Teenage is a documentary based on the book by Jon Savage, which argues that the teenager was not an invention of James Dean, Elvis Presley and the 1950s. Instead, we go back much further, to the beginning of the twentieth century, when the abolition of child labour meant that children were no longer jumping straight from childhood into adulthood. Instead, they found themselves in a state of limbo; what Judy Garland would sing about as being “an inbetween” and which would later become known as the teenage years.
As the story weaves between Germany, America and England, we follow four different young people trying to find a place for themselves in a changing world – a “Bright Young Thing” of the 1920s, a member of the Hitler Youth, a jazz-loving Swing Kid and a black member of the Boy Scout movement. Director Matt Wolf weaves these stories together in an impeccably arranged collage of archive footage and it is difficult not to be charmed by it all. The footage is wonderful to watch and full of moments of humour, pathos and good old teenage enthusiasm. An innovative, modern score from Bradford Cox of the band Deerhunter perfectly compliments this energy, while voiceovers are provided by some up and coming young actors including Jena Malone and Ben Whishaw.
Throughout, Teenage is a lot of fun to watch but it is also a little unsatisfying. The portraits of the central teenagers are impressionistic at best, offering glimpses into specific moments of their lives but never putting too much flesh on their bones. In a way, they are presented as archetypes rather than as individuals. In short, it left me wanting to know more. While I enjoyed my time watching Matt Wolf’s piece and have a great deal of admiration for its complex construction, I came out of the film wanting to read Savage’s book; tantalised by a theory that is sketched out in an interesting, compelling manner but never fully explored.