My pants is tight!

After having an amazingly terrible day at work, I decided to cheer myself up by going to Tinseltown and watching a random movie. There were really only two movies that I wanted to see– Step Brothers, the new Will Ferrell comedy, and The Wackness, starring Josh Peck and Olivia Thirlby (pictured above). After having read reviews of Step Brothers, though, I went with the latter, and absolutely glad that I did.

The Wackness is about a kid who sells ganj from an ice cream cart (a clever cover, but what happens when someone actually wants ice cream?) in early-nineties New York. The story is your typical coming-of-age tale– guy falls for girl, guy seeks advice from wiser character, other things happen that create conflict, guy learns and grows from conflict, guy accepts himself and his environment. Despite the typical story, though, writer/director Jonathan Levine manages to create an incredibly rich world with deep characters.

Josh Peck plays Luke, a troubled kid with a Jason Priestly haircut and permanently gaping face. Luke sells marijuana up and down the streets of New York, a job that introduces him and the audience to a plethora of interesting characters, including Ben Kingsley’s Dr. Squires, a shrink who accepts Luke’s weed in exchange for therapy time. Luke’s family is about to get evicted from their apartment, but, more importantly, he can’t seem to get laid. He also doesn’t have a lot of friends, so he befriends Squires.

Squires has problems of his own– he’s in a lifeless marriage (with Famke Janssen, rawr), and his stepdaughter is kind of a hussie. He initially accepts Luke’s friendship as he finds that he can live his life through Luke, telling him to get out and meet girls and have sex in public and drink and do drugs– all the things he did growing up, but stopped as he got older and accepted his fate as an adult. Like Luke, Squires is alone in the world, an old-school party dude longing for the times when you could do blow and have sex with a prostitute in Times Square and not get thrown in jail.

Luke, on the other hand, is just looking for something to do. It’s the beginning of the summer, everyone from his high school is off on vacation or getting ready for college, and he’s at home, daydreaming about ladies. Fortunately for him, there’s Stephanie (played by Olivia Thirlby, who you may remember as Juno’s best friend), a free-spirited beauty who also doesn’t have summer plans and just happens to be one of Luke’s regulars. She’s also Squires’ stepdaughter. Stephanie, intrigued by Luke’s profession, decides to join him on one of his rounds and slowly begins to fall for him… but not as much as he does for her.

What follows, again, is your typical “young man learns about love and life” fare– the relationship takes a wrong turn, things go awry, guy learns from experiences. What makes this film work, for me, is the amazing work by the actors as well as the setting of the story.

Peck does a great job as Luke, playing a believable street kid while perfectly knocking out rap vernacular like a true hip hop head. Nothing makes me cringe more than seeing poorly written “urban” characters acting like they’re from “the streets” (I’m looking at you, entire cast of Step Up 2: The Streets). Kingsley does a good job as Squires, channeling his inner Robin Williams (circa Good Will Hunting) to portray Luke’s unlikely friend and confidant (at times, if you close your eyes, you can feel Robin Williams playing this part). Thirlby is fine as Luke’s love interest, playing the attractive neighborhood girl (but not too attractive, which added to the realism of the story). The rest of the characters, including Jannsen as Squires’ unsatisfied wife, Mary-Kate Olsen as a flower child and love interest for Squires, and rapper Method Man as Percy, Josh’s supplier, are aptly played and help build the world that Luke and Dr. Squires inhabit.

Their world is 1994 New York, a time of urban renewal and some incredible hip hop music. Mayor Giuliani has begun to rid the streets of drugs and sex, creating conflict for Squires’ character (who is actively, but unsuccessfully, trying to commit adultery) while forcing Luke to use his wits to hide his business from the cops.

Music also plays a large role in the film. A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, Biggie, and the Wu-Tang Clan are all featured in the soundtrack, creating Josh’s primary means of escape from his troubles while also acting as a symbol of acceptance/friendship (watch for frequent mixtape-sharing among characters). In one scene, Percy (Method Man) plays Luke a track from Notorious BIG’s classic “Ready to Die” album which features Method Man. Little nods like that to 90s hip hop were fantastic, as were other references to the era (90210, Zima, NES, mushroom cuts). In a hilarious scene, Squires tries to run from the cops by pumping up his Reeboks and shouting “Time to Gump!” I’m totally biased, though, as a lover of Illmatic-era hip hop and child of the 90s (I grew up on Full House and snap-on bracelets).

The cinematography was also well done– the entire film has a hazy, unfocused look to it, which adds to the feeling of uncertainty that plague both Luke and Squires (Luke, unsure of his own future and his relationship with Stephanie; and Squires, of his marriage). My only criticism was there were a few too many close-up shots– Levine could have achieved conversational intimacy through other means. I found myself coming out of my “movie zone” every time I saw Peck’s gape or Kingsley’s forehead pimple.

Otherwise, The Wackness was dope, and gets my thumbs up.

The Wackness is out now, and is playing at Tinseltown (for all you Vancouver peeps). Check Cinemaclock for showtimes.