Well Deserved Praise

Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

Small town teenage nerd in 1956 Ohio befriends his new neighbor, a motorcycle-riding smoothie transplanted from Chicago who helps the virginal straight-arrow score with the pretty girl he's got a secret crush on. Brightly-colored autobiographical nostalgia from screenwriter Noel Black (who directed "Pretty Poison") plays like an R-rated version of TV's "Happy Days". Familiar scenario comes complete with a bullying jock, trouble at the drive-in movie, a chicken race with dad's car, sneaking out of a second-floor window down the trellis and--that old stand-by--teenage drivers hitting a fire hydrant (two separate times!). The jukebox tunes, vintage cars and teen sex may be enough to hold interest for some viewers, though these unoriginal characters merit no real interest. *1/2 from ****

There is not much of a story or character development in this movie. The movie leaves you with no clear idea what the real characters of the 4-5 protagonists really are. It gives you not much of a reason to identify with any of them. We don't learn who these people really are, where and how things had started and what they had been doing with their lives aside from the fact that the nerd used to dream about the hottie and the jock is wandering around with no reason. We can forgive the poor beginning in the hopes of an interesting story would follow. Then when the story doesn't improve and becomes interesting over time, this time you would at least start to expect the movie to move faster and see where it goes. But this doesn't materialize, either. Despite the story is poor, pacing is still slow. There is not even enough conversation between the characters as you would expect in this type of movie. And the other characters aside from the 4-5 protagonists had nothing to contribute. The 50s feeling of the movie which is the background setting, drive-in movie theaters, Eisenhower and James Dean references, the classic cars, dresses, the charm of the two leading actresses and the major supporting actor and the lovely soundtrack saves the movie. SPOILERS: Especially since the writer didn't bother to build a bond between the nerd and the jock first, the jock's suddenly befriending the nerd and decide in the first day of their acquaintance to shoulder all his problems ends up appearing totally unconvincing. And even though the main theme is suggested to be that, the jock doesn't seem to teach and the nerd doesn't seem to learn and try interesting ways to get the girl to give us an interesting story. So the hottie suddenly liking the nerd and sleeping with him even without any effective effort from the nerd aside from appearing even more bumbling and goofy on the way is also unconvincing. One couldn't understand why and how the hottie would go out with the nerd here. A guy with no confidence, no looks. Not even academic record or nervous but sincere advances by him towards her which the hottie might appear to find cute like we see on many nerd&hottie movies. And it's a pity that even after sleeping with her, even though he still likes her, the nerd still couldn't get some confidence to start a relationship with her, so remains passive and so get dumped by her despite she had asked him out for the prom.

"Mischief" started out as just another teen sex comedy, but I found myself sticking with it because of the characters. It rides the raunchy waves into a pretty good teen movie; people grow, relationships fall apart, others strengthen, it's nice. In its favor, it does feature the gorgeous Catherine Mary Stewart, Jami Gertz and Kelly Preston (the latter of whom has one of the most stunning nude scenes I've ever witnessed), and such beauty is no laughing matter.But the movie's greatest asset is its brilliantly realized small- town period. They didn't just set the film in Nelsonville, Ohio, they actually shot it there (how many movies set in Ohio actually film there?). Lends unbelievable authenticity to the time and place. The art department really nailed the malt shop and signage. And with that soundtrack, chock-full of '50s songs, it's like time-traveling without a flux capacitor. That level of immersion just doesn't happen everyday.7/10

The title and DVD cover, as well as the first few scenes of Mischief, may give the wrong impression: it's not a sexy-hi-jinx comedy in the vein of Porky's or other such movies made in the 80's. Rather, it's a nostalgic coming of age film, the legitimate spiritual successor of American Graffiti and The Last Picture Show, even if it's decisively more light-hearted and sexy than those films. While the characters in Mischief are based on familiar stereotypes, none of them are flat caricatures - Jonathan isn't a nerd but a very realistic shy, reserved boy of 17, and Gene is a slick, cool Don Juan but he also has the problems and insecurities of a teenager. Likewise, while the plot hangs tightly unto many clichés of the 50's-set teen comedy, it has enough heart and soul to set itself apart, to grab the viewer and make him care about the characters, who fill real and full. While it's not a masterpiece and it's very much a product of its time, Mischief is one of the better teen sex comedies of the 80's and a surprisingly mature and touching film that's still well worth seeing.