“Just keep livin, man. L-I-V-I-N.”
1993 was a big year for me. It was the year that I entered my senior year of high school. It marked the beginning of the end of my life as a nobody in a small town in Louisiana. Flash forward nearly thirty years later and I’m still a nobody, but at least I’m livin, man. L-I-V-I-N. Some of the kids in the film Dazed and Confused were asking themselves many of the same questions that I was asking myself. I was a bit worried about what would happen to me after I graduated. I was on edge about the shape of our world. I wasn’t smoking pot, but I was wondering where I would end up in this mess we all call life. I believe that is why I identified so much with some of the characters in this film even though it took place on the last day of school in Austin, TX in 1976. Times were different back then but they were also very much the same. This movie spoke to me on a number of levels and the soundtrack was one of the best things to ever get laid down on a compact disc.
The film basically follows two groups of kids as they navigate their way through their final day of school. One group is comprised of junior high kids who will become freshmen in the fall and the other group is composed of juniors that are about to be seniors. The two groups collide with one another in many of the same ways that all high school and soon-to-be high school kids interact no matter the year or the decade. Their are numerous subplots running throughout the film but the primary focus is on upcoming ninth grader, Mitch Kramer, and future star quarterback, Randall “Pink” Floyd. Mitch wants to be cool and hang out with the older kids. He also wants to avoid the tradition of getting freshmen getting hazed by the new seniors. The boys are caught and spanked with paddles by the seniors, something that one of the seniors, Fred O’Bannion, delights in to an almost evil level. The girls are herded up and humiliated by their senior adversaries. As the night wears on, Mitch and his friends are caught and whipped to varying degrees of severity.
Pink wants to play football in his final year at school but he doesn’t want to sign a paper that states that he won’t engage in drinking alcohol, doing drugs, or do anything else that might cost the team a shot at the state championship. Some of his friends support him but others attempt to pressure him into signing the paper. He and Mitch cross paths after a brutal beating at the hands of O’Bannion on Mitch. Feeling sorry for Mitch, Pink invites him to hang out with him and his friends the rest of the night and then to go to a party at the moon tower. Along the way they and other students have crazy adventures that culminate in the party at the tower. We are introduced to numerous characters, many of which are played by actors who would go on to have massively successful careers. It all plays out with a constant soundtrack of seventies tunes that would eventually become classified as classic rock in the coming decades.
The film’s soundtrack included monster tunes from bands like Black Sabbath, The Runaways, KISS, Deep Purple, and Alice Cooper. A second album was released entitled Even More Dazed And Confused. It included tracks from artists such as ZZ Top, Head East, and War. The music featured heavily in the film as it was constantly present on the radio, the jukebox, the overhead speakers, or on an LP, just as it was and still is to this day in every teen’s life.
As already mentioned, the film featured a number of future film and television stars in their first or one of their earliest roles. Jason London starred as Randall “Pink” Floyd and Wiley Wiggins portrayed Mitch Kramer. Mitch’s sister, Jodi, was portrayed by Michelle Burke. Rory Cochrane portrayed the penultimate pothead, Slater, and would go on to star in another musically-loaded 90’s film, Empire Records. He has continued to work regularly, especially in television. Adam Goldberg played the neurotic nerd named Mike Newhouse who would end up facing off against a bully in the film. Goldberg has been a standout both in front of and behind the camera. He starred or guest starred on a number of television shows including Friends, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and The Jim Gaffigan Show. He also starred in a number of films including Saving Private Ryan and Zodiac. Joey Lauren Adams played Simone, Pink’s steady. She has had a long career that has included starring roles in numerous films and television shows including Mallrats, Still The King, and Chasing Amy. Parker Posey starred as the authoritative Darla. She terrorized the incoming freshmen. Posey has had a long career in both independent and mainstream films starring in movies like Superman Returns, A Mighty Wind, You’ve Got Mail, Blade: Trinity, Best In Show, and The Anniversary Party. Milla Jovovich starred as Michelle, the hippie/pothead who decorates to stolen statues to look like Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS. Her career would explode over the years in films like The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, the Resident Evil franchise, and The Fifth Element. Renee Zellweger had a very brief cameo as a girl participating in the freshmen hazing with Darla, but her career would explode as well with the Bridget Jones films, Cinderella Man, and other films.
The two biggest future stars in this film are obviously Ben Affleck as O’Bannion and the one and only Matthew McConaughey. Affleck co-starred with Joey Lauren Adams in a few Kevin Smith films but he would eventually become a major player in Hollywood as a writer, director, and actor. I wouldn’t dare attempt to list the number of films that he’s been in, directed, or written, but here are a choice few that I personally like: Daredevil, Justice League, Good Will Hunting, Argo, and Dogma. He has won Oscars, BAFTA awards, Golden Globes, and numerous other awards.
Much like Affleck, Matthew McConaughey has entirely too many film credits, awards, and accolades to list. Some of my favorite films that he was in include Sahara, Angels In The Outfield, Failure To Launch, and Interstellar. He also found success on the small screen in series such as True Detective and Eastbound & Down. In Dazed And Confused, McConaughey’s portrayal of Wooderson, the slightly older guy that hangs around with teens, is legendary. With countless quotable lines in the film (most of which were improvised), there are few places in this world where people haven’t heard “Alright, alright, alright” or “Just keep livin, man, L-I-V-I-N.” The character is one of my favorite in all of filmdom.
You seriously need to see this film if you haven’t already done so. It’s a coming of age tale that is as timeless as the music that plays throughout its runtime. Written and directed by Richard Linklater, it’s one of my favorite movies of all time.
Thanks for reading my post. My November Noise album review is coming up tomorrow!
Ken's Alternate Universe! 