I initially avoided this movie because I don't really appreciate Pete Davidson's brand of humor and I also don't think he is a very good actor. As it turns out I was making a bad mistake by being biased like this because his portrayal of "Zeke" in this film was not only a perfect role for him, but it also kind of touched base with something that I think all of us can probably relate to in one way or another based on our own childhoods.
I say that most people can relate to this because there is probably a "Zeke" that we can all recall from our own childhoods and adolescence. Zeke is a seriously cool guy and is admired by a bunch of people because of the legendary status that he achieved in high school and how he is seen as the go-to guy for wild times and parties in the community that he lives in. Unfortunately for Zeke, there is a lot of bad things that come along with being the walking party-guy in that the party has to end at some point and what is left is a person who doesn't really have much in the way of a future.
Zeke ends up befriending a much younger kid named "Mo" when Zeke was dating his older sister. Zeke acted like an older brother to Mo and was really kind to him and took him out on dates with his sister. Mo takes to Zeke and looks up to him so even after Zeke and his sister break up, Mo seeks out Zeke and wants to hang with him even though his sister is now out of the picture.
Zeke looks after Mo and takes him to do all sorts of fun things and even lets Mo come by his house whenever he feels like it because he is a nice guy. This is not a great environment for an intelligent high-school student though because Mo has a real academic future. Zeke doesn't intentionally get Mo involved in drugs and alcohol and actually keeps him away from it for the most part, at least at first. As time goes by Mo becomes one of the gang though, and this has terribly detrimental impact on his lfe.
Zeke teaches Mo how to act "cool" and how to get in with the more popular kids simply by becoming a low-level drug dealer. His popularity skyrockets and he starts to enjoy all the attention he is getting from being a bit of a superstar because he is now the kid everyone wants to know and invite to parties.
Mo doesn't realize it, like most impressionable young kids wouldn't, that even though Zeke is a really fun person compared to his regimented life around his other friends and family, but Zeke is a terrible influence that even though he seems happy on the outside, he is a self-destructed lowlife that becomes more and more doomed-to-fail as time goes on. This is hinted at in the kind of friends that he has hanging around his house whose only objective in life seems to be to get high or drunk and play videogames. One of these friends is brilliantly portrayed by Machine Gun Kelly, who I was really impressed with in this.
The story carries on about how you would expect, with Mo eventually getting into more and more trouble. The pinnacle of which is foreshadowed in the opening scene of the movie where Mo is being arrested at his high school.
I think that story will be relatable to a lot of people because when I was in high school or even later in college there were a few people that would hang around that were a lot of fun and I didn't realize it at the time but those men and women really shouldn't be attempting to influence teenagers lives since they have clearly really screwed up their own. I remember people like that from my own past and some time later I would look them up and find out that they never managed to accomplish anything with their lives and are now terribly pathetic and quite depressed.
Zeke is the embodiment of this type of person and actually, he is on the cusp in this movie of being someone that is finally starting to realize that his poor choices in life are going to be his undoing. His coolness is starting to wear off and he has to take it in stride when he also realizes that he really shouldn't be hanging out with Mo anymore even though this makes him feel terrible about himself because he comes to the realization that he is a loser, and he is going to make anyone that clings on to him a loser as well.
Should I watch it?
If you are shying away from this one for the same reason that I did, a kind of disdain for Pete Davidson... think again. This is one of the better films that I have seen in the past several months and I believe that most people will enjoy it. Even if you never did know a "Zeke" in your own life, you probably are aware of their existence and Pete, as a man-child himself, is the perfect person to take on such a role. I hope that he will pursue more low-key comedies in the future because he is actually a pretty fantastic serious actor.
