“The Kings of Summer” stars Gabriel Basso, Moises Arias and Nick Robinson on location in Ohio. (Courtesy of CBS Films )
The story of teenagers growing tired of living with their overbearing parents is one that is familiar to many.
For Joe Toy in “The Kings of Summer,” life in suburbia grows unbearable enough that he decides to do something about it.
In the coming-of-age comedy, Joe, played by Nick Robinson, decides that he has reached his limit of living with his unhappy father and heads off into the woods in search of freedom.
Accompanying Joe on his quest for independence is his best friend, Patrick, played by Gabriel Basso, and their quirky new companion, Biaggio, played by Moises Arias.
Together, the trio secretly build a house in the woods of Ohio and fend for themselves by living off the land.
While the tale of angsty teenagers trying to find themselves is one that has been told before, “The Kings of Summer” is a modern day story about growing up that is both equally funny and touching.
The film’s director, Jordan Vogt-Roberts, described the movie as ‘Stand By Me’ for a video game generation.
In addition to their quest for independence, the boys experience the joys and challenges of manhood as they hunt and gather for food, grow thin beards, roughing it in the woods and eventually even test their friendship over a girl.
Also appearing in the film is Nick Offerman, who also plays the grumpy Ron Swanson in “Parks and Recreation.”
Offerman nails the role of Joe’s ornery father in the film while also providing comedic moments.
Patrick’s mother and father, played by Megan Mullally and Marc Evan Jackson, provide quite a bit of humor to the film with their overbearing antics.
Although the boys leave because they are unhappy, they do not necessarily have that great of a reason to be.
Both Joe and Patrick’s parents are not cruel or unlikable, but rather an example of the classic overbearing parental relationship that many teenagers can relate to.
They are the type of parents that are funny to watch, but make you glad they aren’t yours.
Vogt-Roberts said that the intention was to make the characters of the parents regular people that the audience could relate to.
“What I loved about the script was that we can make these parents ridiculous without having them be caricatures because everyone knows these parents,” Vogt-Roberts said.
Also adding laughs to the film is Arias’ eccentric character Biaggio, who essentially just shows up and tags along with Joe and Patrick in their journey.
When asked about his experience playing the oddball in the film, Arias says that quite a bit of improvising took place.
“I never blinked and I just thought of the most random things possible and just blurted them out,” Arias said of his acting methods.
The result was random behavior that added hilarious moments to the film as Biaggio says and does ridiculous things.
The film, which premiered to rave reviews at the Sundance Film Festival, has an indie vibe to it, yet it still appeals to a mass audience, categorizing it in a genre of its own.
“The Kings of Summer” opens in theaters on May 31, 2013.
