Smartass (2017)

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

A Teen road move almost good as Superbad! Insane and nonsense. Just like life.

But set in California. Without any wit, heart or humor. But with a lead actress so terribly miscast you can almost see her wanting to apologize after every F bomb she drops. We follow her over one night trying to navigate her way around various gangland/underworld perils to get back to the safety of her drug dealing pals. She gets involved in lots of nefarious druggy activities which are all blandly scripted and ludicrous to watch. You need to have an actor who goes at this film full throttle. And with this script that means nudity, a convincing nastiness to their character and someone who knows how to smoke and take drugs realistically on screen. Former teen nickleodeon star joey king is not that actress. This film is an utter failure. Even the casual violence and constant racial insults and slurs became boring to watch after about 15 minutes. By 20 minutes in i was aching to turn this off. But somehow i stuck it out to the end.

Fans of films like Love and a .45, Natural Born Killers, Killing Zoe, Spun, and those other niche crime thrillers will find quite a delight in this film. Characters are charmingly broken, quick witted, and often borderline sociopaths, but all with seemingly redeeming qualities that won't leave you feeling too guilty for identifying with them, even if just for a moment.While the titular character often comes off as trying too hard in the role, and there are some snarky bits that feel somehow off, the film is a chaotic thrill ride with interesting characters and story. One part cautionary tale, one part ride-on-the-wild-side, there's enough here to keep just about any fan of the genre occupied.

**Spoilers**So the protagonist, 15 y/o "Freddy" brings together two rival gangs, one of which wanted to gang rape her until she escaped, to rob another passing stranger that wronged her. And this after walking all night. And witnessing a murder and multiple shootings. And smoking crack for the first time. Jena Serbu's the one smoking crack.