Josh Deakin

For the Maine Campus

Every so often, a film comes along that speaks volumes for a particular generation. The 1995 film “Glory Daze” is one of these films.

The movie reeks of attitudes and fashions that were popular in the 1990s. It features the talents of then-up-and-coming actors like Ben Affleck, French Stewart and Alyssa Milano.

There is also some cameos of notoriety like Matt Damon, who plays an ex-roommate at a party; Matthew McConaughey, who plays a drunken U-Haul salesman who gives a speech that is oddly reminiscent of his character in “Dazed and Confused”; and Brendan Fraser, who plays the boyfriend of a bickering couple on a bus.

The film centers around five friends who are graduating from college at University of California, Santa Cruz. The act of graduating has them all coming to the realization that they will eventually have to move on, but maybe not as soon as they think. Jack, played by Affleck, comes up with the idea that the friends stay in Santa Cruz and remain living in their shared house, dubbed “El Rancho,” for another year.

All of the roommates begin to find reasons to stay in Santa Cruz for another year. Jack’s idea of living in his “glory days” longer begins to look a lot more realistic. However, slowly but surely, plans fall apart for each of them.

It is a great entry into the “slacker film” genre that made “Clerks” and “The Big Lebowski” huge. Affleck is true to form after starring in other slacker films “Dazed and Confused” and “Mallrats.” Not only does he star in the film, but he also narrates portions of it.

Jack is a deeply troubled art student who is coming off of a seemingly bad break up. Just like ‘90s teen angst dictates, his parents do not understand him and feel like he is wasting his life. Where Affleck particularly shines in the film is at a beach party where he confronts his ex and delivers a speech that will haunt the tone of the rest of the movie. One line in particular — “Is there a third option between burning out and fading away?” — is a question that probably a lot of graduates ask themselves. Affleck would not begin to make a name for himself outside of slacker films until 1997s “Good Will Hunting.”

What truly makes “Glory Daze” a wonderful film is the influence from the decade it was made in. The film’s music is strictly skater punk bands like NOFX and Sublime. There is a skateboarding scene that almost feels as though it was added just to have skateboarding in the movie. The characters dress in typical ‘90s fashion. There are backwards hats, sweatshirts tied around waists, and shorts that go below the knee. It is a perfect snapshot for the time period. Due to limited releases, the film is not well known, but the film is definitely worth a watch.