In hopes of finally getting to have sex with girls, two teenage virgins enlist the aid of a friend with a fake ID to help them buy some booze to bring to a party.  But things go wrong, and they have a string of comic misadventures as they try to get to the party.

CRITIQUE

In the wrong hands, Superbad could have been a very dumb teen comedy, but in the hands of producer Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-old Virgin, Knocked Up) and director Greg Mottola (The Daytrippers) this works very well, bringing a freshness and life to the film.  The result is a raunchy teen comedy (due to language and sexual talk, but no nudity) that has a surprising amount of heart, and enough laughs to make it worth watching and rewatching.

Actor Seth Rogen (who plays one of the cops here) started writing this script with his friend Evan Goldberg when both were 13; it’s loosely based on their teenage years (the main characters, played by Jonah Hill and Michael Cera, are even named after them).  The script feels authentic throughout, filled with the kind of immature raunchy banter/secret fear of women that most guys of their age have, while what really holds the script together throughout is the friendship between the two main characters, who are about to head off to different colleges.

The structure is deceptively solid here, as the teens need to figure out how to get some booze, and then get to the party where the girls they like are waiting.  This basic need drives the story and its comedy throughout.  Hill and Cera are both very solid, though the scene-stealer is Christopher Mintz-Plasse, making his film debut as their friend Fogell, whose fake ID (in the name “McLovin’”) initially spins the plot and then lands him in the company of some partying cops, as his adventures are intercut with Evan and Seth’s for the bulk of the script.

The result isn’t a perfect movie.  Like Apatow’s other movies, the female roles are underwritten; someday he’ll hook up with some canny female writers, and maybe they can tell a tale like this from the female point of view for once.  A few of the cop scenes are also a bit too extreme, particularly the cops’ scene with Seth and Evan.

The extended edition only adds a few minutes to scenes here and there, and doesn’t have much impact on the movie itself.  But most of this is briskly-paced and continually funny, the actors work together well, and hopefully this helps revive the kind of R-rated teen comedy that they don’t make much any more. 

THE VIDEO

Superbad is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen.  The transfer is sharp throughout; even the nighttime scenes are well-done visually.

THE AUDIO

Siuperbad is presented in English 5.1 Dolby Digital, as well as French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital as well.  Dialogue, music and sound effects come through clear.  There are English, French and Spanish subtitles.

THE EXTRAS

As has become the custom with Apatow-produced films, this 2-Disc edition is rife with good extras.

There is an Audio Commentary featuring Judd Apatow, Greg Mottola, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Jonah Hill, Michael Cera and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  The feel is more a bunch of guys goofing around than specific commentary on the shooting of scenes, but the result is entertaining, particularly a running bit in which Hill can’t curse because Apatow’s young daughter is in the room with him.  Insight into how the film’s penis drawings had to be handled (as well as the underage Mintz-Plasse’s sex scene) is also interesting.

There are 13 minutes of Deleted and Extended Scenes, including a long excised sequence in which Seth and Evan try to steal booze from Evan’s house.

Line-O-Rama is four rapid-fire minutes of improvised one-liners that weren’t in the film.

The 4-minute Gag Reel has some amusing moments, though it’s mostly just actors laughing in the middle of scenes.

Cop Car Confessions is a fairly solid 34-minute comic collection of 13 vignettes of the cops driving around people they have arrested, played by actors including Chris Kattan, Jane Lynch, Kristen Wiig, Justin Long and Judd Apatow.

The Making of Superbad (13 minutes) has a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff, and is pretty good of its type.

The Vagtastic Voyage (1 minute) is the extended version of a porn website that briefly appears in the film, and marks the only nudity on the DVD.

There are 28 minutes of filmed Table Reads of the script, including a 5-minute chunk of Seth Rogen and Jason Segel reading the roles of Seth and Evan back in 2002; the rest of the clips are from 2006 and feature the existing cast.

There is 13 minutes of Audition Footage of Michael Cera, Jonah Hill and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  It’s interesting to see how much better they are in the actual movie.

There are four random Voicemails that Michael Cera got from Jonah Hill.

The 5-minute Snakes on Jonah consists of an animal wrangler bringing creepy-crawlies to put on Jonah Hill, who spends most of the time freaking out.

Dancing Title Sequence (3 minutes) shows Jonah and Michael being filmed for their dancing silhouettes in the opening credits.

TV Safe Lines (3 minutes) show the actors filming versions of some key scenes with dialogue that can be broadcast on TV.

Everyone Hates Michael Cera (7 minutes) is a collection of faked scenes making it look like Michael Cera is irritating and that no one wants to hang out with him on the set.

On Set Diaries (18 minutes) is a solid collection of bits filmed during production, featuring Apatow, Mottola and many of the actors.

The Music of Superbad (13 minutes) focuses on the recording studio sessions in which legendary funk musicians (led by Bootsy Collins) recorded the soundtrack for the film.

Press Junket Meltdown (4 minutes) is another faked bit in which Jonah Hill gets irritated by dumb questions and walks out during an interview with Hot Fuzz director Edgar Wright playing a British journalist.

Pineapple Express: Exclusive First Look shows a 4-minute scene from next summer’s pot comedy “Pineapple Express” starring James Franco and Seth Rogen, which Rogen and Even Goldberg also wrote.

FINAL THOUGHT

Superbad is often juvenile but always pretty fun, while this 2-disc set has a lot of good stuff on it.