Often referred to as a female-centric Superbad, Olivia Wilde’s directorial debut is a modern and feminist take on the traditional high school ‘coming-of-age’ stories that are chock full of teenage shenanigans and raunchy comedy. Booksmart was one of those films that I had every intention of watching at the cinema but was always superseded by other cinematic offerings. Two years later and I finally got around to crossing it off of my watchlist.

Best friends Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein) take school seriously, hitting the books hard and avoiding any teenage stereotypes that might stand in the way of the academic success. Smoking weed under the bleachers? Hard pass. Partying on the weekend? Definitely not. Romantic relationships and casual sex? I don’t think so.

When Molly overhears her fellow classmates making fun of her, she is confident that their choices have ensured them bright and successful futures with Molly accepted into Yale and Amy spending the summer in Botswana helping the native women make tampons, but when she discovers that the promiscuous Triple A (Molly Gordon) was also accepted into Yale, and Theo, who was held back a few years, was recruited by Google, she realises that she and Amy missed out on some key cornerstones of growing up.

With only one night left before they graduate, the girls decide to let loose and live four years worth of fun and memories in one night.

Although the film follows the quintessential teen comedy recipe; rowdy party scenes, awkward sexual encounters and the realisation that you know very little about your fellow students, it does so in such a way that feels new and refreshing. The writing is intelligent, the music is on point and the cinematography is something special. The section where the girls see themselves as plastic dolls is borderline genius and genuinely hilarious.

While all the technical aspects of the film form a solid foundation, the film’s true strength is in its cast. Beanie Feldstein’s Molly is the louder, more assertive of the pair, the polished valedictorian with a deliciously wicked sense of humour and a heart of gold. Kaitlyn Dever is the Thelma to Feldstein’s Louise, endearingly charming and awkward as the quiet unassuming Amy. Their friendship is the heart of the film, their personalities perfectly balanced with Molly the driving force of the story but Amy carrying the emotional weight, and the chemistry between the two protagonists is thoroughly enjoyable to watch.

Jason Sudeikis, Diana Silvers, Molly Gordon and Skyler Gisondo are all intriguing additions to the film but the only one close to stealing the show is Billie Lourd’s spacey and unpredictable Gigi. These smaller roles are no less significant in the grand scheme of things and each brings their own spark of light to the film.

With the current focus on inclusion and representation, I honestly feel that some films are either guilty of throwing everything but the kitchen sink at a film in order to tick all the relevant boxes, Mindy Kaling’s Late Night is one such guilty party, or forcing in ‘Girl Power’ moments in a “look at us, we’re woke” kind of way – Birds of Prey and Endgame, hang your heads in shame. Fortunately, the razor sharp writing and sizzling platonic chemistry between Dever and Feldstein ensures Booksmart delivers something that is natural, organic and respectful in its delivery. An absolute must watch.