THE STORY – Former high school seniors reunite in their 30s to complete their education after a tornado abruptly ended their final year in 2008. As they return to the halls of North Meadows High, past relationships reignite and hidden truths surface.
THE CAST – John Reynolds, Sofia Black-D’Elia, Carmen Christopher, Jo Firestone, Rudy Pankow, Gary Richardson, Ana Gasteyer, Maria Thayer, Topher Grace, Patti Harrison, John Early & Zach Cherry
THE TEAM – Marty Schousboe (Director) & John Reynolds (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 103 Minutes
There’s something admirable about a comedy that tells you exactly what sort of movie you’re in for approximately 45 seconds in. “Never Change!” opens with a news broadcast laying out its ridiculous plot. Still, it also immediately sets the comedic tone, as the reporters backfill the exposition with “yada yadas” so we can skip straight to it. In the vein of David Wain’s “Wet Hot American Summer” and “They Came Together,” director Marty Schousboe presents an absurdist tale of adults in high school, complete with all the drama, gossip, and refusal to grow up. While the commitment to the bit is refreshing, commitment alone can’t carry a comedy. The gags themselves are a bit too hit-or-miss to fully catch on, stranded somewhere between sketch comedy and a coming-of-age story.
As the news broadcast reports, the “Education New Deal” just passed Congress, outlining specific guidelines for high school graduates, leaving the North Meadows High School class of 2008 two weeks short of the requirements for their diplomas. So now, all of these 36-year-olds must all return to their old stomping grounds to finish up school. The film wisely doesn’t try to hide the lack of logic here; it’s just a simple premise to get a bunch of grown adults back into high school again. All the tropes are here: the valedictorian, the slacker, the jock, the weird teachers, the trio of dorks, and the girl everyone was in love with. Here, that girl, Katie (Sofia Black-D’Elia), and the jock, Sunny Football (writer John Reynolds), are the most normal of the bunch, but each character is an over-the-top caricature. Curtis (Gary Richardson) was once the school theater star, but is now a slacking salesman on the verge of losing his job because of his strange behavior (aliens have abducted him, of course). Amelia was the valedictorian, but now no one seems to remember her, sending her careening out of control on a journey to be memorable. Each character has their own journey, tying some semblance of a plot through it all, but the movie isn’t even bothering to pretend it matters. The point was to cram them together in a school, conveniently timed to when the real high schoolers were on a two-week spring break, and get them all reliving the glory days and trying to finally grow up.
Tonally, this is a carbon copy of “Wet Hot American Summer,” which works in fits and starts. “Never Change!” struggles to find any genuine emotion while maintaining its absurdist tone. Old flames Sunny and Katie begin to remember the connection they once shared, reflecting on who they were and who they have become. They are glimmers of something meaningful, but there’s never any true depth in their story, or anywhere else. What results is a mish-mash of occasionally funny jokes and half-baked coming-of-age tropes. Given the choice between emotion and a joke, they take the joke at every turn.
That approach is completely fine, as long as the comedy is good enough to warrant it. “Never Change!” mostly relies on goofy character traits for its humor. For instance, a trio of dorks repeatedly burning themselves on their coffee and muttering “shit” is so repetitive that it eventually becomes funny. Every character randomly pronouncing “obsessed” as “obsoosed” worked a few times as well. But the movie rarely finds the element of surprise or any insight in the bits, often preferring randomness instead. The surprises did show up occasionally, though. Perhaps the best of which was a welcome video about how high school has changed over the last 20 years, which immediately cuts to the terrifying sounds of machine-gun fire with a gunman quoting “The Mask,” much to the horror of the new students. It’s dark, observant, and hilariously edited. Sadly, there just weren’t as many moments that worked as well.
While the cast is game and does solid work, the cameos from several gifted comedic performers often overshadow the leads, making their limited screen time feel all too brief: Topher Grace as the pretentious drama teacher, John Early as a totally-not-gay husband, Zach Cherry and Patti Harrison as drama students, and even Maria Thayer as the horny sex ed teacher in a larger role; they all fully commit to their smaller roles and have some of the funniest moments in the film, largely upstaging the main cast. Unlike the leads, who are pulled between absurdity and some kind of sincerity, these smaller cameos let the other actors just show up and be weird.
“Never Change!” seems built to become a future favorite, fueled by its aggressively silly demeanor and relentless barrage of jokes. Some viewers may find its brand of absurdity irresistible, but the film rarely generates enough memorable laughs to leave a significant impact. The material may play better in a communal setting where laughter is more contagious, though its direct-to-streaming release limits those opportunities. Admirably weird but only intermittently funny, “Never Change!” never quite reaches the heights of the comedies it so clearly emulates.
