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Premature
Director: Dan Beers
Rating: R
Release Date: March 7, 2014 (SXSW)
High school comedies have always followed the same basic formula: everyman protagonist, a group of friends, parties, sex, and shenanigans to bring everything together. Looking at the successes and failures of other high school comedies over the years, it takes more than just an outlandish premise and a talented cast – there needs to be that extra element that can help a film separate itself from its brethren. Does Premature possess that special touch that helps it be more than just “another high school comedy”? Read on and find out.
On the most important day of his young life, Rob (John Karna) has to ace an interview with a Georgetown recruiter, lose his virginity to one of the hottest girls in the school, Angela Yearwood (Carlson Young), and cap it all off with a night spent with his best friend, Gabrielle (Katie Findlay). However, the interview goes terribly, he cancels his plans with Gabrielle, and he prematurely ejaculates during his hook up with Angela. When he wakes up, he finds himself in a wet spot… at the beginning of the day. Before long, Rob realizes that he’s stuck in a loop of the day’s events until he can make them all right… or be forced to trigger the Groundhog Day events with his own hands. Pun intended.
Premature follows in a long line of high school comedies. However, the added time travel/Groundhog Day element adds a wrinkle to the film that not only becomes an essential plot device, but one that’s inherently funny. Every time Rob ejaculates, the day resets. It’s a blessing and a curse, this gift Rob has been granted from the gods. Of course, with a trigger such as this, it’s hard not to let writer/director Dan Beers go full-on with it, allowing Premature to have fun while also steering the film from going too far off from the path. Unfortunately, I don’t think Premature went as far as it could have with the ability to turn back time so easily. In saying that, for it to veer off into more outlandish situations would have alienated the tone of the film, so it’s a mixed bag of sorts.
Premature is a fitting ode to Groundhog Day and John Hughes films (including a Glenbrook High School reference to Hughes’ own alma mater, Glenbrook North), right down to the film’s tone that leans more towards youthful naivety instead of raunchy sex shenanigans. However, I think this both helped and hurt Premature; I would have liked more risks to benefit more from the trigger plot device. While the jokes won’t always hit, what will is the heart and character-focused priority over easy sex jokes typical of the high school comedy genre. If you’re expecting Premature to be the next Superbad, your expectations aren’t going to be met. Go into Premature expecting more John Hughes and less Judd Apatow, and I think you’ll have a better reaction to the film.