Dazed and Confused - R

Fun, but plenty of drug use with very little consequence.

Rating: R for language, violence, and drugs. Studio: Universal Studios Directed By: Richard Linklater Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Jeremy London, Wiley Wiggins Running Time: 103 minutes Release Date: 01/01/1993 Genre: Comedy

Common Sense Note

Parents should know that this movie features drug use and petty vandalism with little consequence. Overindulgence in alcohol leads to a fistfight, and overindulgence in pot-smoking leads to stupidity, but casual use of both results in an alluring sense of camaraderie.

DAZED AND CONFUSED can seem refreshingly honest to a teen who has been told "drugs and alcohol are pure evil" but has seen otherwise. For this reason, it's all the more important for families to discuss the deleterious effects of drug and alcohol use not depicted in the film. Where are Randall and Mitch likely to be 5 or 10 years after the close of this movie? How often do high school kids party like this? What has changed since the 1970s, in terms of the enforcement of drug laws and our knowledge of the long-term effects of drug and alcohol use?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Elliot Panek

A classic coming-of-age tale that paints an unapologetically rosy picture of high school in the 1970s, DAZED AND CONFUSED manages to thoroughly entertain without saying much besides "boy, those were the days." Though conflict arises when characters briefly contemplate what comes after the last day of school, the film does not let such serious moments complicate the good time they experience.

To anyone who has seen American Graffiti, the formula will seem familiar -- a night in the life of a group of suburban high school kids with nothing better to do than cruise around town, drink, and fall in love. The sub-plots of the film are flimsy and clichéd. Mitch, the bullied freshman, takes revenge on the bully, portrayed with scary conviction by a young Ben Affleck. The star quarterback, Randall "Pink" Floyd, is forced to choose between his allegiance to the team and his allegiance to his friends. As with the rest of Richard Linklater's work, the film is more about contemplating a moment in time than it is about drama or suspense.

DAZED AND CONFUSED helped to kick off the nostalgic preoccupation with the 1970s that continues to plague pop culture. This is not to say that the film is an empty paean to the era of bellbottoms and bongs. While DAZED AND CONFUSED is no doubt a 70s idyll, it owes its lasting popularity to spot-on depictions of timeless suburban rites of passage. The joy that Mitch experiences from transcending social barriers that seem etched in stone is contagious. With nearly every teenager on television caught up in a different brow-furrowing crisis each week, it's nice to be reminded that, on occasion, high school can be fun.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Several references to sex.
Violence A fist-fight, several paddlings, and gun fired.
Language Frequent cursing.
Message
	Social Behavior Meanness is frowned upon, being laid-back rewarded.
	Commercialism The soundtrack is as popular as the film.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Extensive use of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana with little negative effects.