Young. Wild. Free.

R

2023

1h 53m

Drama

List

69%

Tomatometer

16 Reviews

A hot-tempered high school senior finds his claustrophobic life suddenly thrust into an enticing, dangerous direction after he is robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams.

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Tomris Laffly

Variety

An uncertain script saddles a stylish coming-of-age movie full of Los Angeles love.

Jan 25, 2023

Full Review

Robert Daniels

The Playlist

The visual prowess and narrative daring—while not enough to like the film—are such that you’re immediately anticipating what Banks will do next.

Rated: C

Jan 24, 2023

Full Review

Elizabeth Weitzman

TheWrap

When a film revisits stories, characters and locations so similar to ones we’ve seen before, it requires a particularly strong point of view to rise above the realm of homage — or cliché.

Jan 23, 2023

Full Review

Shanelle Genai

The Root

"So what’s a young man to do when his only escape appears to be the varying hand-drawn sketches adorning his walls and notepad and the solution to his problems appears nowhere in sight?"

Jun 19, 2024

Full Review

Lucas Moore

JVS Media & Productions/Team JVS

It's very reminiscent of 90s, early 2000s coming of age black cinema. While a shocking twist in the third act almost takes you out of it the characters and story is so strong you'll forgive it.

Rated: B

Aug 1, 2023

Full Review

Zach Pope

Zach Pope Reviews

Algee Smith & Sierra Capri are FIERCE, POWERFUL, & STELLAR in #YoungWildFree. A heartbreaking character study that is a great directorial debut for Thembi Banks! I found the script to be a bit thin at points but the direction is GREAT.

Rated: B+

Jul 20, 2023

Full Review

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Thembi Banks

Director

Algee Smith

Brandon Huffman

Sierra Capri

Cassidy

Sanaa Lathan

Janice Huffman

Mike Epps

Lamont

Jeremiah King

Trey Huffman

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Synopsis

A hot-tempered high school senior finds his claustrophobic life suddenly thrust into an enticing, dangerous direction after he is robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams.

Director: Thembi Banks
Producer: Twinkie Byrd, Baron Davis, Poppy Hanks, Charles D. King, James Lopez, Tommy Oliver
Screenwriter: Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier
Production Co: Confluential Films, No Label Productions, MACRO
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 53m