374 – Booksmart

What this episode covers

Happy New Year, Garys! We’re kicking off 2026 with something more bubbly and light-hearted, 2019’s Booksmart. Sold as an ultra-modern and female take on boy-led high school raunch comedies, the film stars Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein as best friends who decide to live it up after spending their entire high school experience stuck in books. After debuting at SXSW, the film generated a mountain of discussion that yielded disappointing box office results, but managed to stick around in the precursor race until the last minute. This episode, we talk about the film’s delightful ensemble of faces of the future and Olivia Wilde’s debut directing duties that earned her a number of first film prizes that season. We also talk about Feldstein’s drubbing during the Funny Girl run on Broadway, Dever joins our Six Timers Club, and the shadow of Lady Bird unfairly set expectations for this film. Topics also include Forte vs. Arnett, the 2019 Globe Musical/Comedy Best Actress nominees, and “I wish you luck with your trees.”