In this coming of age dark comedy, newly divorced teenage fiction novelist Mavis Gary (Charlize Theron) thinks she has risen above what she perceives to be the ultimate writer's block of a hopeless marriage. A bold, stylistic statement of beauty, Mavis exudes an exhilerated sense of independence cruising around in her mini-cooper, ready as ever to embark on a new chapter in life. Clearly in denial of the overwhelming feelings of abandonment associated by the traumatic event of a separation, she is continually immersed in the narrative of the adolescent female protagonists who occupy her time. But unbeknowst to Mavis, her imagination gets the best of her when she receives a surprising e-mail from Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson), a high school flame who is now a happily married man with a baby on the way.
In a comically desperate effort to re-kindle a romance that would otherwise restore her badly damaged self-image, Mavis misperceives Buddy's intentions and returns to her hometown of Mercury, Minnesota to win him back. And though her true motive might be to re-connect with friends and family or to perhaps build a support system, Mavis foolishly pretends to be the missing link to Buddy's happiness... in fact, she prepostorously surmises this to be the reason why he connected with her in the first place!
As the plot thickens it becomes entirely possible that Buddy may have felt rejected by Mavis in his glory days, and wanted to somehow let her know that she was not God's gift to women afterall... it's ironic that she assumes the exact opposite in trying to seduce him; sure enough, in a dramatic turn of events Mavis hits a dead end when Buddy makes it clear that her advances are way out of line at the baby shower... just when all seems to be lost, she finds intimate affection with high school pal Matt Freehauf (Patton Oswalt) a guy who had sustained unfortunate injuries, purportedly for being far too shy with girls.
Their overnight fling brings Mavis to her senses and she begins to ponder the extent of her disillusionment with a female acquaintance at Matt's place. But no sooner than she is convinced her hometown is utterly stifling, Mavis is anxious to return to the big city or in her words 'the mini apple'. An engaging and humorous film with lessons of wisdom to impart, 'Young Adult' is now playing in Chicagoland theatres everywhere; check your local listings at movietickets.com
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