As a coming-of-age teen comedy, it’s pretty easy to know what “Superbad” is all about, at least on a periphery level. Teen debauchery, underage partying, and crass, hormonally motivated shenanigans. All those elements are present – no self-respecting teen comedy would be caught dead without them, right? But beneath the all-too-common shallow surface lies some slightly deeper themes and pathos. This being the latest Judd Apatow/Seth Rogan production, the fact that this isn’t just another “Porky’s” rehash shouldn’t come as a big surprise. Apatow (producer) has a history of balancing crude shenanigans with resonating elements of life with shows like “Freaks and Geeks” and films like “40 Year Old Virgin” and “Knocked Up”. Rogan (here co-writer, executive producer and actor, also collaborated with Apatow on the latter films mentioned above) is quickly being identified as a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood, as the go-to guy when it comes to portraying pathetically real, sympathetic shlubs and stories. So perhaps in spite of its “American Pie”-knock-off appearance, “Superbad” does come from good stock, and does deliver well enough to warrant a casual recommendation.

Before we get too far along, let’s clarify one thing – there’s only one “Fast Times”, and this, despite its currently critically beloved creators, doesn’t come close to that aspiration. But on the positive side, “Superbad” doesn’t live up to its name, either (critically speaking). Here’s the premise: Two high school senior best friends, Evan (Michael Cera) and Seth (Jonah Hill), must face the pending reality of going their separate ways to different colleges after years together of hanging out and scheming ways to score with chicks (unsuccessfully, of course). Thanks to dead-on casting, these are indeed the types of characters that could appear on the one-sheet, just standing there, with the word “Superbad” in front of them, and at a glance, you get the joke. Each one is gunning for a particular girl to get with for the summer, before all reality as they know it ceases to exist. Evan is the reserved, romantic in search of something real, whereas Seth blatantly just wants to get laid. When the vague possibility to finally seal the deal with the girls of their dreams finally arises in what can only be described as the perfect storm of teen trouble (fake ID + big party + perceived promise of girly action, for Seth at least = the Ultimate Night), the boys are off and running on a mundane yet wacky adventure they’ll never forget. At least I wouldn’t if I were them.

Things derail from minute number one when their dorky buddy’s (Fogell, played by newcomer Christopher Mintz-Plasse) holy grail of a fake ID turns out to be perhaps the worst such effort ever created. Since success in their quest for booze is integral to Seth’s getting laid, the tension mounts quite quickly. An ill-timed liquor store robbery leads the involvement of two screwy cops that can’t be gotten rid of (Bill Hader and Seth Rogan, looking a lot like the new Ackroyd and Belushi in outward appearance). The boys get separated, dragged around, hit by cars, threatened by just about everyone they meet. At one point, when Seth and Evan find themselves trapped at a party populated by grown-up losers, they miss the big joke, which is that if they continue their current course in life - wholesale pursuit of partying - this will be them as adults. But never mind that now, they only know that they need to ditch this party to get to the one that matters.

In between intense discussions of which porn site to join, which girls are hottest, and childhood chronic drawing of penises, valuable lessons are kinda learned, and everyone comes away slightly better for it. Well, not those dumb cops, but who’s counting. This movie has a big soft gooey heart in there somewhere, evidenced by the almost jarringly minimalist realism of its final moments. If you can take the crudity and endless humiliation of the characters, you’ll be rewarded with some very true-to-life, so-painful-its-funny comedy. In the Apatow/Rogan canon, it’s hard to say where “Superbad” sits, but time will tell. It’s not the most cinematic movie you can go out and see on the big screen, but in its own twisted juvenile way, it may one of the most honest.

- Jim Tudor