Warning this post is rated R.
Superbad (2007)
Dir. Greg Mottola Written by: Seth Rogen
Starring: Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Emma Stone, Seth Rogen, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Evan: You could always subscribe to a site like Perfect Ten. I mean that could be anything, it could be a bowling site.
Seth: Yeah, but it doesn't actually show d*&k going in which is a huge concern.
Evan: Right, I didn't realize that.
Seth: Besides, have you ever seen a vagina by itself?
Evan: No.
Seth: [shakes his head] Not for me.
Seth: Yeah, but it doesn't actually show d*&k going in which is a huge concern.
Evan: Right, I didn't realize that.
Seth: Besides, have you ever seen a vagina by itself?
Evan: No.
Seth: [shakes his head] Not for me.
Superbad, Superbad why are you so supergood? Basic premise: Two about-to-graduate teenagers, Seth (Hill) and Evan (Cera), are hot-to-trot, hot and bothered, you know-*wink,wink--ready to do some recreational wrestling. The lock in on their targets and Dude-the party of the year happens and they are in or so they think. Before they can ...ahem, have some fun they must go on an important mission: LIQUOR ACQUISITION. They rally the troop(s), the self-dubbed, McLovin' and set forth to Ye Olde Liquor Store. Armed with spermicidal lube, condoms, and green beer they manage to make it to the party after a long night of battle.
If your eyebrows are raised right now and you are puzzled as to why I would add this movie to a list of potential modern Screwball. Well, one of my working theories is that the Screwball Comedy film, might not, and maybe can't, exist in the contemporary film world. But maybe elements still survive and have gone off into other diegesises (other film narratives).
Where has the Screwball couple gone? I think that because the restraints of the past have slightly lifted a non-heteronormative couple can be substituted for the traditional male-female one that was paramount. All joking aside, I would rather watch a good "Bromance" any day of the week than some of the recent spate of third-rate romantic comedies. The comedic elements are seriously lacking in many of the mainstream romcoms that I watch.
So, do Seth and Evan qualify as a Screwball couple? Yes! Absolutley and emphatically yes. They are highly dysfunctional, chronically squabbling, yet beautifully matched, loyal and equal friends.
Seth: I just wanna go to the rooftops and scream, "I love my best friend, Evan."
Evan: Let's... go on my roof.
We are at an interesting point in the Bromance-sphere, they have hit their peak, at least in my estimation. The second-rate films are up next in the queue. The Golden Age of Bromance has passed-leaving The 40-Year Old Virgin, The Hangover, and Superbad etc. to comfort us through the pale imitations of Bro-Love.
That's enough for now. I will revisit Superbad at some point in the future. Here are few asides that I happened upon...
Watching the movie for the first time I noticed the lack of the whole word: vagina, so the second time around I noted every manifestation of the word and they only said the word once, way in the beginning of the movie.
Here are my findings:
1. Vag-tastic voyage
2. Vagina
3. Vagine
4. Pussy
5. Pussy
6. Pussy*(insult)
7. Vagtastic
8. Pussy (insult)
9. Anti-poon
10. Pussy (insult)
11. Pussy (insult)
12. Vagi
13. Vag
14. Pussy (insult)
15. 2xpussy (insult)
16. pussy
17. pussy
18. pussy (insult)
19. pussy
20. man-gina
21. pussy (insult)
22. Pussies (insult)
2. Vagina
3. Vagine
4. Pussy
5. Pussy
6. Pussy*(insult)
7. Vagtastic
8. Pussy (insult)
9. Anti-poon
10. Pussy (insult)
11. Pussy (insult)
12. Vagi
13. Vag
14. Pussy (insult)
15. 2xpussy (insult)
16. pussy
17. pussy
18. pussy (insult)
19. pussy
20. man-gina
21. pussy (insult)
22. Pussies (insult)
It's has to mean something, right? The next viewing I will track the word, Penis, in an effort to be equal opportunity.
My name is Superbad but I also answer to... (from imdb.com)
| Superbad | Germany / Greece |
| Çok fena | Turkey (Turkish title) |
| Súper cool | Mexico |
| Separation Anxiety | USA (fake working title) |
| Super Baldas | Portugal |
| Super cool | Argentina |
| SuperGrave | France |
| Superbad - É Hoje | Brazil |
| Superbad - ülikõva! | Estonia |
| Superbad - Maiali dietro ai banchi | Italy (pre-release title) |
| Superbad - avagy miért ciki a szex? | Hungary |
| Supercool | Peru |
| Supergrave | Belgium (French title) |
| Supermalades | Canada (French title) |
| Supersalidos | Spain |
| Supersamiec | Poland |
| Supersugen | Sweden |
| Suxbad - Tre menti sopra il pelo | Italy |
Did you know that the pre-release in Italy's translation is: Superbad- Pigs behind the bench?
ReplyDeleteOh and the Hungary is 'why sex is embarassing'?
Translated it on google. Haha!
Why did they have a fake working title in the US?
No, I had no idea what the translations meant, I just like repeating Supercool in my head, in a terrible french accent.
ReplyDeleteA working title is used to deter fans from crashing movie sets.
Thanks for the comment:)
Hello again!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was doing research for the paper I wrote on Vulva/vaginal Reconstruction Surgery, one of the issues that I was initially interested in (particularly in reference to penile bias), was the many nicknames there are for the vulva/vagina.
I found that there were about twice as many nicknames for the vulva/vagina than there are for the penis. While watching the movie with you and reading this post, I find myself interested in finding out if things have changed since my research paper was published.
I did a generic google search for 'nicknames for vagina' and 'nicknames for penis'. A brief look shows that it is still indeed the case.
Among the things that came up in this preliminary research were
In 2008, Ibeatyou.com held an informal contest, of the trashy web kind, for the best nickname for vagina.
Women's health magazine asked their subscribers to submit their favorite nickname (this was online).
George Carlin had a list of nicknames.
In Sex and the City the girls called it 'sushi' while in Grey's Anatomy they called it 'Va-jay-jay'.
Well, I could go on and on.
In reference to Superbad and media in general, there are certainly cover up words for vagina while the penis, is usually, well, the penis.
I found this interesting in this article: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/sex/nicknames-for-private-parts-1561457 :
"Some sex researchers suggest that nicknames like these reveal cultural assumptions about the roles of men and women. You may notice, for example, that many bawdy names for penises are metaphors based on tools, weapons, predatory creatures, superheroes, and images of optimistic size (poles, towers, and so on). By contrast, vaginal nicknames connote less power or dominance, and more sweetness, passivity, or occasional w-----hood."
(I love 'Images of *optimistic size*' haha!)
OK! I will stop there!
Curious to see what the list for penis in this movie is in contrast. I will stay tuned.
Geez, Now I remember why I was the 'vagina girl'!