The Edge of Seventeen

The Edge of Seventeen is compared to the work of John Hughes, because it's destined to be a classic teens will look to for solace.

Every decade has its cult teen movie. Thirty-two years ago, it was Sixteen Candles. For the '90s, it was Clueless. The early aughts had Mean Girls. Now we have The Edge of Seventeen.

The Edge of Seventeen, the feature debut from writer Kelly Fremon Craig, stands out above the countless other teenage movies from recent years by virtue of its honesty and realism.

Steinfeld begins her performance at fever pitch, then cranks it up. It's an astonishing high-wire act, one of the most sustained and perceptive and complete performances I've seen in years.

It's a little winner.

Hormonal strife is seldom this joyous, and the tremendous verbal sparring between Steinfeld and Harrelson brings a modern, post-ironic gloss to the rat-a-tat delivery of Golden Age Hollywood comedy.

The performances are all captivating. Outside of some tonal inconsistencies with the Erwin (Hayden Szeto) character, there’s not much to dislike about The Edge of Seventeen.

What’s so wonderful about this film is that Craig explores all of Nadine’s flaws, insecurities, naiveté, and particularly her self-loathing. In doing so she paints a fully-fleshed out portrait of teen girldom in flux.

A challenging and confronting view of teendom, anchored by an astounding performance by Hailee Steinfeld. The trick is to view the film from Nadine's dark, cynical, depressed perspective.

Kelly Fremon Craig’s film — about a girl at risk of losing her best friend — is funny and wise.