could have happened if they paid off on it earlier than one hour into the movie.

Linklater is one of those directors who never ceases to fail and he brought his nostalgic A game for Everybody Wants Some!! It’s easily one of the best movies to have opened this weekend and a countless number of actors will certainly be glad that they did this movie.

Danielle Solzman

Danielle Solzman is native of Louisville, KY, and holds a BA in Public Relations from Northern Kentucky University and a MA in Media Communications from Webster University. She roots for her beloved Kentucky Wildcats, St. Louis Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, and Boston Celtics. Living less than a mile away from Wrigley Field in Chicago, she is an active reader (sports/entertainment/history/biographies/select fiction) and involved with the Chicago improv scene. She also sees many movies and reviews them. She has previously written for Redbird Rants, Wildcat Blue Nation, and Hidden Remote/Flicksided. From April 2016 through May 2017, her film reviews can be found on Creators.

Leave a Reply