"Eighth Grade" Movie Review

By: James Southworth
Rating: 5/5 Stars

Even though I never actively followed him, I still remember all the buzz and popularity that surrounded YouTuber Bo Burnham. He was known for his original comedic music that he played on his YouTube channel. It was a simpler time in YouTube history, when video and production quality were rougher around the edges. Bo was one of the first people to get viral on YouTube. He became so well-known that he eventually left this site and became a stand up comedian, and then his interests started to go towards film. Burnham has actually directed two shorts, both of which were comedy specials of his. "Eighth Grade" is his full-length directorial debut. This movie, starring relative newcomer Elsie Fisher as Kayla, is about one introverted girl's struggles to try and survive the final week of eighth grade, as well as dealing with the pressure of transitioning into high school.

I have a hard time imagining that there won't be at least one part of this movie that a viewer can find relatable. It's incredible how viscerally accurate Bo Burnham is in depicting the middle school experience. He doesn't romanticize it at all, but he also doesn't show it in an entirely nihilistic light, which would be easy to do. We see Kayla having to deal with a lot of awkward, and sometimes even cringe worthy, issues as she is finishing her final year of middle school. But, middle school is inherently cringe worthy, so this makes sense. Whether it be Kayla trying to have a successful YouTube channel, attempting to impress a boy, wanting to make friends, navigating a relationship with her father, or understanding sex, all of it is awkward. What makes all the awkwardness work is that Burnham masterfully covers a lot of it up with a comedic touch. There are so many moments here that, in a real life situation, would be put into a "Try Not To Cringe" compilation. But, because we as audience members understand what Kayla is going through since we've been there ourselves, it comes across as funny. I particularly enjoyed watching Kayla's arc with her YouTube channel. That part almost feels like Burnham's personal love letter to YouTube, and how it gives a place for so many people to express themselves. Kayla's videos are far from perfect: they have rough video quality, she says a lot of filler words, and she has a facepalm worthy outro ("Gucci!"). What makes it all work is that it comes across as charming and honest. Finding a balance between those two extremes can be difficult. It's amazing how Burnham does it. He does the balance so well to a point where I think that a middle school aged audience should go and see this movie. Even though it's rated R, the film's frankness about the highs and lows of middle school could be a comfort for those currently experiencing middle school. They will almost certainly be able to relate to Kayla.

Speaking of Kayla, let's talk about her. Now, in many ways, this movie is about the middle school experience. That is certainly a big portion of it. But, what lies at the heart of this movie is a deep character study of this young girl. I can't go talking about Kayla without talking about Elsie Fisher's performance. Even though she has been in other films (with her being most notably known for voice acting as Agnes in the "Despicable Me" series), this is her first starring role. She has quite the demanding role to play, as the camera is almost solely focused on her throughout the film's runtime. And wow, Fisher knocks it out of the park. This is one of the best (if not the absolute best) young performances I've seen. I can confidently say it rivals that of Haley Joel Osment in "The Sixth Sense" or Amiah Miller in "War for the Planet of the Apes". Fisher demands your attention every minute she's on screen. That's because she so fully realizes every nuance of the character Kayla. It can be so easy to make an introverted character a stereotype. So many TV shows and movies have done it, either making them into a punch line or practically asking the audience "Isn't this character so relatable?" But, thanks to the combined work of Burnham's direction and Fisher's dedicated turn, this character is fleshed out in every way possible. While she is quiet and shy, I liked seeing that this character didn't want her introversion to be the thing that defined her. As someone who leans more introverted (and was definitely more socially awkward in my middle school years), I love how Fisher presented Kayla's desire to be a more social and outgoing person. The journey she goes through has a lot of bumps along the way, of course, but where it ends up is a place that's inspiring and touching. This should be something that goes without saying, but it is nice to see an actor being the actual age of the character she's playing. It gave a sense of realism to the film; she actually looked like a middle schooler. Additionally, Fisher herself could actually give her performance authenticity, since she is in- or has recently been in- eighth grade. I can't go without mentioning that Josh Hamilton also gives a pitch perfect performance as Kayla's father. He has lines that aren't necessarily funny in their own right, but the way Hamilton delivers them makes them funny. He has a natural charisma to him, and I loved every scene he shared with Fisher. The relationship Kayla and her father go through is so sweet, and once again, feels real. There's not a moment between them that rings false, which makes their arc together all the more realized.

I mentioned the deft balance Burnham puts between honesty and comedy earlier, but I wanted to talk about it more specifically here. Pretty much all of the subjects here are addressed in comedic moments and more honest, sometimes even dark moments. Let's look at one of the most heavily tackled arcs here: Kayla's struggle to make friends. In one moment in the movie, we see this in a more comedic light. Kayla is awkwardly trying to talk to these popular girls at school, but both of them are looking at their phones. The interaction here is comedic gold, with plenty of awkward pauses in between as Kayla desperately tries to find a way to talk to them. But then there's a more serious moment where we see her legitimately upset and crying at the fact that she has no one in her school that she can truly talk to. You can feel for her more legitimately. Burnham does so well at transitioning from the comedic potential to the dramatic potential in a way that feels earned. This is also done with what is probably the most awkward of middle school topics: sex. We see the badly done "educational safe sex" videos, or Kayla actually watching a YouTube video having to do with sex (won't talk any more about this portion because it's, in my opinion, the funniest part of the movie). But, the movie takes a much darker turn later on in the movie with the subject of sex. Once again, I won't spoil this, because it was surprising. I could tell Burnham was trying to deal with this particularly dark scene in a delicate manner. It's definitely a heavy moment, but it thankfully doesn't cross the line in a way that keeps Kayla from having her optimism or innocence stripped entirely. I really appreciated that Burnham made that choice. If this scene had taken another direction, it may have made the film conclude on an unavoidably disheartening note. This scene could've ended in an unsatisfying way in another director's hands. But Bo knows exactly where the line needs to be drawn. That is true for every scene in this movie. He never makes the comedy too inappropriate or raunchy, and he never makes the more dramatic scenes too dark or hopeless.The balance is achieved to near perfection.

"Eighth Grade" is, simply stated, the first masterpiece of a film that I've seen this year. This movie does exactly what it set out to do: it chronicles the journey of an eighth grade girl on the cusp of a new time in her life, and it truthfully depicts what it was like to be in middle school for a majority of people. Pretty much everything about this movie works. Elsie Fisher's performance should get both a Golden Globe and Oscar nomination, in my opinion. It's one of the best turns I've seen this year, and one of my favorite performances from a film of this genre. Bo Burnham has made a directorial debut nothing short of fantastic. This film has received immense critical and audience acclaim in a very quick span of time. Burnham is going to be on people's radars for years to come. I'm definitely excited to see what he does in what is sure to be a lucrative career in the movie industry. Please, go see this excellent movie. It may be my favorite of the year so far!