Elvis
- The anachronistic setting of 90s music and fashion-obsessed geeks in a present-day narrative is disorienting in a fun way. It helps ties this movie to its predecessors in a cool organic way. Love the clothes, the haircuts, and the BMX bicycles.
- The central characters are young and out of their depths, but resourceful. Great place to be for fictional characters.
- If you’re going to have your lead characters playing in a band, make sure their music is fun, or good. Awreeoh—the band in this movie—is both.
- Shameik Moore could go on to be a leading man with charisma to spare. He plays the geek-turned-playa with just the right amount of quiet swagger.
- Zoë Kravitz fulfills the qualities of an unattainable yet cool love interest admirably well.
- Chanel Iman’s turn as Lily is the stuff of Internet memes (both in the movie and on the Internet at large). It takes a certain level of IDGAF to commit to a role like that.
- The stakes are high enough that we are interested but never so monumental that the outcome can only be grimmer than the darkest night. That is a tough balance to maintain in a movie of this kind.
- Without getting too Straight Outta Compton about it, this film shows that the streets aren’t entirely safe for kids of colour in certain neighourhoods.
- Writer/director Rick Famuyiwa’s handling of the material: his auteur’s touch is all over this movie but it is feather light, and doesn’t get in the way of our enjoyment of the goings-on onscreen.
- It reminds me of a John Hughes movie, in the best way possible.
