4 Star

Mayo Bacon, Pork Chops and Popcorn.

From the one-man movie machine that is the writer, producer, director, and editor Kevin Smith (Max Reload and the Nether Blasters, Madness in the Method FrightFest 2019, Clerks III, Clerks I, Clerks II, Dogma, Chasing Amy) brings us his sixteenth movie that is semi-autobiographical, which takes us back to the summer of 1986, when the music was cool, the weather was hot, and it was that time of life when things take an abrupt turn in your views of the World, and those you choose to spend it with.

May 25th 1986 and Brian David (Austin Zajur, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, The Fallout) is dreaming of the previous summer, where he and the girl he is enamoured with, Melody Barnegat (Siena Agudong, Fast & Furious 9, No Good Nick (TV Series)) made out in her pool, as he goes to buy the latest edition of Starlog.

As usual, he plans to spend the day at the Atlantic Cinema, with his two friends Belly (Reed Northrup, High Maintenance (TV Series), Teenage Euthanasia (TV Series)) and Burny (Nicholas Cirillo, Outer Banks (TV Series), She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (TV Series)), who want to see the R-rated film Bucklick despite the fact that they are all underage.

But today is going to be different from all the other weekends that have come before, as Brian finally, after a year, plucked up the courage to phone Melody and asked her out on a date to see the four-thirty movie Bucklick. He is over-the-moon that she said yes.

The lads have a plan to see the R-rated Bucklick, first they watch Astro Blaster and the Beaver Men (Logic, Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw (soundtrack), Suicide Squad (soundtrack)) & (Diedrich Bader, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Office Space), then sneak into the other screen to watch Bucklick and later see the other R-rated movie Dental School. All this stealth watching has to be done by not attracting the attention of the cinema manager Mike (Ken Jeong, Penguins Of Madagascar, The Hangover Part III, Occupation Rainfall).

But the idea of a girl coming into the mix does not sit well with Burny, who would rather clean his battered old truck three times a day than spend time with a girl, never mind the diminutive Melody Barnegat.

Before the trio sets out for the Atlantic, provisions are supplied by Mrs B (Betty Aberlin, Dogma, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood (TV Series)), as she makes Belly Mayo bacon, which everybody is very interested in.

When they get to the opening show, the tickets for Astro Blaster… That’s when their troubles begin. Will Burny and David get to see eye-to-eye over the issue of Melody, and will they get to see the movies they plan to, and will Melody and David get to be an item. Well, you’ll just have to spend the eighty-eight minute of this joyous teen coming of age movie to find out.

If you have never heard of Kevin Smith, you’re in for a fun teen comedy that will have you feeling fulfilled when you finish watching (make sure you watch to the end of the credits), also if you are a long time Kevin Smith fan, (we are) then this is just packed full of Easter-eggs that will have you watching this time and time again, when it comes available on Altitude.film and other digital platforms on the 21st October.