Jonah Hill’s Nostalgic ‘Mid90s’ Directorial Debut Drops A Gut-Wrenching Yet Ultimately Uplifting Trailer

Jonah Hill’s fall is turning into a decidedly above-average affair, and following his performance in Maniac‘s wild ride, a new trailer for Hill’s directorial debut, Mid90s, has arrived. A24, known for distributing the critically acclaimed Lady Bird and Eighth Grade, now drops the latest for Hill’s coming-of-age love letter to Los Angeles skate culture. The film’s first trailer kept the plot rather vague, other than revealing a youth seeking to escape his dysfunctional family while falling in with a new crowd at a Motor Avenue skate shop. This newest offering reveals much more about 13-year-old Stevie’s struggles, both at home and while struggling to adapt among a tough audience.

Hill also penned the script for Mid90s, which evokes shades (and let’s get real, this must be intentional) of 1995’s Kids, although one hopes that there’s not such a deeply nihilistic turn of events here. We see Stevie bullied at home, both physically and emotionally, and it’s clear that he finds family within his group of friends. This, of course, plays like an exaggerated take on anyone who ever felt misunderstood as a youth while striking out to find one’s own tribe. Although this trailer drips with nostalgia, a move that can easily approach “twee” territory, the film holds a 95% “fresh” rating at Rotten Tomatoes following its TIFF premiere. Still, USA Today has a roundup for the mixed responses from the audience, who either loved or hated the film with little middle ground on tap.

Mid90s will arrive in select theaters on October 19, 2018. A few days ago, Hill tweeted his disbelief and anticipation: “A month out, can’t believe it.”

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