The critically acclaimed Eighth Grade made $13.5 million at the domestic box office, making it the 6th highest-grossing American indie of the summer. The budget remains unknown, so it’s hard to say how profitable it is, but Lionsgate is releasing the Blu-ray and DVD this week, and perhaps audiences who didn’t think an anxiety riddled portrait of early teenhood would be a fun night out will be more willing to view it from the comfort of the couch. Actual eighth graders also have an easier shot now too, as the movie was rated R for having characters talk the way eighth graders do.
Directed by comedian Bo Burnham, Eighth Grade is far from overtly funny; it’s more of a feature-length panic attack. Burnham, who got his start making YouTube videos, found his star, real eighth grader Elsie Fisher, through her YouTube videos. It may not surprise you to see that YouTube videos form the bookends of the story, as Fisher’s Kayla makes advice videos which demonstrate that she knows in theory how to navigate the teen years and tell others how to…but that putting it into practice is a much different proposition.
As the story progresses, Kayla must navigate a landscape of fickle faux-friends, uncomfortable parties, a dorky single dad, and confusion about sex that leads her to prematurely try practicing oral at home, and into a supremely uncomfortable situation with a passive-aggressive potential assaulter. But this isn’t Todd Solondz’s Welcome to the Dollhouse; Burnham wants show a light at the end of the tunnel, and the anxieties culminate in a warm hug that doubles as an assurance to the audience as well.
In the commentary track by Burnham and Fisher, and a behind-the-scenes featurette, it becomes clearer that there is definitely more intentional humor there that you might miss through all the hyperventilation of a first viewing. Burnham, still in his late twenties, is younger than one expects, and while many of us older viewers may identify with the dad character, it’s clear the director and his star find him extremely funny. Fisher also has a healthy distance from her character, and comes across extremely intelligent and analytical, like a more stable Kayla. Anyone worried for the actress’ well-being after seeing the movie will quickly realize that she was, indeed, just acting.
There’s a lot of good technical information, and explanations for all of the choices: in particular, Burnham says, he wanted to take all the cliched scenes of adolescence like a girl storming up to her room, and convey the emotional reality of why we see these things repeated so often. And watch for the scenes where Burnham’s thumb substitutes for Fisher’s in texting scenes. It’s also fun to hear director and star compare the differences between his junior high and hers, a decade or so apart, and learn that SpongeBob has been around long enough to be a common point of bonding.
The final extra on the disc is called “music video,” and it is bizarre. The music is a selection from the score, but the visuals are made up of footage from the film put through various digital skins that make it look like…remember those Stereogram posters that used to be all the rage, where you stare deeply into what looks like a mess in order for a 3D image to reveal itself? Imagine one of those in motion that keeps changing its color scheme. I imagine a psychedelic drug trip might be like this, though I’ve no firsthand knowledge. Certainly the oddest Blu-ray extra I’ve come across in quite a while.
A modest little movie that could, Eighth Grade is deceptively brilliant in the way it conveys every point of view, from the girl to the dad to even the “cool girl” who’s disappointed by the ridiculously lame birthday present Kayla gives her after being forced to attend the party. Extended/deleted scenes particularly highlight the awkward “date” at the end where Kayla awkwardly bonds over chicken nuggets with geeky new pal Gabe, and suggest a broader humor that Burnham pulled back on just to keep it real. If you have not caught this gem yet, the Blu-ray is a must-see.
