The coming-of-age genre has always explored teenage sexuality. More often than not, it is a genre filled with thoughtful ideas, discussing topics about teenage sexuality that are held taboo in society. Nicholas Colia’s feature debut, Griffin in Summer, an awkward and staid comedy, covers the topic of inappropriate sexual crushes that are held by teenagers towards their adult counterparts, to mixed and often uncomfortable results.
For 14-year-old aspiring playwright Griffin Nafly (Everett Blunck), the inappropriate crush that he develops is on the stoner pool boy Brad (Owen Teague), who is working part-time at his home. For Brad, being a pool boy is a side hustle, intended to rustle together enough money to get himself back to New York and re-involved in the arts.
But for Griffin, a tumultuous teenager stuck in the fictional suburbs of Borwood, this crush on a 25-year-old stems from his lack of parental role model. With Griffin’s father having recently left his wife and mother to Griffin (Melanie Lynskey), a gaping hole is left in their lives. Griffin’s mother finds this vacuum filled in by excessive alcohol consumption while Griffin processes it by writing a play with mature themes, topics that mirror what he imagines his parents to have gone through behind closed doors.
This review was first posted on June 9th 2024. Full review linked below.
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