Everybody Wants Some!!, written and directed by Richard Linklater, a Sam Houston State University alumnus with an honorary degree and SHSU baseball player, is a fantastic summer movie for the college crowd.
The film follows the misadventures of a baseball team at a fictitious east/central Texas college throughout the days before the fall semester begins.
It’s one part Sandlot, one part Animal House with some Dazed and Confused thrown in for good measure.
Linklater returned to SHSU on April 7 to participate in two Q&As and host a debut of the film alongside stars Blake Jenner from Glee, Tyler Hoechlin from Teen Wolf and Ryan Guzman from Step Up: All In.
The first Q&A was hosted by Tom Garrett from SHSU’s Mass Communication Department. The session was open to film students who wanted to learn from a legend who walked some of the same ground.
Later in the day, Linklater and the stars participated in a red carpet walk up to the screening to give them time to meet excited fans.
SHSU President Dana G. Hoyt introduced Linklater and the cast before the screening. Linklater took the stage to give a bit of backstory to the film, citing his time at Sam as the inspiration in the creation of this story.
It is the funniest movie of the year, hands down. Many movies with large casts falter because the viewer is unable to keep track of what’s going on but Linklater handled it well.
The actors also gave off a sense of family, tied together by their competitive passion. The film is similar to Linklater’s earlier Dazed and Confused in that respect. In order to forge the relationships seen in the film, Linklater required the actors of the films baseball team to live together for a week in a bunkhouse at his ranch while in preproduction.
The period aspect of the film is also fantastic. The town and fictional college from the film are based on Linklater’s memories of the early 80s in Huntsville although filming did not take place at SHSU.
Linklater decided not to film at SHSU because it had undergone too many updates. Instead, he opted to shoot at UTSA, which also allowed him to be closer to his home in Austin. Residents of Huntsville will recognize is his reference to the Jolly Fox.
Everybody Wants Some!! included a sound track that includes the music of Van Halen, The Knack, Sugar Hill and more. Throughout preproduction the actors were even encouraged to pick the music their character would like from the 80s to add another layer to the characters depth.
This film easily earns a 5/5 and is highly recommended to anyone who wants a laugh.
