Comedian Bo Burnham has been making people laugh for years, whether it’s true his popular YouTube channel or through his work with Judd Apatow. He even had a brief appearance in The Big Sick last year as, wait for it, a standup comedian. But he’s not exactly a name being talked about around the water cooler, although that may be changing soon thanks to his directorial debut, Eighth Grade. The teen comedy received some of the best reviews at Sundance a couple of months ago, and A24, who swooped in to pick up the rights fairly quickly, have released the first trailer.
Us awkward folks who struggled through middle school but found our voices in high school, rejoice. This film is for us. Elsie Fisher gives what many are calling a breakthrough performance as 13-year-old Kayla, a shy middle schooler who decides to end her eighth grade year on a high note before embarking for high school. Here’s a synopsis:
“Thirteen-year-old Kayla endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school—the end of her thus far disastrous eighth-grade year—before she begins high school.”
It’s easy to see why A24 wanted this one. I can see them trying to position this as a Lady Bird style indie favorite. Also starring Josh Hamilton and Emily Robinson, Eighth Grade opens July 13th.
