15 Best Movies Of 2019 (So Far)

2. Booksmart

Completing the trifecta of game-changing coming-of-age movies, following Lady Bird and Eighth Grade, Booksmart is perhaps the perfect blend of both of their styles. Like those films, Olivia Wilde’s debut retains the raw authenticity that puts other flicks in the sub-genre to shame, while still delivering a conventional comedy that has mass appeal, aesthetically skewing closer to Superbad than Wilde’s indie roots.

Leads Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein bounce off each other brilliantly, both displaying great comedic timing but also the huge emotional range required for the more dramatic sequences. The relationship between their characters feels so truthful, and it’s refreshing to see a friendship like this played out without the underlying bitchiness that Hollywood loves to focus on.

It’s also far weirder than you’d expect as well, with one Barbie-related set-piece acting as a hilarious highlight.

[JB]