I’ve been suspicious of the 2011 film, Young Adult, and so resisted seeing it at the theatre.  The other day, though, I watched it on DVD and realized my suspicion was justified.

The movie is about a successful but extremely impractical–in fact, mentally ill–woman called Mavis Gary, impeccably acted by Charlize Theron. The screenplay flops:  it is written in such a way as to suggest that the author–Diablo Cody–is settling a score.  The compassion she bestows on Mavis at the end is simply compassion Cody has for herself.  Or so it seems.

Moreover, there is a scene with a fellow in a wheelchair which is essentially stupid, and a mildly upbeat conclusion to the film which is nothing but phony.  Diablo Cody did a good job on the script for Juno, but director Jason Reitman, a valuable filmmaker, shouldn’t have bothered with this one.

Charlize Theron (Photo credit: Wikipedia)