Yes, I often get homesick about seeing my family. Yes, I often have a hard time forming lasting relationships with people. And yes, I love my mom more than any other person on this planet but Cooper Raiff's directorial debut shows that there is absolutely nothing wrong with those feelings. Shithouse is one of the greatest and most painfully authentic films of this entire year and one that I personally resonated with a LOT more than I would care to admit. This 22-year old's debut film is one of the most tender coming-of-age stories I have ever seen and the level of self-taught craftsmanship that is shown throughout this movie is astounding. Raiff's film is one that truly signals our new generation of filmmakers and one that uses its minuscule budget to its absolute advantage. The performances are fantastic, the direction is impeccable, and the mumblecore feeling of the plot makes this story such a viscerally emotional experience that anyone at my age going through the social hell of college can relate with.
Alex (Cooper Raiff) has gone through almost six months of college in California without truly making a single friend. He decides to put himself out there by going to parties and meeting new people when he has an encounter with his dorm's RA named Maggie (Dylan Gelula). The two of them begin to strike up an unlikely and unusual romance as they learn more about each other and grow into themselves in the nightmare that can be a college campus. There are many directions that a story like this could go. It could take the cheesy route, utilizing tropes of the genre ending up with a predictable conclusion, but that would probably be directed by a middle-aged man out of touch with the actual generation he is depicting. It could go the darker and drug-fueled route, honing in on alcoholism and drug use of the youth, but that would probably be directed by someone who is far too into suffering porn. Shithouse, on the other hand, is directed by someone who knows our modern generation better than anyone: a guy who is actually a part of it. Cooper Raiff's writing and direction throughout this film are genuinely fantastic and it does not get more true to the source than a film helmed by someone who can see and brilliantly recognize the social anxieties that our generation all suffers from. The character of Alex is such a well-written embodiment of the contemporary teenager starting college and I adored how Raiff is able to incorporate what I assume are real-world experiences into this film. While I could genuinely relate to Alex on a personal level in terms of his emotional relationship with his mom and his inability to put himself out there socially, I feel like he is very much characterized by our entire culture. Every element of Raiff's storytelling is just rife with humanistic qualities and as I sat in front of the screen watching this, I could see myself and so many people I know. This young filmmaker is only a year older than me and is already able to create a movie as phenomenal and relatable as this one, so if I hadn't felt like enough of a failure before, I sure do now. Although I personally hope to get into film editing as a career in the future, what this film exceeds at most is showing how no matter the age of a filmmaker, there will always be genuine stories to tell that deserve to be listened to.
As Raiff's writing excels in literally every category, his direction also stood out to me very prominently. What I loved about his handling of this story is that it never exactly follows a three-act structure while still keeping you reeled in like crazy. Raiff's self-taught talent proves to pay off because the way he leads this story is unlike any other coming-of-age film that I have seen and I was floored by how natural it all felt. Shithouse finds its success in how disjointed and unbalanced the pacing of this story is. While most filmmakers would have trouble striking a balance with this technique, it comes off as effortless for Raiff. The relationship between Alex and Maggie is struck up over the course of one night which takes up practically the first hour of the film. As the two of them encounter struggles as they go through college, weeks, months, and years are jumped around but this inconsistent timeline works like aces. Relationships might not always work out in the beginning but may find better footing years later. Relationships can feel awkward at times, with either party never quite knowing where they stand in the other's list of emotional priorities. And above all, relationships are surely never as easy as they make it seem in the movies but Shithouse is more reality than it is film, which is what gives this college romance such a remarkably unique tone. The performances from Raiff and Gelula were just astounding and their chemistry together is unmatched. Raiff is so, so good at playing and directing himself into this type of character and he does a great job of making Alex's actions and reactions seem justified. Gelula has been one of my favorite, underrated actresses for a while now and this might be the biggest role I have seen her in so far. She completely nails the complex and funny personality of Maggie and she is truly the marker in making Alex and Maggie's relationship seem bona fide. And on top of all of that, this film is just downright hilarious. So many scenes are things that have played out in my own life and ones which have made me crack up knowing that I had reacted in the same way. The cinematography and editing were both very clean and gave this film a delightfully neutral, visual style but due to the writing and direction, Raiff is the real star here.
IFC has made an incredible decision by releasing this film because not only does Shithouse function well within the studio's creative realm but they have given Raiff an amazing platform to bolster his creative talent. This movie is one of my absolute favorites this year and in a world so congested with terrible things beyond my control, it's nice knowing that there is someone else out there with similar social issues and a passion for filmmaking. I can't wait to see where Raiff goes next, as he is one of the youngest and most sincere talents that audiences should be looking out for.
My Rating: ★★★★½
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