Dazed and Confused? I Know I Am.
Matthew McConaughey looks as old now as he did in this film - seriously has he always just looked like a man in good shape for his mid-forties!?
There's a moment in Richard Linklater's 1993 classic Dazed and Confused that instantly transports me back to my own high school days. It's the last day of school, the sun is sinking, and everyone is out, squeezing as much life as they can into a single night. Watching it feels like leafing through an old yearbook, each page a memory, every face a long-lost friend.
I first saw Dazed and Confused on VHS sometime in the mid-90s, long after I’d graduated high school. I assume I rented it, I rarely bought VHS in those days, I’m a cluttered man myself but I believe the young woman I was seeing at the time had a real boner for minimalism, she had some real proto-Marie Kondo ideas. But I remember most VHS covers and physically holding the box. I popped it in on a whim, not expecting much beyond a nostalgic look at the 1970s. What I got instead was a movie that perfectly encapsulated the teenage experience, a film that’s become a staple in my annual viewing rotation.
A Slice of ‘70s Life
Linklater’s film is set in May 1976, a time of bell-bottom jeans, feathered hair, and rock ‘n’ roll. The plot, such as it is, follows a group of teenagers in a small Texas town as they celebrate the last day of school. There’s the usual mix of parties, pranks, and the ever-present quest for beer and weed. It’s a film less about story and more about atmosphere, a snapshot of a particular time and place that feels both authentic and universal.
Watching it, I’m reminded of my own high school years in the '70s. The clothes, the cars, the music – it’s all spot on. The soundtrack, a veritable greatest hits of the decade, is almost a character in itself. Aerosmith, Deep Purple, KISS – each song perfectly punctuates the scenes, bringing an added layer of nostalgia for those of us who lived through it.
The State of Stoner Culture
By the time Dazed and Confused hit theaters, stoner culture had already undergone significant changes. The 1990s saw a resurgence of stoner comedies, but they were often more about the laughs than an accurate depiction of the culture. Dazed and Confused, however, offered a more nuanced portrayal. Characters like Slater, played by Rory Cochrane, weren’t just punchlines – they were people you knew, guys who were always around with a joint and a philosophical observation.
The film captures the essence of 1970s stoner culture, a time before the war on drugs ramped up and attitudes towards marijuana hardened. In Dazed and Confused, smoking pot is as much a part of the teenage experience as cruising around town and trying to score some beer. It’s not sensationalized or moralized – it just is.
Characters and Quotable Lines
One of the reasons Dazed and Confused endures is its ensemble cast. Matthew McConaughey’s Wooderson, with his drawling “Alright, alright, alright,” became instantly iconic. Then there’s the scene where he delivers the line, “That’s what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age.” It’s creepy, sure, but it’s also an honest reflection of the character – a guy who peaked in high school and never quite moved on.
Each character feels like someone you went to school with. There’s the jocks, the nerds, the stoners, and the outcasts. Linklater doesn’t judge them; he just lets them be. This lack of judgment is part of what makes the film so relatable. We see ourselves in these characters, remember our own triumphs and embarrassments, and maybe even feel a pang of longing for those days when the biggest worry was where the next party would be.
A Lasting Legacy
Dazed and Confused didn’t make a huge splash at the box office, but it found its audience on home video and cable TV. Today, it’s a cult classic, a film that’s not just watched, but cherished. It’s become a rite of passage in its own right, a movie that each new generation discovers and finds their own meaning in.
For those of us who lived through the 1970s, it’s a time machine. For younger viewers, it’s a glimpse into a world that’s at once foreign and familiar. It’s a reminder that, despite the changing times, some things about being a teenager never change.
In the end, that’s what makes Dazed and Confused so special. It’s not just a film about the 1970s – it’s a film about youth, freedom, and the fleeting nature of those high school years. And as the credits roll and the strains of Foghat’s “Slow Ride” play us out, we can’t help but feel a little bit of that old magic again
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