Amid a flurry of lazily written, unfunny, premise-squandering studio comedies, inspired first-time director Olivia Wilde burst into multiplexes with a debut feature that proved the genre isn’t dead just yet.
Anchored by Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever’s incredible on-screen chemistry in the roles of Molly and Amy, Booksmart was the funniest comedy in years, but as the story of a close friendship put to the test on one pivotal night, it also had some surprisingly heartfelt and emotionally resonant moments. Here are 5 scenes in Booksmart that made us laugh out loud, and 5 that hit us in the feels.
Laugh Out Loud: Amy And Molly Race Across Town To Their Graduation
On the morning of their graduation, Molly busts Amy out of jail by trading some information to the cops about a pizza delivery guy they encountered who turned out to be a wanted criminal.
Then, the pair race across town to get to the ceremony. Beautifully shot, this sequence made for an exhilarating climax to the movie.
Hit Us In The Feels: Molly Overhears Her Classmates Making Fun Of Her
Early on in Booksmart, Molly goes into the unisex bathroom and overhears some of her classmates making fun of her. When she comes out of the stall, it creates an awkward atmosphere.
But she expects the bullying. What she’s really horrified to discover is that all the kids who are mocking her also got into great colleges, crushing the feeling of victory she had.
Laugh Out Loud: “Shotgun! Just Kidding. I Don't Have One.”
When the cops show up at the party, Amy proves that she’s a lot braver and bolder than everybody thinks when she gets herself arrested to distract the officers for long enough for the other partygoers to slip out the back.
The next morning, Molly sees a video someone shot on their phone of her best friend getting taken to a police car in handcuffs. In the video, Amy jokes, “Shotgun! Just kidding. I don’t have one.”
Hit Us In The Feels: Molly Realizes Triple-A Isn’t So Bad
After her big fight with Amy, Molly starts walking home. Triple-A pulls up alongside her and invites her into the car. Having been mocked by her earlier in the day, Molly is understandably reluctant to take the ride, but she eventually gets in the car. Triple-A talks about how she ended up getting her nickname, and how it’s possible to be sexually active and get good grades.
The message in this movie is that everyone in high school, no matter how popular they are or how smart they are, is just a human being who’s going through some heavy stuff as they come of age. When Molly gets in Triple-A’s car, she realizes that.
Laugh Out Loud: Amy’s Parents Snuggle With Her Stuffed Panda
Booksmart features a handful of hysterical supporting performances complementing its stellar leading duo. Lisa Kudrow and Will Forte, for example, are terrific as Amy’s parents, from their over-the-top attempts to seem okay with her sexuality to their assumptions that Molly is her lover.
In one of the final scenes, as Amy is packing to go to Botswana, she and Molly watch in horror as her parents snuggle up to the stuffed panda she masturbates with.
Hit Us In The Feels: Amy Dives Into The Pool
It’s a cathartic moment when Amy first dives into the pool. She leaves Molly’s side and breaks off on her own and embraces the night. But then, when she comes back up to the surface, she sees Ryan (the girl she likes) making out with Nick (the guy Molly likes).
Just when things were going well, after a long night of both physical and mental obstacles, Amy’s newfound freedom and happiness came crashing down.
Laugh Out Loud: Principal Brown Pitches His Novel To Amy And Molly
When Amy and Molly order a Lyft driver to take them to the party, they’re surprised to discover that the driver is their principal, Jordan Brown (played by director Olivia Wilde’s fiancé, Jason Sudeikis). As he drives them to their destination, he pitches a novel he’s been writing about a pregnant female detective whose baby kicks whenever she finds a clue.
He expects the girls to give him a pat on the back for pandering to female readers with a novel about a pregnant detective: “It’s about a female detective! How about that?”
Hit Us In The Feels: Amy And Molly’s Argument
Whenever Amy or Molly wants the other to follow their lead, no questions asked, they can call “Malala.” We’re left to figure out the meaning of “Malala” from context: they’re using the name of an inspirational contemporary feminist hero to convey the seriousness of a situation. Molly calls “Malala” on Amy early in the night, and Amy doesn’t hesitate to comply.
But later in the movie, after Amy sees her crush making out with Molly’s crush and calls her own “Malala,” Molly refuses to leave. This leads to a huge fight where all the hidden problems in their relationship come to a head.
Laugh Out Loud: The Barbie Trip
When Olivia Wilde signed on to direct Booksmart, one of the first ideas that she brought to the table was a bad drug trip during which Amy and Molly would hallucinate a transformation into Barbie dolls. The real horror is that Amy finds she enjoys having an idealized figure.
The stop-motion animation in this scene is spectacular, paid off hilariously when the other partygoers see the two walking around like Barbie dolls with bent elbows and straight legs, freaking out as they flee the house.
Hit Us In The Feels: Molly Says Goodbye To Amy
In the final scene of Booksmart, Molly drives Amy to the airport, ready to fly off for a year of humanitarian work in Botswana.
Over the course of this movie, we’ve seen how close the bond between these two characters is – due in no small part to Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever’s palpable chemistry as lifelong best friends – so watching them say their farewells to each other (even if Amy returns to go for pancakes a few seconds later) is really bittersweet.