A year after Greta Gerwig's "Lady Bird" comes another actor-turned-director's memory-inspired California-set coming-of-age tale from the boutique film studio A24. This time, the time period has been dialed back a few years (from the early '00s to the mid-'90s), Dave Mathews Band has been traded for A Tribe Called Quest, and the filmmaking talent is far less revelatory.
Though affectionately and sometimes precisely recalled, Jonah Hill's thinly sketched directorial debut "Mid90s" feels both sincerely personal and highly derivative at once: a pre-digital slice of life that forces contrived narratives onto what ought to have remained a fleeter, kaleidoscopic ride.
Thirteen-year-old Stevie (Sunny Suljic) is drawn inexorably to the local skate shop near his lower-middle-class, single-parent home. Stevie lives with his loving mother (Katherine Waterston, adding depth to every scene she appears in) and abusive older brother (Lucas Hedges), whose rage goes largely unexplained and whose brutal blows (shown from the film's first scene) are unnaturally amplified to action-movie-level ferocity. Still, he's got a rad CD collection, which Stevie studiously takes notes from when his brother isn't around.
This image released by A24 Films shows Lucas Hedges, left, and Sunny Suljic in a scene from "Mid90s." (Tobin YellandA24 Films via AP)
But in the skate shop, and among its older teenage regulars, Stevie finds a refuge. He gradually cozies up to them, trades some video games for a skate board, and soon finds himself a member of the group — or at least its smaller, younger, mop-headed mascot. They are expert skaters, foul-mouthed storytellers, 40-drinking partiers who gleefully disrespect authority. (The movie's best scene is an exchange with a security guard, played by Jerrod Carmichael.) In Suljic's bright eyes, as he thrills to his rapidly widening world, Hill captures that glorious adolescent feeling: fitting in.
Shot in grainy 16mm and a 4-3 ratio by cinematographer Christopher Blauvelt, "Mid90s" — which takes liberally from Larry Clark's documentary-styled "Kids" — is first and foremost fetishized nostalgia that delights in nothing as much as period-appropriate, pre-digital minutiae. The soundtrack, from The Pharcyde to the Pixies, often seems more primary than the story. No space that couldn't be filled with a "Street Fighter II" T-shirt, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" bedding or mention of a "Blockbuster night" has gone wanting. (There is also a score by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor, whose Nine Inch Nails was at its peak in the mid-90s — yet another reminder of how much has changed in the last two decades.)
"Mid90s" is at its best when exploring the group dynamics of its motley skating crew, several of whom are played by professional skateboaders. There's the younger, jealous Ruben (Gio Galicia), the dimwitted aspiring filmmaker Fourth Grade (Ryder McLaughlin), a boisterous, swaggering long blond-haired kid with an unprintable nickname, and the group's unquestioned leader, Ray (Na-kel Smith). Their dialogue is laced with homophobic and sexist slurs, which is surely just as authentic to the period as a DiscMan. But, like so much else in "Mid90s," it goes unexamined.
This image released by A24 Films shows Na-kel Smith, left, and Olan Prenatt in a scene from "Mid90s." (Tobin YellandA24 Films via AP)
A pair of other recent films — "Minding the Gap," ''Skate Kitchen" — better explored the camaraderie and freedom of skater culture. But there are glimpses here of a more radiant, lyrical film, like in the loving, unabashedly operatic scene of dozens of riders fleeing police, or the hazy glow of a slow cruise down a thoroughfare's median at twilight.
One of the film's most glaring issues is that Suljic, 11 at the time of filming, is simply too young for the role. That the filmmakers were drawn by his talent and on-screen presence is understandable. But he's a little guy. And when Stevie's coming-of-age leaps into more mature territory, it's just one more incongruity in a heartfelt but crudely made film full of holes.
I kept wishing "Mid90s" centered not on Stevie but on Ray, the group's sensitive and ambitious captain. Smith, a pro skateboarder making his acting debut, has an arresting sweetness. With aspirations for turning his skateboarding skills into something more, Ray's the only one in "Mid90s" looking forward.
"Mid90s," an A24 release, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for pervasive language, sexual content, drug and alcohol use, some violent behavior/disturbing images — all involving minors." Running time: 84 minutes. Two stars out of four.
Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Two-time defending champion Amber Glenn set the record for a women's short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Wednesday night, giving her a narrow lead over world champion Alysa Liu heading into the free skate.
Liu had broken the record mere minutes earlier with a score of 81.11 points, earning a standing ovation from a crowd packed into the home of the St. Louis Blues. But then Glenn took the ice and was flawless from an opening triple axel to a finishing combination spin, earning 83.05 points, a hug from coach Damon Allen and a standing ovation of her own.
“I knew that I came here to do my job,” Glenn said, “and I was happy to see that scores were up, scores were good, and I was able to keep them going up. I felt a responsibility to keep it going better and better and better.”
Glenn wound up being the best.
Isabeau Levito was third with 75.72 points on the opening night of the national championships, which are the last opportunity for skaters to impress the U.S. Figure Skating officials who will decide the team for the Milan Cortina Olympics on Sunday.
The dance competition gets started Thursday night alongside the men's short program.
The 26-year-old Glenn, who four years ago missed nationals and a shot at the Beijing Games because of COVID-19, channeled her trademark power and emotion into a program set to “Like A Prayer” by Madonna. Glenn followed her axel with a triple flip-triple toe loop, and her triple loop merely catapulted her into a rollicking finish to an energetic program.
Allen was waiting for her rinkside, dressed in a maroon suit to match Glenn's dazzling maroon dress.
“Of course I feel ecstatic. The score was huge,” Glenn said. “My grandma passed last year and she was with me from day one, and I just felt it today, and I'm not usually one of those people that says it, but I felt like I had something help me today.”
Glenn's showcase came on the heels of a similarly splendid performance from the 20-year-old Liu, who finished sixth at the Beijing Games, then stepped away from the sport entirely because of burnout, but is in the midst of a remarkable comeback.
Last year, she became the first American world champion since Kimmie Meissner in 2006.
Now, Liu is among a few U.S. hopefuls trying to deliver women's Olympic gold for the first time since Sarah Hughes in 2002.
Liu performed the same short program from last year's world championships, opening with a whirling triple flip, landing a solid double axel and finishing with what coach Phillip DiGuglielmo called her best triple lutz-triple loop of the season.
“I'm really happy with the lutz,” Liu said. “That was good. That was real good.”
Levito, the 2023 champion and a former world silver medalist, had to withdraw from nationals last year because of injury. But she looked as if she had never missed a day, performing with style and grace to a medley of music honoring Sophia Loren.
“I felt really happy with myself that I did my job,” Levito said. “I feel like I'm in a really good place right now.”
Earlier in the night, Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov began defense of their U.S. pairs title with a near-perfect short program, leaving them nearly eight points clear of the field as they hold out hope of making the American team for the Winter Games.
While the 28-year-old Mitrofanov was born in the U.S., his 26-year-old partner was born in Finland. And despite the couple having wed in early 2024, and Efimova getting a green card approved that summer, she is still waiting for the U.S. to decide whether to waive a three-year waiting period to become a citizen — one of the requirements to represent a nation in the Olympics.
But time is running out before U.S. Figure Skating must announce its Olympic team on Sunday.
“We’re hoping maybe a last-minute miracle might happen,” Mitrofanov said.
Efimova and Mitrofanov seemed to glide inside Enterprise Center on Wednesday night. They opened their short program with a beautiful triple twist, landed their side-by-side triple toe loop in sync, their throw triple loop covered a long expanse of ice, and they finished by pumping their firsts as their music came to a close.
They wound up with a season-best 75.31 points, while Audrey Shin and Balazs Nagy were second with 67.67, Ellie Kam and Danny O'Shea right behind with 67.13, and Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez were within podium reach with 67.03.
“We're definitely very proud with how we skated tonight. The crowd was amazing,” Mitrofanov said. “We really trusted each other. We trusted our training. I was a little more nervous than normal, to be honest, and I was proud of Alisa holding my hand throughout.”
AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Alysa Liu competes during the women's short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Amber Glenn reacts after competing during the women's short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Amber Glenn competes during the women's short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez compete during the pairs short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe compete during the pairs short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Ellie Kam and Danny O'Shea compete during the pairs short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov compete during the pairs short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov compete during the pairs short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
